Return to Venice 2006, Part 1 of 2

Travel Diary

Friday, June 30, 2006

An old map of Venice in the Vatican museum

Steve wrote:

Approaching Venice from the air, you realize how small an area it actually takes up. We could see some familiar landmarks as we landed. We headed for the alilaguna to take us to Piazza San Marco. There used to be a bus from the terminal to the docks but everything appears to be under construction, so we walked. Much hotter than when we were here in early June of 2004. The water bus is listed as €11 per passenger but if we wanted to leave “right now, non-stop” on a high-speed boat, we could pay €25 each, which we did. Dropped us off at San Marco, about ½ mile from our hotel, The Danieli, built in a former palazzo. We checked in, unpacked and took a well needed nap in a well air conditioned room.

Rosemary wrote:

The first time we came to Venice was at the end of a two-week vacation. My feet were bruised, and walking had become too difficult. In any case, we had only a day and a half here. This time we are starting here, my feet feel great, and we have given ourselves four full days (plus tonight). What a difference! It was still light between our nap and dinner, so we just walked away from the San Marco area and drifted into real places where real people were doing real things. Just a few blocks makes a world of difference.

Masks are everywhere

Steve wrote:

Winding our way through unfamiliar streets, we came to Campo Santa Maria Formosa, a church and piazza framed with outdoor bars and restaurants. Not quite ready for dinner, we wandered back toPiazza San Marco, which had been our central reference point last trip. The number of dueling orchestras had increased from three to four without any increase in violence. We had dinner at a little seafood restaurant (Ristorante La Gondola), which was better than we expected it to be. Checked my email at an Internet café and was able to ignore almost everything. Had some gelato for dessert and went back to the hotel for a full night's sleep.

Saturday, July 1

A face on the Rialto Bridge

Rosemary wrote:

This city is amazing. Tiny passageways between buildings are streets that go somewhere. Crumbling walls are held together by iron bars and willpower. Fading frescoes, ancient bas-relief, flaking plaster and brick, stone supports between the buildings. Today we followed two of Rick Steves' walks, from San Marco to Rialto and from Rialto to Frari Church.

Steve wrote:

Rick travels in Europe 4-5 months each year, and his books are the best. Good advice, humorous descriptions and pretty accurate directions. Landmarks, places of interest off the beaten path, many churches and, as always, amazing artwork. Saw the marketplace near Rialto, where the locals get their produce and fish. As a coastal town, fish is extremely fresh and featured on most of the menus at even medium class restaurants, and is almost always delicious. Local favorites are branzano, a type of sea bass, and cuttlefish, a relative of the squid and octopus, whose ink is used as a sauce for pasta.

Dogs love Venice

Had a late lunch at Da Nico, where we had dinner on our last trip, and went back to the hotel for a nap. The weather has been stifling hot and, of course, the 500 year old churches don't have air conditioning, so between the heat and humidity, we're wiped out. Plus, we're trying to take it easy on Rosemary's feet and my back, so a nap helps all the way around. It also means 2 changes of clothing a day, so we may have to do laundry more often than expected.

Rosemary wrote:

We had a light dinner at a pizzaria called Da Roberto. Roberto was so pleased by my attempts to praise the food in Italian that he brought us drinks on the house. The limoncello was really, really good. After dinner we sat on the edge of Piazza San Marco for a while, listening to the bands. It began to rain, lightly, and people started leaving the square. One of the bands turned around to play to the people who had taken shelter under the eaves. We walked back through the rain to our hotel and a good night's sleep.

Sunday, July 2

This way to Murano

Rosemary wrote:

After breakfast at the hotel, we took the boat to Murano, home of the glass factories. We bought a few gifts, visited the church, and walked as far as the park across the canal from the glass museum. We did not visit the museum. We had some gelato during our walk, and later lunch at one of the cafes along the main street (Da Tanduo). By the time we got back to the hotel, it was about 3pm, and we were ready for a nap. We couldn't find a do-not-disturb sign, so we were awakened by the housekeeper, who fled when we answered the doorbell.

Stefano con Stefano

Steve wrote:

In the early evening, we wandered some more though some neighborhoods, saw more piazzas and churches, including San Stefano (my favorite!), and crossed over the Accademia Bridge, one of only three that cross The Grand Canal. The only other ways to get across are by vaporetto at specific stops or traghetto, a gondola that just crosses the canal. Took the vaporetto back to San Zaccaria and had dinner outside facing The Grand Canal (Principessa). As usual, some great fish, simply prepared by roasting with some potatoes in olive oil (Ristorante Principessa).

Monday, July 3

These guys are smooth

Rosemary wrote:

In the morning we took a gondola ride. We got to glide down canals that have no foot paths and see things from a completely different level. There was an occasional traffic jam, but nothing serious. The gondolier never bumped or scraped anything, despite the narrow passageways. We had a small snack and then went to the Accademia Musem. It's a great collection but there was no air conditioning or ventilation of any kind. It was stifling, and actually hotter inside than out. We had lunch at a sidewalk cafe, just sandwiches and cool drinks. Then we went to see the Peggy Guggenheim Collection. The modern art was a refreshing change of pace.

Steve wrote:

OK, I admit it, I don't get much of it. But Peggy was a patron, friend and lover/wife of some of the biggest artists in this area and hung with the rich and famous, including John & Yoko, the latter of whom planted an olive tree in Peggy's garden after Peggy's death and called it “art”. Peggy and her dogs are buried there, making this (according to Rick Steves) the only museum where the owner is buried in the garden.

Slogan on a bench at Peggy G's

Rosemary wrote:

We took a quick walk around the Salute church, then went back to the hotel for a much-needed nap. Still no dnd sign, so we left a note saying “dormiamo” on the door. Housekeeping responded by leaving us a real sign. Walking around before dinner, we got a little bit too lost. A nice old man sensed our trouble and gave us detailed directions in Italian. We understood him, but still had trouble finding our way. The streets are complicated. (We learned that there are some really ugly spots here, where the decay is just decay and not so picturesque.)

Steve wrote:

Called my father to wish him a happy 79th birthday. Another hot day and evening, We tried to find a few restaurants near Santa Maria Formosa recommended by Rick Steves. Found two of them, but the air conditioning wasn't working in the first. (Rosemary's note: It was beyond not working, it was as if they had turned on a heater.) The second (Giardinetto) had a lovely outdoor garden patio and we scored a table under a ceiling fan. Some marinated cold seafood as an appetizer and roasted sea bream for diner. Found a great gelato stand (Gelato Boutique) and called it a night.

A rare sign

Tuesday, July 4

Steve wrote:

Took the vaporetto to the Jewish Ghetto, bought a gift for our good friends Steffi and Jonathan, and had lunch at Gam Gam, the only kosher restaurant on Venice. We had the “antipasti Israeli” and it was delicious.

Went to the great hall at San Rocco, where all the walls and ceilings are by Tintoretto - sometimes called his “Sistine Chapel” - but it was so hot inside, we left without being able to fully examine all the works.

Dinner on Lido

Rosemary wrote:

In the evening we took the vaporetto to Lido (the island that allows vehicles). Cars! Buses! Bicycles!

Steve wrote:

It's a long, narrow island; we walked across it to the famous beach, which was very nice. We then walked back through some beautiful neighborhoods, where houses large and small had front yards, something you rarely see in Venice. Had another great fish dinner (at Ristorante Roxy) and took the boat back to San Zaccaria for our last night at Hotel Danieli.