The first time I went to Venice, it was part of a tour. The city fascinated me and I left feeling I had unfinished business there, vowing to return. We arrived in Venice by Vaporetto. I felt very much like Angelina Jolie in The Tourist! (That’s a movie to watch if you’re heading to Venice, Oh and Death in Venice too!
Doge’s Palace
On our first visit to Venice, we were only there for 2 nights and so the days were jam packed full of sightseeing the big-ticket items. The highlight for me was touring the Doge’s Palace. The Tour is great as it explains the history of the city, the symbols of the city and their meaning. For example, the symbol of Venice is the winged Lion, and you will see it everywhere if you know where to look.
The building itself is stunning, elaborate ceilings that would rival the ones in St Peter’s Basilica. It was in this building that prisoners would learn their fate and if sentenced would be escorted straight from the sentencing room across the Bridge of Sighs – so named because prisoners would look out from the bridge and see their last view of Venice, sighing as they were led to prison. The prison still held prisoners here as late as the 1920’s.
St Mark’s Square
A must do in Venice is to wander around St Mark’s Square….early morning or late afternoon to avoid the hordes of tourists. Watch the clocktower as it strikes the hour and see the bronze figures move and strike the bell. This fabulous timepiece not only displays the time of day but also the dominate zodiac sign and the current phase of the moon. Wandering around St Mark’s Square you are likely to see all sorts of characters like the fellow below, communing with pigeons. There are numerous cafes lining the square, some offering live music playing while you dine, but you will pay through the nose for the privilege. One cafe that I would recommend you swallow the cost, order a glass of bubbles and just enjoy the old-world charm of, is Cafe Florian, Italy’s oldest cafe. Established in 1720, this place is gorgeous and will be a memorable experience.
Also facing onto St Mark’s Square is St Mark’s Cathedral. It’s stunning facade glows golden as the sun sets, striking the mosaics and setting them afire.
Apart from getting lost in Venice, which is a must do, we were trying to find the Venice Opera House. We wandered down alley ways, window shopped and stopped to take many photos…..by the time we found the Opera House, it had closed early to visitors as they were preparing for a show that evening. This was when I vowed to return to Venice one day.
Second Visit to Venice
We were back! Arriving by train from Milan, we had preordered a water taxi to take us to our hotel. This was a good idea as our ride was waiting there for us as we exited the train station…..finding him was a little problematic though, amongst all the other water taxis!
We chose to stay at the lovely Hotel Firenze – fantastic central location and very friendly, helpful staff. This visit we were doing it on our own, so made our own schedule…..first stop was of course the Opera house. We were lining up to purchase tickets for a tour when we heard a group in front of us enquire if there were any tickets available for that night’s performance. What a brilliant idea! As luck would have it, the opera that was on that night was one of the few operas performed in English, one I had never heard of before – the very exotic sounding, Peter Grimes. We bought tickets and had a wonderful night at Teatro la Fenice.
Shopping
Second order of business was to buy a genuine Venetian mask. After walking around looking at many shops, I kept being drawn back to the first shop I had looked at. They had some gorgeous masks that were a bit different from all the others. The shop assistant was lovely, she let us pick up and look at several masks…. in the end, I bought a colourful mask with feathers…..now to get it home in one piece!
I really wanted to see the Libreria Acqua Alta, a quirky bookstore that I had seen many photos of, where they protect their books from the constant threat of flooding, by displaying them in boats and bathtubs! We had to cross the Rialto bridge to find this little gem. Books are stacked and packed in every nook and cranny. It is a bit of a maze to wander through, with a slight musty odour coming from a pile of books outside, that are exposed to the elements. They are stacked in such a way as to create a staircase, that you are encouraged to climb for a view of the neighbouring canal.
We stopped while crossing the Rialto Bridge for some photos of the Grand Canal. I believe they have recently stopped people from doing this now as the bridge was getting too congested.
The Outer Islands of Venice
Murano
A whole day was dedicated to visiting Venice’s outer islands. We were there in summer, and it was hot! An all-day ferry pass will get you to all of the islands. Our first stop was Murano, the island famous for producing the well-known Murano glass. We watched a glass blowing demonstration but didn’t purchase anything…. it was all very expensive. That experience was ok, I think the locals there were a bit over tourists, unless you were purchasing …. they were not overly friendly.
Isola di San Michele
Back on a ferry and onto Burano Island, passing by the Isola di San Michele or the Island of the Dead, as it is known, due to it housing a large cemetery. A necessary solution to the problem of where to bury the dead in a city built on water.
Burano
Burano is a pretty, colourful island, famous for producing lace. We walked around the rainbow streets and over to the vineyard next to the main town. We were hoping to get a cool vino, but everything was closing down, and they would not serve us. The big negative on this day was the waiting for the ferries. In some places, the line waiting to get on a ferry was snaking around the block in the blazing sun. A lot of time was wasted that day waiting for ferries.
To Gondola or not to Gondola?
One of the very touristy things to do in Venice is to go on a gondola ride….. it’s expensive but I guess it’s one of those things you feel you have to do when in Venice. We did it on our first trip and as cheesy as it was, I loved it!
This trip though, we tried something different, and I have to say, I loved it more! Why not try your hand at being the gondolier?? The business of being a gondolier is very much a boy’s club. I think there may only be 1 female gondolier in all of Venice! The women came up with an idea to get around this – we are a clever bunch! Row Venice give gondolier lessons and the money they make goes towards funding the women’s rowing teams. We had such a fun afternoon. Our instructor gave us a bit of a sightseeing tour as we made our way through the canals out into the channel. It is actually quite shallow out there if you are worried about falling overboard, like I was! This is where she hands the paddle over to you! Fun! It is so much harder than it looks, but I got a ‘bravo!’ for my steering (lower centre of gravity being so short) and my partner got a ‘bravo!’ for his rowing….and a blister too I might add – he had to work hard to equal my efforts!
Food
Apart from the gorgeous, but touristy cafe mentioned earlier in St Mark’s Square, there are a couple of other stand-out dining experiences that I wanted to mention. Head away from the main square to the less touristy areas. There are wonderful restaurants near where we did our learn-to-row lesson, that are reasonably priced with tables right on the canal! A very Venetian style of eating is cicchetti (traditional small snacks) that you order with a drink. Across the canal from the famous Gondola shipyard, Squero San Trovaso, where they make, and repair gondolas, is a traditional little barcaro (Osteria Al Squero) offering yummy cicchetti. Sit inside or stand under the outer awning with a cool beverage and a few cicchetti and watch the artisans at work on the gondolas – how very Venetian!
Buildings of Interest
Our time in Venice was coming to an end. The last thing I will mention is some buildings of interest in Venice. Did you know that Pisa doesn’t have the monopoly on leaning towers in Italy? Venice has its very own leaning tower. Dominating the Venice skyline is the iconic domes atop the Basilica di Santa Maria della Salute. Keep an eye out for a sneaky Banksy, titled The Migrant Child. This commentary on the refugee crisis has suffered from weathering and a controversial decision has been made to restore the work.
Recent Changes
Venice have recently introduced a small fee of 5 Euros for day trippers over the age of 14, on certain days, to try and ease the impact that high tourist numbers are having on the city. A small price to pay and honestly, why would you just come for the day? Stay for at least 3 days…. then come back again!
One visit to Venice is not enough. The first time, tick off all the must-see places and experiences and then the second visit, just wander, explore and get lost in this mysterious city…. while it’s still here!
Deb Morrow is a wife and mum of two in her 50’s, who works in education. She has a passion for travel and through sharing her travel experiences, tips and recommendations, wants to encourage other women her age to start making time for themselves, grab their besties, and go see the world!
