Venice before dawn

Despite being jet-lagged I woke on the morning of September 20 at 4.30 a.m after 5 hours sleep.
I usually get up early, even when on vacation and once I opened the metal shutters that kept canal noise out while we slept and stepped out onto the balcony there was no chance that I would go back to bed and sleep some more. Further up the canal stood the Rialto Bridge in the dark and without one person on it (they were all asleep!).

I decided to go walking while I had Venice to myself and by 5 a.m I was ready. I was of course wearing my money belt but took only 20 Euros with me. I wore my camera bag so it couldn't be snatched if I met the wrong person in the dark.

Once out on the streets and away from the canal, where the streets are very narrow and dark, I wondered if what I was doing was wise. The streets looked deserted but I could hear footsteps in the distance and would turn a corner to see someone disappearing down an alley up ahead which I was going to pass. It was a little creepy to begin but I pressed on knowing I might never get this chance again. I was very aware of my surroundings with each step, relying on my ears as much as my eyes.

After 5 minutes of walking in the general direction of Rialto (walking parallel to the canal) I began to see people going to work and felt less insecure. They saw a tourist walking without a map. I only spoke to one person-a street cleaner. I asked him where Rialto was  and he responded in rapid Italian with turn by turn directions which I luckily understood and soon found myself at the foot of the bridge.

From my room I had seen boats with lights by Rialto. These were boats making deliveries to restaurants and bars. Soon they would be joined by boats picking up the trash from the day before.

As it was after 5 a.m now the Vaparetto would be running and I decided I would take one back to St Mark's Square rather than walk. I was now on the opposite side of the canal from our hotel. I checked the timetable at the nearest Vaparetto stop and there was one due in 7 minutes. I took a couple of photos while waiting for the boat.

The Vaparettos run on time and the time of each sailing is displayed. If you miss one there will only be a ten minute wait or so.

I was the only tourist on the boat. The few other people were making their way to work. The Vaparetto has a small open deck at the bow and at the stern which is where I liked to sit and take photos and videos without windows in the way. A recorded  voice over the PA will announce the stop you are approaching.

Within 15 minutes or so we were on the Guideca canal and approaching St. Mark's Square.

At this time of the morning-before 6 a.m there were few people in the Square. I saw 5 street sweepers using old fashioned brooms. Some people coming to work in the restaurants. A mother and her child out walking.

I hadn't yet had coffee and was hoping to find a cafe to fix that major problem. There aren't Starbucks coffee houses on each street corner in Venice-if there are any at all- so I had to go searching in the streets off the square.

My nose was working overtime, hoping to smell coffee in the air...

I finally found a cafe open. It was the only source of light in a very narrow dark alley but the air was full of the smell of rich, dark espresso. There was only one small table in it and two older Italian gentlemen were sitting there with a small dog at their feet. I ordered an espresso and once I had my cup of life-giving elixir I took it outside to the street and found a doorstep to sit on. A gentleman next to me was reading a local newspaper and sipping a cappuccino . He was reading by the light from the cafe. The coffee was better than anything you can buy in a Starbucks. The beans were Lavazza.

Suitably refreshed I could now head back to St Mark's as I wanted to be on the Guideca canal at dawn to see if any ships were coming in. My ship would be coming in today. She might already be here even though it wasn't yet 7 a.m.

To be continued....

St Mark's Square by night

The heavy downpour in Venice was short-lived and once we had paid for our meal we set off on our walk to St Mark's Square, maybe 15 minutes at a slow strolling pace, stopping now and then to look in the colorful tourist shop windows.

We had planned to visit the square after dinner and imagined ourselves sitting outside the famous Cafe Florian, having a drink while listening to the band who plays there. The square was still wet though and the crowds that would have added to the atmosphere on a warm September night were back in their hotels or sitting inside the restaurants and bars. So we just walked though the square and out to the Guideca canal where we found an attendant at the Vaparetto ticket booth who could create tickets for us from our 24 Hour Pass print-out.

With a 24 hour Vaparetto pass issued late in the evening we now had unlimited water-travel for the rest of our time in Venice. It would prove to be worth the money....

Here's a video of our visit to the square and our first Vaparetto ride.....

Dinner at da Raffaele

We were only in Venice for 20 hours before transferring to the ship but during that brief time I found my favorite place to relax- on the stone patio outside the door to our hotel. This was the place to have a beer, served by Bobby the cheerful Philippino bartender who has worked that bar for 12 years.

After my walk I needed to sit and have a glass of beer-Nastro Azzuro (Blue Ribbon) before tackling the task of unpacking. Bobby brought me a beer from the bar......

and some salty snacks

This would help sustain me until our 7 pm dinner reservation. The hotel had called the restaurant to reserve a seat for us outdoors, right on the canal so we could see the Gondoliers who sail there.

Our rooms were right above the patio at the front of the hotel. We had the three balconies on the right.

I enjoyed seeing boats go by while I sipped my beer....

This is a Vaparetto-a public water bus which is how most Venetians move around the city. We had bought a 24 hour pass while in the USA. The pass needs to be converted into tickets that fit their machines as you get on the boat. We had tried to do this at the airport baggage claim but the machines there were out of order (doh!). We didn't need a Vaparetto ride at the moment but we would have to find another machine or a ticket booth to convert our pass. A single ride costs 7 Euro and a pass saved time and money. If you are found riding without a ticket (there is a conductor on board) you pay a 50 E fine. Cough up the money!!

An ambulance races by. It has a musical siren-we're in Italy so that is only to be expected!

With a few hours to pass before dinner I did my unpacking and followed that up with a deep one-hour nap in the quiet bedroom.  We were jet-lagged but one hour is all we can have otherwise we'll end up missing dinner and wake up in the middle of the night.

After a refreshing nap we could look forward to our first real meal of the day. We were going to dine at a touristy restaurant which has made a living for the past 60 years so we figured the food had to be at least edible. The hotel concierge gave us a map and highlighted the route to the hotel.

Somehow, sitting outside, relaxing some more watching the boat traffic over some drinks we found we were running slightly late by 10 minutes and so the hotel called the restaurant and told them to hold the table.

This proved to be a very good idea on the hotel's part.

The forecast was for a thunderstorm that evening. We had been watching the weather before we left the USA and saw rain forecast almost every day- just our luck but we had to be in Venice come rain or shine.

We set off on our walk and the streets were busy with tourists going out for dinner. The sky turned a dark blue and it was only a matter of time before the rain would come. It came at 7.10 p.m just as we arrived at the restaurant. The waiters were rushing to bring in tables that weren't covered by the awning so no one was paying attention to the newly arrived guests for the first minute or two. Wet people soon followed us under cover and would no doubt want a table just to get out of the rain so I had to speak up and called over to the Maitre 'd who had just moved the last table. In my best Italian I told him that we had a reservation booked by Palazzo Sant' Angelo and he welcomed us and pointed us to our table-the only one outside that was empty. What a relief to get seated! The canopy kept us dry as the noise of the rain beat down in a deafening roar. Rain this heavy can't last long I thought and  indeed it was over within 10 minutes or so, by which time our waiter had come to introduce himself and take drinks orders to get us started.

Carol at the table, making notes on her phone. Gondolas came down the Canal next to us.

Our first meal in Venice and we were hungry. All the tables in the restaurant were busy. English accents to our right. Some French heard too. The waiter spoke English after we ordered in Italian, which was fine by us as at least we got some practice when ordering. He was friendly and witty which goes a long way with us.

My favorite pasta dish-spaghetti ala carbonara (spaghetti with ham and egg) with a generous helping of parmesan cheese. I bought a very good bottle of Pinot Grigio to wash it down. It cost about $20 US and was so good that Carol even enjoyed a glass.

Prosciutto and melon for Carol and it was delicious.

Our entrees only appear on the video which will follow soon as I was too busy eating to remember to take photos. This is my after-dinner Sambuca and espresso which was served in a cup with a lid to keep it hot. Nice touch!

We enjoyed the food but it was pricey considering how basic it was- cost with tip was $180 for two including wine and Sambuca. Great location though and there was no doubt we were in venice thanks to the canal and the passing Gondoliers.

Here's the video......

Venice walk continued

I wore something on this trip that I had never worn before-a money belt. I had read many reports on Rick Steves' website about pickpocketing in Italy and as we had brought 1,000 Euros along to pay for our guides in Rome I wanted to keep them secure whether I was carrying all of them (as I was from the airport) or some of them (when I walked in Venice). The money belt cost $15 and carried cash, a credit card with no Foreign Transaction fee and a photocopy of my Passport. It fits around your waist and then under your jeans/pants at belt level where only you can unzip it.

I had asked some friends at home who had been to Italy and some of them told tales of themselves or their friends having their wallets stolen on the first day so no wallets and no pockets for me!

Regarding cameras and thief-temping valuables-carry the camera bag wrapped around your neck with the strap running across your chest so that the bag or camera can't be grabbed from your shoulder by someone walking by or riding by on a Vespa unless they tear your neck off.

When you sit to eat at a cafe and there are people walking or sitting close to you trap the handles of your handbag or camera bag under a leg of your chair so it can't be snatched.

So far in my first hour in Venice I hadn't come into a situation where I was in a crowd or in close proximity to potential pickpockets but I felt it better to be prepared. I was able to relax and enjoy what I was seeing as I walked back to the hotel.

Gondolier waiting for a customer

Fridge magnets-something we buy in every city we visit

Ristorante Colombo which was a recommendation by our limo driver from the airport-Lorenzo.
We had already booked a table for tonight's dinner at another restaurant.

Another restaurant and you don't have to walk far to find one in Venice

A supermarket 2 minutes walk from our hotel

The courtyard behind our hotel. People are heading to the Vaparetto stop called Sant Angelo which is close to our hotel

Now I'm back at the hotel. The Rialto Bridge is in the distance.

Now it's time to sit and relax for a while with a cold Italian beer!

While I am ordering here is a video I made during my walk....

First walk in Venice

I went for a walk in Venice without a map, but I had looked at google maps of the area near our hotel before flying to Italy and had a rough idea of the geography. My aim was to stay on the dry parts (the ancient cobbled streets) and out of the wet parts (the Canals) unless I was in a boat. My walk took me away from the Grand canal which snakes it's way through the city like a , er, I guess- a snake.

I was hoping to find a place we were going to visit the next day-La Fenice, the Venice Opera house which was set on fire in 1996 but was now lovingly restored. We had bought tickets online in the USA and had time to see an afternoon performance of Il Trovatore, an opera by Guiseppe Verdi.

The first thing that struck me , once I walked 50 yards from the Grand Canal was how quiet it is in a city without cars in it's center. You hear footsteps, hear voices that you can't see yet echoing down an alleyway up ahead. It's very peaceful and human. I fell in love with the sound of Venice first.

A square less than 5 minutes ramble from our hotel on the Grand Canal

Tower in the square. Yes, it's leaning.

The big umbrellas belong to two restaurants in the square. We had dinner plans for our first evening-but not here.

I felt I must be getting closer to the Opera house and walked down a narrow alley, leading away from the square...

The alleyway took a couple of twists and turns....and I found the rear of the Opera House.

La Fenice!

Ok, I found it and now could find it again tomorrow afternoon. We would have to have lunch before the Opera as we had to go to our ship immediately afterwards. We would need to leave our hotel soon after 7 p.m. taking a water taxi to the ship. The Opera began at 3.30. and would last about 3 hours. The walk to the hotel would take 15 minutes at an easy pace. A workable plan!

There were restaurants within a few feet of the Opera House so we could always eat there I thought.

Several options.

It was soon time to start heading back to the hotel to do my own unpacking and relax for a while.
I turned to make the walk back taking photos and video along the way......

New Home in Venice

As you saw from the video we had a room looking out over the Grand Canal with three balconies.

To get there we first had to go into the hotel

 and introduce ourselves-this I did in practiced Italian and it got big smiles from the desk clerk. He of course spoke excellent English so I soon dropped the Italian. I confirmed that he had booked a table at a canal-side restaurant for us this evening and he had. In our year of research I had found a touristy restaurant that screamed VENICE  in bright red letters.

The Bellman brought our luggage up to our room

The TV that never got turned on...

Something lacking in U.S. Hotels and homes-a bidet.

Even the bathroom had a window facing the Grand Canal.

The view from our balcony


As is our custom when we check-in to our room, I immediately leave and go for a walk while Carol unpacks and puts all her luggage away.

Next up...my first walk in Venice

VENICE

The Doctor will see you now...

Thanks for waiting!

I have been away from my post for over two months as that's how long it took for me to write a review on Cruisecritic.com. I have another cruise coming up in January 2015 so hope to get you caught up within the next two months.

If you want to pull up a chair I'll recount the tale of our most recent adventure which centered on Italy, a country neither of us had been to in many, many (actually even more than that) years.

It was time to return to Italy and we were lured by Princess Cruises who were sailing their smallest ship, the Ocean Princess, from Venice to Rome, stopping at Dubrovnik, Malta, Tunis, Sorrento along the way before docking at Civitavecchia, the nearest port to Rome. Neither I nor Carol, my Traveling Companion, had visited any of these places before.

Cruises to faraway places take some planning, especially if you want to get to where the ship will be a day early and want to stay a day or two later, after the cruise so that you don't have to get off the ship and head straight to an airport and into the savage teeth of reality. Cruisers will know what I mean.

You have to book your Cabin on the ship. First come-first served unless you don't mind taking whatever cabin you can get. We wanted a specific cabin at the stern of the ship. To this you will add the cost of Travel Insurance just incase there is something that prevents you from sailing on the ship. If you decide you don't need Travel Insurance you will need the services of a good Psychiatrist.

Then you choose Port Excursions so that you can have adventures when the ship is in harbor.

Then you book Airline Tickets and they take your money right away and stash it under their mattress. Don't worry you will still have one arm and one leg left after you pay for the airline tickets.

Then you find Hotels-one in Venice and one in Rome.

We did all this over a year away from the boarding date of September 20, 2014 and sat back and waited for a year or so.

September 18th 2014 and we were onboard a United Airlines flight to Munich, Germany where we had an hour to change to an Air Dolomite plane to Venice. There was a 7 hour time difference between Chicago and Venice so when we arrived in Venice at noon it felt like 5 a.m to our body clocks.

There are several ways to get to your hotel from Venice's Marco Polo airport.  There is a bus where you load and unload your own luggage. It takes you to where the dry land stops (Piazzale Roma) and the watery Venice begins. Then you can drag your luggage along the cobbled streets and over bridges to your hotel or if your hotel isn't close but is on or near the water you can get onboard a local water bus called the Vaparetto which has multiple stops on the water and is how most folks get around when they have distances to cover. There is a water bus from the airport called Alilaguna which has several stops in watery Venice.

An expensive but fast and direct way to your hotel is a Water Taxi. These are small shiny wooden boats with a personal driver and like a regular land taxi you have the boat to yourself (or share with others to reduce the cost which is @ 120 Euros ($160). You can walk to the Water taxi dock at the airport in 10 minutes or so, with your luggage OR take it from the Piazzale Roma after getting yourself there from the airport by road.

We asked our hotel to book transportation from the airport direct to the hotel...

So at the airport there was a man in a sharp suit holding holding up a sign with my name on it. His name was Lorenzo (probably still is) and he had a black Mercedes E Class waiting for us. He loaded up our luggage and we drove into dry Venice. He spoke good English and was a very witty guy, easy to talk to. Our first interaction with an Italian and it felt good. We had both been learning Italian while we waited for the cruise to come along and used our phrases to break the ice each  time we met an Italian. I used Rosetta Stone and Carol used Berlitz.

At Piazzale Roma Lorenzo parked the car and led us down to the dock where a water taxi was waiting for us. He loaded our luggage on board and introduced our driver who knew where he had to take us-to our hotel the Palazzo Sant' Angelo which was on the Grand Canal and had it's own boat dock. We thanked Lorenzo for his part in our journey and climbed aboard the water taxi. You have to bend low and walk like Groucho Marx to get to the back of the boat where there are seats. I stood up to take photos of our first Water Taxi ride.....

This photo above shows the view as we left Piazzale Roma behind

Our driver keeps his eye on the road, er I mean sea!

Now we are on the Grand Canal

We were only on the Water taxi for 20 minutes or so, trying to take in all we could see which was an overload of the senses- the smell of salt water, the sound of people on the narrow streets or on bridges we went under, the warmth of a September day (mid 70's) and the sight of a small city built on the water, unique in the World. It was quieter than any place we had ever been as there were no cars, just small boats. That yellow and white thing on the water above is a Vaparetto station.

Here we arrive at the Hotel's dock. A bellman would come out to get our luggage.

Here is a short video of the trip we have just taken from Piazzale Roma ......

Video

More soon!