Profile
Blog
Photos
Videos
A glorious day, I was woken up to the sounds of many rowing teams passing my window and giving a team chant as they passed under the accademia bridge. I watched them all go past as I ate my breakfast from my window. Today is a major festival in Venice, all the maritime areas of Italy are here to compete in rowing races through the grand canal and the town is eerily quiet of locals except for the canal banks! The vaporettos have been suspended for most of the day, which is a shame as I was going to use them alot to explore Venice.... So will be doing it on foot for now...
There is an enormous church close to my hotel at the entrance to the grand canal dedicated to Mary in thanks for the end of a decimating bout of plague many centuries ago. It was empty so I had all the art and grandeur to myself. My old camera decided to work this morning, but I am still glad to have the backup as I think it is only a matter of time.
I caught a boat from the lagoon to take me to the train station and technically the start of Venice proper, it went past 7 massive cruise ships docked in the terminal alongside some very expensive boats belonging to seriously rich people. I did the tourist walk of Venice (tourist set menus and mcdonalds), and turned off at the Jewish area. I watched the parade of the rowboats and teams go by from a bridge, it looks like they all do a row by in team colours or costumes, and the crowd is going wild! The competition starts later.....
I have found a very local trattoria for lunch and am enjoying grilled vegetables, bean and pasta soup, wine and later roast peaches with amorretto. I am in a garden surrounded by herbs and unusually young Italian families with children. The population growth is at an all time low in Italy and it is rare to see lots of children.
I crossed back over to my side of the island at the Rialto bridge and walked the neighbourhood back to my hotel. I liked this area alot, quiet and residential, there is a university and the piazzas are full of locals and there is a very relaxed feel. Alot of the shops are artisan products of a high quality from clothes to ceramics to glasswear. The trattorias look great so I will come back for dinner. By the time I had finished my walk the boats were operational again so I spent a couple of hours cruising up and down the canals serviced by the vaporettos soaking up the atmosphere. I was passing one of the big churches and they were holding mass so I stopped and went to the service - absolutely amazing in Italian with the theatrical robes and gothic ceilings and a church full to capacity. Afterwards it was time for an aperitif and cicchetti so I stopped at the Rialto market area at a highly recommended enotica. The aperitif of choice for Italians is a spritz - campari, prosecco and sparkling water. The tapas style nibbles in Venice are called cicchetti and you pay for them and each place has it's specialties. The tourists sit down and pay surcharges on their drink, food and a service charge for the table (€6 upwards extra a person) the Italians stand around the bar door in a big group and it is half the price. So for €6 I got a spritz, mozzarella and tomato and pesto on bread, a meat and rice meatball, and all the views free by standing.
More boats and I returned to accademia and walked towards the neighbourhood I visited earlier, and stopped at the first great trattoria I came across. They specialize in vegetarian antipasta platters and homemade cakes, but the portions were huge so I took a gamble on the homemade lasagne and it was amazing - made with ricotta and small amounts of meat and tomato and no grease! I am having strawberry shortcake for dessert. I am seated by the kitchen and am watching all the homemade food being assembled! The couple next to me are honeymooners from japan and we chat until I finish my meal. They think it's very odd that you can drink in Italy publically from midday onwards, and that everyone does it, but I pointed out that while Italians drink with meals, when do you ever see them drunk? It is all about moderation and drinking with food, and having no preservatives in the wine mean no hangovers. It is very civilized.
- comments