Today, simple goals of a clean kitchen, a cake cooling on the racks, sitting next to the fire and reading The Biggle Horse Book, A Concise and Practical Treatise on the Horse, Adapted to the Needs of Farmers and Others Who have a Kindly Regard for This Noble Servitor of Man. The title is a bit wordy, but I do love the advice thus far, penned in 1894. And still quite relevant.
"The three greatest enemies of the horse are idleness, fat and a dumb blacksmith." Harriet Biggle.
"If you must put frosty bits in some mouths, let it be your own. Suffering begets sympathy." John Tucker
Huz is unfortunately off getting a new tire on his 16 year old car- he's going for 400k miles- and it has begun snowing in earnest, so a new tire may help him return. He and Youngest switched his flat on Thursday evening in the rainy dark- but it was a warm(ish) night. Winter swiftly returned to the roost. I will be glad to have him back home, but may end up fetching him with the 4x4 truck.
And with this snow, I have had more time to think about our wonderful trips of 2017. Recently, a friend asked me if I'd ever been to Venice, and I realized that a trip down memory lane would be great fun on this blog, and maybe it would help her plan her own impending visit to Venice!
Let me start by sharing that I was not the most enthusiastic visitor to Venice. I feel that now sounds petulant, but I am not fond of crowds, and my understanding was that Venice is small town with a huge tourist population- in other words, "a crush". But, as Huz and I were going to be so close by in Verona, it seemed like an opportunity of a lifetime to see such a famous city. In fact, I was the one who said "Let's just go."
We made a hotel reservation when my checking around indicated there were fewer options left every day, and so we picked in a "dart-at-board" fashion.
Other than purchasing my guide books- Rick Steves Italy and the Venice Pocket Guide by the same author, I did very little learning about our destination.
That was a mistake. Although Huz and I are easy travelers, great walkers and fine about "winging it", I should have made a greater effort at understanding Venice, because boy, did I have questions once I got there! The city is fascinating, and mysterious, and I wanted to know so much more than what my guidebooks could answer. Since returning home I have added one more book to my Venice list, one that I should have read before going. It is called Venice, A New History by Thomas F. Madden. Now, I wish I could return to do it all again, knowing a LOT more.
The first thing I should have made an effort to understand was the Vaporetto system. We arrived at the train station at one end of the Grand Canal, and could find no information booth or help, so asked a portabagagli- or luggage porter, how far it was to our hotel. He said 20 minutes, and we declined his help and began walking.
What we did not know, and should have, was that there was a Vaporetto station at the train station that would have taken us right to the front of our hotel! A Vaporetto is a boat that is the "bus" of Venice. It goes up and down the Grand Canal, stopping along the way. The 20 minutes was optimistic, and we only had an address in a notoriously confusing city, but without much trouble, we found our way.
Our dumb luck, we had booked a gorgeous room in an amazing location, right on the Grand Canal. Venice is split, in a "S" shaped ribbon by the Grand Canal, and the town focuses largely on this watery thoroughfare.
Hotel Pesaro Palace is located in a palazzo, or what was once a very grand house for a wealthy Venice merchant.
Our room overlooked the palazzo courtyard and the Ca d'Oro, or House of Gold, one of the ornate ancient palazzos in Venice. It is now a museum.
If you looked to the right from our room the Grand Canal was a buzz.
Across the Grand Canal was the Fish Market.
In the market, on market day, you can buy fish!
Boy, do I want to fill a bag with the stuff in this photo.
The posted limits for the quality of the fish being offered:
Advice: find tucked away small cafes and every late afternoon/evening have an Aperol Spritz. It is a thing for a reason. Dinner can come later, much later, if you like!
In our wanders we found these dapper red striped fellows climbing aboard their boat. It turned out that afternoon was a full on Venice style Parade and Regatta!
The famed Rialto Bridge, normally teeming with people was closed for the event.
We found a spot to watch (and yes, it was a crush!)
We do a lot of parades in Ohio. After 18 years here I know a parade when I see one. This was a Parade. On boats. I'm thinking this is where the tradition of Parades got started, as it makes sense why they are called "floats" now. This float combined the musicianship of the Adelphi Band with the royal personages of the Pumpkin Show Queen and court.
Yes, I am comparing Venice to Circleville, Ohio's Pumpkin Show Parade.
After the royal floats all passed, dozens of teams competing in the races rowed past to great acclaim. They even had a Team USA! The photo above shows our hotel, on the left, and the hotel next to it with the art sculpture "Support" by Lorenzo Quinn, symbolizing hands holding the building from falling into the water.
The rabbit-warren of little alleys that is the main way of getting around can make you feel dizzy. A good sense of direction will help. A compass may help if you don't have one of those, and always give yourself leeway to not be where you thought you'd be.
Pay attention, lest you end in a canal.
Those "oops" moments are always a bit of a fun surprise.
Keep an eye out for the Gondolas when you are on a bigger bridge, you can peer over the edge and watch this tourist moment!
Advice: Go ahead a see the freakishly ornate St. Mark's Cathedral, and the Doge's Palace, take a Gondola ride, etc. But, take time to notice all the amazing little bits of Venice; the tape holding it together, the laundry hanging out the windows, the garbage boat and the windowsill herb gardens.
Advice: Go to Saint Marks Square, or Piazza San Marco, in the morning and late afternoon. In the midday it is full of tourists off the cruise boats, and you will, again, be in the crush.
This is the glorious building lit up by the late afternoon sun.
We enjoyed a tour of St. Marks and a climb to the top in the morning, with fewer crowds. The horses atop the cathedral are replicas of the originals, but the originals, stolen from Constantinople by Doge Enrico Dandolo on a Crusade, are still housed in the top of the cathedral.
Advice: Grab a ride from one end of Venice to the other on a Vaporetto. It is an inexpensive way to tour the Grand Canal. We chose late afternoon when the crowd traffic was lighter. The homes on the Grand Canal were the show pieces of the wealthiest families of Venice. They are falling to bits in a lot of places now, but keep your eyes peeled and you can still see how ornate they once were.
This is a mosaic on the front of a palazzo, along with trompe l'oeil painting. I don't' know where the rest of the person went that should be attached to that arm, but I think it was Jesus, (the Venetians of old were devoted Catholics- I'm sure many still are) and these are artisans, paint or sculpture, discussing the art. I particularly like the "one red leg one brown leg" tights.
Advice: in the afternoon, head out away from Rialto in any direction until you get away from the tourist areas. The Campos (paved "field" near each church) will be filled with kids playing "football". Some of the Campos will have a small cafe where you can sit in the campo and enjoy an Aperol Spritz!
Our other favorite was lunch at Pizzeria Oke. It is right on the water, and extra props for serving a vegetarian, gluten-free pizza that was as good as it looks. Watering Mouth Now.
And, don't forget the gelato. Our favorites were from the non-chain places, and it sounds ridiculous to say, as it seems to be the same advice everyone gives. I don't really like ice cream very much. But, after a day of tromping around the city, exploring, getting lost to find yourself something great, some evenings all I really wanted was a gelato and some sleep! It really is that good.
Final Bit of Advice: if you have a chance to see Venice, go.
