Also see:
We will be staying just off the Grand Canal, on the Rio Del Duca Canal.
Travel the boats along the Grand Canal and there are numerous "fondaco" houses - these are buildings that were a combination of warehouse and the merchant's residence.
Also see:
We will be staying just off the Grand Canal, on the Rio Del Duca Canal.
Travel the boats along the Grand Canal and there are numerous "fondaco" houses - these are buildings that were a combination of warehouse and the merchant's residence.
We travel by van to Napoli where we catch a high speed train to Rome and then Venezia.
We have rented an apartment, the Ca'Delle Rose in the San Marco area of Venice. The two bedroom apartment had a very good location.
We arrived by train, and that means when you walk out the doors the Stazione di Venezia Sant Lucia, the visual of the Grand Canada just hits you. It has far more impact than arriving by car, parking at Piazzale Roma.
Our apartment looked out onto a private garden area.
Inside, the apartment has a living room area, a kitchen, and a bedroom with its own bath at each end. The kitchen was the disappointment with this apartment. A two burner stove is not enough when "real cooking" is to take place.
Venice is all about the canals and there are endless views of the winding canals that create the countless islands of Venezia.
But in addition to the visual impact of the canals, the overall architecture of Venice is magical.
Gondolas define the city, some of the canals seemed like conveyor belts with one gondola after another making its slow route. The City of Venice actually sets the office rate of gondola rides. It starts at 80 Euro for a 40 minute ride, with a 20 minute rate available for 450 Euro. There is variance on the rates, and extra services such as singing or music, well you just pay more.
We have had our gondola ride on previous trips. Now we spend money for a day pay and ride the vaporetti along the Grand Canal. A ride early in the morning is very relaxing. As the day progresses and the tourists and locals increase their use of the vaporetti, well it gets quite packed. Here, pictured above, we are travelling back on the vaporetti and getting a great view of the Doge's Palace with the domes of St. Marks behind.
The impressive lower level arches of the Doge's Palace. The capitals, as seen above, of the columns have integrate carvings in marble.
The many people of Venezia. Anyone look familiar?
This year we spent a day to go to Murano and Burano, two of the islands in the Venetian Lagon. Murano, known for its glass is my second choice to visit. Burano, 7 kilometers from Venice is a 40 minute vaporetti ride and is very scenic. It is known for its houses of many colours.
Burano. Think colours. But the colours are not random. No, they follow a specific system. If someone wants to paint their home they send a request to the Government who informs the person of the colours permitted for their use. Okay, that topic came up our our lunch and I was wrong. The colours are controlled!
Meanwhile back in Venice there is time for one more walk around the city. The canals are the actual working streets of the city. This beautiful green boat is one of the boats used to pick up garbage. We had the opportunity to use one as a bridge and to walk across one as the means of getting to our water taxi when we were leaving.