Venice, Italy

When I talk to people who've been to Venice, they either love it or hate it. I fall into the LOVE it category. It feels like another planet in the best possible way.

We went for the first time in August 2008 and did all the touristy things including the gondola ride. We stayed in a small hotel in the heart of Venice, near St. Mark's Square. It's almost impossible to find your way using a map in Venice. This forces a type A planner (like myself) to put down the plan and wander. Maybe that is why it feels so special. We spent the days wandering through the tiny paths between buildings and over the water. We didn't make any restaurant reservations. If we were hungry and saw something that looked good, we stopped and ate. We had at least 3 servings of gelato daily. Melon was our favorite! We looked in little shops that sold books, masks, hand-marbled paper, or glass. Rainbow colored glass was everywhere in Venice and the small neighboring island, Murano. We got to Murano late in the day so shops were closed but it was still neat to see. I remember a window box filled with glass flowers.

We were lucky enough to go again in July 2024 with my mom and our son, Caden (11 at the time). This time, we stayed on the mainland at Crowne Plaza Venice East Quarto d'Altino. It had a nice breakfast buffet and was very close to the train that took us to the island of Venice in less than 1/2 an hour. It was every bit as magical and unique as I remembered it with water transportation, colored buildings, and melon gelato (still the best)! This time it was very hot. Despite the high temperatures, we walked and wandered. We ate, shopped, and took in the sights of the islands of Venice and Murano.

Caden was very adventurous trying several forms of fish including: octopus, sardines, shrimp, scallop (complete with the orange roe that is usually removed in the U.S.), and whipped codfish Baccala. We ate dinner in the Castello sestieri (neighborhood) at Osteria San Isepo. The food and service were excellent and the cool place to rest felt great. I think the owner could see we were all dripping in sweat. He even brought us extra ice and poured us a complementary taste of Acqua di Cedro (a lemon liquor similar to limoncello). In addition to the traditional whipped Norwegien white fish - Baccala, we also tried other cicchetti (small plates), a Spritz Select (red drink similar to Aperol spritz), and Bussolai Buranei (Venetian Butter Cookies).

We stumbled into a few quiet gardens and parks on the south east side of Venice that were a welcomed change from the sun and crowds. If (hopefully when) we go back someday, I'd love to stay in the Castello area.

Murano

Venice

Venice is an engineering marvel. It is made up of a network of 116 islands, 177 canals, and 432 bridges. Long wooden piles were driven into the marshy mix of water and mud and structures were built on top of them. Over time, this wood petrified and became stone-like.

Usually after I've been somewhere, I cross it off my Wishlist and don't plan on returning. Venice is truly like nowhere else I've ever been and I would love to go back over and over again!