Venice

Next morning we found ourselves on our way to the third destination of our trip;

We decided for a quiet day and take a break from sightseeing and simply relax the remainder of the day. On arrival in Venice Mestre, we took a taxi to Villa Barbarich, which was built on the banks of the Marzenego River in the first half of the 16th century as the summer residence of the Malipiero family, one of the most famous and influential families of the Serenissima, as the Republic of Venice was called at the time.

It was a gorgeous place, just outside the city centre of Venice Mestre. Perfect to wind down before our exploration of Venice. Sometimes a bit of pampering can’t hurt…

Most of the afternoon we slept in each other’s arms to recover from all the impressions last week. Little did we know we would be overwhelmed even more without leaving our hotel.

The evening started off with an aperitif in the garden of the 16th century villa whilst we could hear the birds sing. It was all so so unreal, being hardly 4 kilometres away from Piazza San Marco, the contrast could not have been bigger.

By the time we climbed the stairs to the first floor where the restaurant was located my jaw dropped. Pinch me, I can’t believe this, is this a real? The walls and ceilings were covered with beautiful frescos and it felt more like being in a museum than just a restaurant.

We shared the 1st course after which a perfectly cooked spaghetti alla vongole was served. To be honest it was difficult to concentrate at the food was the environment was simply overwhelming, still we ordered a delicious tiramisu to share

After which we returned to our room. no questions asked, this is one of the highlights of this trip. However? Tomorrow for sure we will be impressed again…

After a good night of sleep and a wonderful breakfast in the garden of our hotel the shuttle bus brought us straight to the centre of Venezia. Our first place to visit was the Cannaregio District, one of the city’s most charming and authentic neighbourhoods It offered a more local and less touristy atmosphere compared to the main tourist areas like San Marco.

We visited two synagogues over here and were tipped about a secret garden. The area was lovely indeed and not overcrowded. That changed quickly when we made our way to Piazza San Marco. The narrow streets were flooded with tourists and it was difficult to move forward.

By the time we arrived at the Rialto Bridge the crowd was almost impenetrable. Ponte di Rialto is one of Venice’s most famous and iconic landmarks, crossing the Grand Canal. It was originally constructed in the late 16th century, completed in 1591, and is renowned for its elegant, arched design.

It was a beautiful indeed but it seemed to be a competition to fine the best spot to make a photo, or even more popular, a selfie…. We continued our way past the grand canal and slowly made our way to Piazza San Marco, the heart of Venice and one of the most iconic squares in the world. Unfortunately, there was some construction work going on which ruined the idyllic looks of the place a bit. Yes, it was beautiful, yes it was overwhelming, and yes… it was overcrowded.

Still, we thoroughly enjoyed our visit. We had prebooked tickets for the campanile of St. Mark’s, an imposing square plan tower about 99 metres high, crowned by a spire that was once a lighthouse for shipping. It is the prototype of all the campaniles of the lagoon area. It was first built in the 12th century on the site of what was probably a watchtower and rebuilt in its current form early in the 16th century with the addition of a belfry and with the spire faced in copper and topped by a sort of rotating platform with a statue of the Archangel Gabrielwhich functioned as a weathercock.

So instead of joining the queue we were able to skip the line and within minutes we were at 60 meters height above piazza San Marco from where we had lovely views over Venice and the lagoon.

Next was a visit to Basilica Di San Marco, The stunning cathedral with its Byzantine architecture, golden mosaics, and intricate details. It was overwhelming indeed and we did not know where to start looking as we were surrounded by beauty. Impressive was the panel at the back of the altar, the so-called Pala d’oro, an impressive piece of art. Once back outside we looked for a cozy terrace in one of the backstreets for a well-deserved Campari Spritz.

When one thinks of Venice immediately the famous gondolas come into mind and obviously, we could not skip a short nut romantic tour through the canals of Venice, it was a truly lovely experience.

It ended our stunning but also extremely tiring visit to Venice. We took a water bus to Station Santuario Luca where in it’s neighbourhood we found an authentic trattoria for our evening meal. Getting a train to Venice Mestre was a different story but somehow, we managed to get our tickets and a train as well.

A short taxi ride later we returned to our hotel, full of memories of a lovely day but also extremely tired. What a day it had been. Time to sleep….

Today we decided to do things at a slightly slower pace, so after breakfast we were brought to Venezia after which we took a water bus to Piazzo San Marco. We wanted to visit Palazzo Ducale but found out we were only admitted after 12:00.

So instead, we went to the Museum Correr. The museum extends along the southside of the square on the upper floors of the Procuratorie Nuove. With its rich and varied collections, the Museo Correr covers both the art and history of Venice. It was an extremely interesting place to visit and once we were done, we treated ourselves on a Campari Spritz.

Next, we returned to Palazzo Ducale: A grand Gothic building that once served as the residence of the Doge and the seat of Venetian government, featuring beautiful courtyards and art-filled interiors. This was even more to our liking as it gave us a good impression of the grandeur of a long time ago. But also, we saw the misery which is part of the Palazzo as we visited the former prison cells underground. It was a truly interesting experience.

The final place on our list was Burano, a picturesque island in the Venetian Lagoon, known for its vibrant, colourful houses, lace-making tradition, and peaceful atmosphere. We still had some time before the ferry left, a good excuse to visit another terrace before departure.

The journey took almost an hour and a half, during which we enjoyed the views over the Venetian lagoon. Burano was a beautiful island indeed and even more colourful than expected. It was also more crowded than we expected so we decided to take an earlier ferry back to Venice. A wise decision as directly after we joined the queue it expanded tremendously.

We had not expected to be able to board the first ferry but luckily in Italy the maximum number of passengers is very flexible… Back in Venice we took another water bus to the station and went to the same restaurant where we were yesterday where we were joyfully greeted and thoroughly enjoyed another meal.

Venice has been absolutely amazing; we enjoyed every single minute of it but the huge crowd also made it a tiring experience. We’re now ready for the fourth destination of this trip but first one final night in Villa Barbarich, without doubt the best place we could have chosen for our stay in Venice. A dream within a Dream