Archive for the ‘Venice’ Category

Best Places To Eat in Venice

Tuesday, November 16th, 2010

1. Laguna da Toni ? Is a docked boat which sits 25-minute boat ride away from Portegrandi, a town near the islands of Burano and Torcello. Thanks to the abundant lagoon produce, this humble bilancia is serving fresh and tasty Venetian cuisines like pasta con granchietto di laguna, frittura misto and sarde in soar. For 35 euros per person, you can indulge a seven-course dinner which includes dessert, coffee, sparkling white wine from Conegliano, and boat transportation from Portegrandi. If you want escape from the busy streets of Venice and take some fresh air , Laguna da Toni is the right place for you. Reservations must be booked at least two weeks ahead, you can reach Mr. Toni Zottarel, the bilancia owner and cook at telephone number: 39-338-821-1229.

2. La Cusina – Dining in La Cusina gives you the chance to enjoy the view of Santa Maria della Salute – a most sought-after sight you can enjoy while devouring a sumptuous Italian cuisine like ravioli stuffed with sea bass in a light cream sauce with wild fennel. Prices of main meals ranges from 21 to 23 euros while secondary meals ranges from 23 to 34 euros.

3. Avogaria Locanda and Restaurant ? Sweet, quiet and modern, this restaurant specializes in Puglian cuisine, mostly olive oil-based meals like burrata con verdure, fresh mozzarella with creamy center and vegetables, tuna fish “tagliata” with sesame, filetto di branzino in crosta di patate al forno, and sea bass fillet with potatoes. By plane, you can reach Avogaria either thru Marco Polo Venice Airport or San Giuseppe Treviso Airport. It’s located on Calle dell’Avogaria in Dorsoduro and with telephone number: 011-39-041-296-0491.

It seems like new information is discovered about something every day. And the topic of Venice is no exception. Keep reading to get more fresh news about Venice.

4. Fiaschetteria Toscana – This “bright, elegant, and relatively small place” wrote Mark Bittman, is tucked in the heart of Venice, 200 metres from Ponte di Rialto in Salizada s. Giovanni Grisostomo. Fiaschetteria Toscana got its name in late 1800s when the Busatto family, from Montecatini in Tuscany, opened a bar offering typical local products. Today, despite its name, this restaurant serves traditional Venetian fare like sarde in saor or marinated sardines. Their risottos are one of the best in the city ? made with aged organic Carnaroli rice popularly known as Acquerello from a small Piedmontese producer. The end-product? A Venetian risotto which is perfectly soupy and loose but hardly creamy.

5. Cantinone Gia Schiavi – Located just southwest of the Accademia bridge, this place is popular for their great wine selection from Venice. They are open from 8:30 am to 8:30 pm thru Mondays to Saturdays and 10 am to 1 pm on Sundays.

6. Al Covo – This lovely restaurant located in Castello, Venice is popular not only for their fresh seafoods and excellent selection of moderately priced wines but also for their warm and welcoming atmosphere. Waiters are friendly, suggestive and English speaking. One of the owners of this lovely restaurant hails from Texas, which explains the hospitable atmosphere to Americans. Their menu includes garnished light beef tartar steak, fresh granzevola or spider-crab meat, and canocce or shrimp salad for starters; roasted lamp chops with lentils and homemade mint sauce and deep-fried fish and shellfish with crispy vegetables and matchstick fries for main courses. They also have a fresh 24 hour salad for side dishes.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, feel free to visit his top ranked GVO affiliate site: GVO

Getting Around Venice

Saturday, November 6th, 2010

Venice is a wonderful city that can best be enjoyed if you just walk within its streets and alleys. But, if you are one of those who are not fond of walking and hate the idea of being lost, the best thing that you need to learn before arriving in Venice is how to get around the place using public transportation.

When you arrive to Marco Polo airport, you will be needing a transportation off Venice. The easiest means would be hiring a water taxi to bring you there. This will take almost half an hour but since you will be renting it, the cost can be expensive? ?80 to ?100. If you are on a budget, you can take a bus off to Piazzale Roma?this is located just across the Grand Canal if you are from the train station and would cost you ?5 to ?10 or?or by water where you can get a ride for only less that ?15 through the Alilaguna waterbus.

The ABCs of Venice transportation

Many people enjoy walking within the streets of Venice but because of the easy means of public transportation, you will find yourself wanting to take some of the beautiful bus-boats called “Vaporetto”. Since Venice is a city built on water, the vaporetto are considered as the main transportation in the city that has regular routes cruising Venice, Murano and Burano from the Grand Canal. For roughly around ?6.50, you can purchase a single ticket to a vaporetto. This entitles you to stay inside the boat-bus for almost an hour.

Is everything making sense so far? If not, I’m sure that with just a little more reading, all the facts will fall into place.

For those who are not aiming to sight-see, riding a vaporetto is not a good option because it is too much for a couple of minutes getting to a specific place. But to those who aim to really see what Venice has to offer through the Grand Canal, then it would be worth it. One simple reminder if when you buy a ticket is that make sure to validate it in the machines before you reach the plank getting off the canal.

Then there’s the “Gondola” which are considered as the classic image of Venice. These are boats that are usually hired privately so you along with your company to cruises the canals of Venice leisurely. You are even treated to a performance by the drivers as they sing some Italian songs. But since you have to rent it, riding Gondolas would cost you so much. If you are on a budget, riding the gondola is not advisable.

If you cannot afford to hire a private Gondola?which is considered a must when you travel Venice?you can opt for what they call a “Traghetto”. These are pretty much the same as gondolas, only they are not hired privately and the drivers don’t sing to you. If you just want to cross various points of the Grand Canal, you can ride this since these usually stands along the canal. The traghetto brings the passengers back and forth?from one shore to another?on a regular schedule.

Unlike the gondola where you can ask the driver to wait for you, the drivers of traghetto would not wait for you if you came in late. If you miss one traghetto, you have to wait for the next one to come.

Those who only know one or two facts about Venice can be confused by misleading information. The best way to help those who are misled is to gently correct them with the truths you’re learning here.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, feel free to visit his top ranked GVO affiliate site: GVO

Where To Eat In Venice

Friday, November 5th, 2010

Current info about Venice is not always the easiest thing to locate. Fortunately, this report includes the latest Venice info available.

Venice, as a prime tourist attraction, is one of the most beautiful places on earth, and nearly perfect for everyone. The sights, the sounds, the feel, even the smell of the surrounding sea all contribute to the total appeal of Venice. Except, of course, to the nagging question of many: where does one eat a good meal in Venice?

This had been the common complaint about Venice ? the absence of good places to enjoy food. From the experienced traveler, a very good tip: get away from the tourist-filled areas and make your own discoveries.

Like the other popular destinations, the best places to eat or drink are not found in areas frequented by tourists. Rather, the better ones are those that are out of the way, hard to reach places.

In Venice, these places may lack the usual beautiful view of the canals, but you can always look at these canals at other times. This time you want to eat, and eat good food. Be prepared, though, because the menu might only be in Italian and nobody speaks English. (You have your handy Italian phrase book with you, of course.)

Random recommendations

Venetian dishes are based on the produce from the sea like sardines, cod, eels, crabs and prawns, whatever is in season. Appetizers like marinated sardines, risotto with the local prawns, pasta with baby clams ? these and more are standard fare in the Venetian table.

The more authentic information about Venice you know, the more likely people are to consider you a Venice expert. Read on for even more Venice facts that you can share.

La Colombina di Sigfrido e Domenico.
If you want to eat some of the best Italian food ever, whether in Venice or anywhere in Italy, this is the place. An added plus: the place is not even that expensive compared to the other pretenders in the business. (The dinner is under 20 Euros, worth going back again and again.)

Dona Onesta, or Antica Trattoria di Venezia Dona Onesta.
This is where you find perfectly textured cream sauce for your pasta, as well as perfectly grilled ?verdura? (vegetables like mushrooms and eggplants, artichokes, spinach). You can also find traditional grilled salmon, liver and onions, pork chops even.

Ristorante S. (San) Stefano.
Try their spaghetti with clams. The slight saltiness of the clams balance out the pasta, which has a sweet buttery taste, topped with chopped parsley. An attentive waiter can grind some fresh pepper and make it perfect. The bill? Around 12 Euros.

Another good place to enjoy Venetian food that is not that cheap (40 Euros for 2, and with good wine) but not that outrageously priced either, is in the Jewish ghetto. This is near the Jewish museum (Campo del Ghetto Nuovo). The ambience is cozy and just right. It is off the beaten tracks of tourists, with people going around their regular daily business.

Some other few places that offer good food at non-tourist prices are located right in front of St. Mark’s Square, but on the opposite side across the Grand Canal. Once there, you would suspect the place might have good food if the patrons are Italians and your group is the only English-speaking people around.

All in all, the search of places for good food is another part of the attraction of Venice. Consider it part of the adventure, too. Again, to find the good places on where to eat in Venice is to go the other way where tourists go.

Is there really any information about Venice that is nonessential? We all see things from different angles, so something relatively insignificant to one may be crucial to another.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, feel free to visit his top ranked GVO affiliate site: GVO

Quality Spending in Venice

Tuesday, October 26th, 2010

When most people think of Venice, what comes to mind is usually basic information that’s not particularly interesting or beneficial. But there’s a lot more to Venice than just the basics.

If you are looking for a unique and enjoyable, then Venice is a perfect option for you. Being one of the most popular cities in Italy, Venice is quite famous not only for its wonderful attractions but also for its unique gastronomic selection and its wide array of activities to choose from.

How to spend your time and money wisely

While on a vacation, there are two important things that you should spend wisely: TIME and MONEY. Since you don’t have all the time in the world to explore Venice, you should plan you visit very well. It would really help if you would write your itinerary even before you leave so everything is carefully scheduled. If you are able to plot your schedule well, you can maximize your time in visiting as many places as you can.

To ensure that you will visit the major attractions in Venice, include in the list the main places to go to including the St. Mark’s Square that houses the St. Mark’s Basillica and Doges Palace in the San Marco District which is considered as the central area. Aside from visiting the attractions here, you can also visit nearby districts including the Castello District, the Dorsoduro District, the Cannaregio District, and the San Polo District.

If your Venice facts are out-of-date, how will that affect your actions and decisions? Make certain you don’t let important Venice information slip by you.

These districts offer other interesting sites such as the “Arsenale,” the “Biennale Art Exhibitions,” the “Accademia,” the “Campo Santa Margherita,” the “Jewish Ghetto,” the “Ca D’oro,” the “Venetian Mercantile Empire,” “Rialto Fish Market,” and the “Friari Church” among others. You can also take a peak of the art museums and galleries where you can see the works of traditional Venetian masters like Giorgione, Bellini, Titian, and Tintoretto as well as the art pieces of many contemporary artists. You can tour the various public and privately-run museums and galleries like the “Peggy Guggenheim Museum,” the “Correr museum,” and the “Naval Museum” among others.

To ensure that you spend your money wisely, it is a must to convert your local currency to Euro. Although you can exchange travellers cheques and foreign money at public places such as banks, railway stations and airports, it is best if you exchange your money prior to your visit because the rates are more convenient. If you choose to, you can also use credit and debit cards such as Visa, MasterCard, and Diners Club which are widely accepted in major establishments. However, if you are eyeing a shopping spree in smaller stores, cash at hand is more ideal.

If you want to save some money on tour vacations, dining, and shopping, you can consider public options. In mode of transportation, you can ride public means such as the “vaporetto” and “traghetto” instead of hiring a private gondola. When eating out, opt for “baracos” and “osterias” instead of dining in expensive restaurants. And instead of buying souvenirs and other items in specialty stores, you can find great buys in local markets.

Once you have decided to go on a Venice vacation, you should also consider the peak seasons, type and length of vacation, as well as the legalities and confirmations for your vacation.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, feel free to visit his top ranked GVO affiliate site: GVO

Surviving Venice

Monday, October 25th, 2010

When you’re learning about something new, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed by the sheer amount of relevant information available. This informative article should help you focus on the central points.

Venice is one of the top tourist destinations in the world. With the number of tourists coming into the fabled city ? most of them with enough money to spend ? it is not much of a stretch that many criminal elements would also flock to the place as well.

Most of them are not from Venice, although there are some few locals who also take advantage on their unsuspecting visitors. Like in other places of the world, it is always a mixture of the good and not-so-good people.

Not all incidents, however, are bad. Some are funny, surprising, and some are the results of being too gullible. Here are some tips taken from actual experiences of previous tourists. As always, your common sense is your best guide.

Some survival tips

***Beware of fake signature handbags sold on the streets. Ignore them because they are illegal. There is a hefty fine (3,000 Euros) simply for buying from them.

***Be careful if you plan to buy those famous Venetian masks ? they can be overpriced. Worse, they might be imported fakes from abroad. There are still shops around where you can witness the actual papier-m?ch? process. Buy from them to be sure.

***Ordering food from sidewalk cafes, especially fish, can be tricky. Fish in these places are sold by weight, not by piece. 7 Euros means 7 Euros per etto (or 100 grams), so a regular fish weighing 5 etto (500 grams or half a kilo) might cost you 35 Euros, rather too steep for fish. Always ask.

***Do you want to have some coffee and sit at St. Mark? Check for hidden cover charges. They could be more expensive than your coffee, simply because you were listening to some live orchestra playing while sipping your latte. (Try Campo San Polo or Campo Santa Margherita. Their coffee is lovely even without the music and they are reasonably priced.)

Hopefully the information presented so far has been applicable. You might also want to consider the following:

Side note: Like in most of Italy, sitting down and consuming your food and drinks costs more than doing the same (eating and drinking) standing at the ?banco? (bar area).

***Original Murano glass pieces, hand-blown and designed by authentic glass masters are generally very expensive. However, items sold near Piazza San Marco are greatly discounted because of too much competition among the shops.

Sometimes, bigger discounts are also available at Burano or some other outlying areas away from the commercial centers. Of course, you still have to be wary of fakes imported from Asia and passed on as original Murano glass.

Practical tips

If you are staying in spring and summer, ask for mosquito repellents. The beautiful windows of many of La Serenissima hotels do not have screens. Hotels have small electric mosquito repellents.

Buy yourself a small pocket flashlight. It will be handy looking at your maps in the evenings. Venetian street lamps are quite dim, very romantic and mysterious, but do not help you in seeing what’s on your map.

Maps of Venice are given out FREE along with your transport ticket pass at the airport. Everywhere else seems to be selling the maps to unsuspecting tourists who don’t have theirs. (Some hotels also have free maps of the city available at their reception.)

If you took note of some of these tips, it might help you survive your stay in one of the world’s most enchanting and truly fascinating cities. These difficulties notwithstanding, Venice is still the best.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, feel free to visit his top ranked GVO affiliate site: GVO

Carnival In Venic

Tuesday, October 5th, 2010

The best course of action to take sometimes isn’t clear until you’ve listed and considered your alternatives. The following paragraphs should help clue you in to what the experts think is significant.

If there is one fun festival you have to see in your lifetime, Carneval di Venezia (Carnival In Venice) should be the one. It is the only carnival in the world that is celebrated to allow people masquerade themselves into their secret fantasies and illusions. This is the reason for the masks and the costumes.

Now celebrated every February, the carnival is the one time when the whole city becomes as colorful and spectacular as the masked and costumed citizens are. In the past, it used to be a long festival running from December 26 all the way to Ash Wednesday.

Today, it still is a wild, enjoyable and fun festival that lasts for ten days where people put on masks and colorful costumes to become the people of their own fantasies. With their real selves hidden under costumes and masks, they would go out into the streets and participate in the festivities.

Many shows are mounted in the squares and mostly in Piazza San Marco, especially on Jeudi (Thursday) and Mardi Gras (Fat Tuesday), the most important days of the carnival. In other parts of the city, there are also several street performances, parades and other attractions.

Origin

The origin of the carnival is said to have begun in celebration for the victory of Venice against Ulrich, the Patriarca of Aquileia in 1162 A.D.

It reached the height of its magnificence around 1700 when it began to attract visitors from all over Europe. There grew a mini-industry to manufacture more masks and costumes (mostly of the heavy velvets for cloaks and capes) for use by more people participating in the occasion.

It seems like new information is discovered about something every day. And the topic of Venice is no exception. Keep reading to get more fresh news about Venice.

It was the time when kings and princes and other European royalty would take part in the Carnival in order to have a good time on the city’s squares and streets.

Today, it is still celebrated by the whole city, this time with tourists watching and joining in the open-air celebrations, including public shows and private parties organized and held in the Venetian palaces.

Masks

The symbol of Carnival is definitely the masks. These are created by skilled craftsmen whose art were inherited from past masters. These handcrafted masks are quite expensive but are available all over Venice.

The most famous and fashionable mask (and costume) is the unisex ?Bauta?. The whole get-up consist of a black tricorn hat, a black cloak and the white papier-m?ch? mask. The mask leaves the mouth area uncovered for eating and drinking.

The ?Moretta? is a black oval mask with holes only for the eyes. There is also a mask of a cat called ?Gnaga.? The mask of the ?plague doctor? is one with a long nose or beak.

The wearing of masks during the festival had been dated back to the 12th century although it was only in 1608 when it was officially deemed proper. Since then, mask-making is handled by the masters with only a handful considered the best.

The importance of the carnival in Venice is seen all year round with the display of fancy dresses in stores. Also, if you visit the city anytime of the year, the mask-making shops are all hard at work making this beautiful symbol of the festival. It is if all the days of the year are solely in preparation for the carnival.

Now you can be a confident expert on Venice. OK, maybe not an expert. But you should have something to bring to the table next time you join a discussion on Venice.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, feel free to visit his top ranked GVO affiliate site: GVO

Exploring Venice

Tuesday, October 5th, 2010

One of the most visited places in Italy is the city of Venice. This is probably because it offers the most wonderful scenery that anybody could set eyes on. A city that it literally built on water, Venice continues to get a large patronage among people within neighboring cities and countries in Europe as well as from other parts of the world.

If you are planning to visit Venice, one of the major things that you should consider is getting there. If you are from other countries, say from the United States, the best and easiest way to get to this beautiful city is by riding a plane. Via Delta Airways?which is the only one that offers direct flight to Venice?from JFK airport in New York, you can fly straight to the city without hassles and stopovers. You can also take other connecting flights to nearby cities in Europe and just find your way to the city via land transportation.

If you are in nearby cities already such as from Padua or Florence, you can take the train since Venice is orderly serviced by regional and national train system. You can arrive at the Sta. Lucia Station and take other forms of public transport. It is a must that you get to know the right means of getting there to avoid spending too much when you can actually save some for other activities or for shopping spree.

Sometimes the most important aspects of a subject are not immediately obvious. Keep reading to get the complete picture.

Knowing the city

A Venice vacation can be a great treat for anybody. Especially to those people who are often gets stressed out by the modern world. This is because this can give you a perfect break away from all the toxicities modern life has to offer. But, before going into a vacation Venice, take some time to know the place that you are planning to go to. This will really help you a lot in maximizing the time you are going to spend there.

The first thing that you need to pay attention to is you schedule during your vacation. Since you don’t have all the time in the world to explore Venice during you vacation, it is best that you plot the list of activities that you will be doing during your stay. Your schedule or itinerary might include visiting Venice’s interesting sites and historical places. This is very important especially for first-time visitors because these tours can give them a primer and background about the place. For those who would want to know about the history of the place, they can visit historical sites including the Piazza San Marco or the St. Marks Square which will introduce you to the city that is Venice. Within this are other tourist attractions including the St. Marks Basilica and the Doges Palace.

You can also try water adventures and activities. A Venice vacation is nothing if you don’t get to experience water activities waiting for you. During your stay, it is a must that you take a boat and visit the lagoon’s islands called “Torcello,” and take a Gondola trips through the Grand Canal.

This article’s coverage of the information is as complete as it can be today. But you should always leave open the possibility that future research could uncover new facts.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, feel free to visit his top ranked GVO affiliate site: GVO

Things To Do In Venice

Monday, October 4th, 2010

In such a place as Venice, the things a tourist must do (seeing places, buying things, watching festivals, etc.) might run into the hundreds. Unless you are staying for week (which could still be a short period for some people), you risk running out of days to explore most of Venice.

If your stay is limited for, say about three days, prioritize them down in a descending order. This is important because the tourism office might give you a list of ?must-see? places. Do not engage for expensive tour packages just to do all those in your list.

Get lost

If you’re only visiting and you only have a day or hours to spare, walk around the city streets first before going inside any church, building, or museum. This is a guaranteed way of discovering the quaint charms of the squares and city streets not mentioned in any guide.

Getting lost in Canareggio or Dorsoduro districts are perfect balms for your tired eyes. And then you can go and visit your listed churches and destinations. (Scuola di San Rocco church has some wonderful art masterpieces of Titian and Tintorretto.)

If you are lucky and still have a night to spare, then get lost in Piazza San Marco, just beside the basilica. The magic is mostly there in the early mornings and late evenings before the day crowds arrive or after they have left.

St. Mark’s Basilica

The all-time favorite of most people, St. Mark’s has its own distinctive beauty accented by its onion domes, multi-colored marble pillars, and the fascinating floor-to-ceiling mosaics. Although getting inside the basilica is free, the three museums inside have entry fees to get in.

Truthfully, the only difference between you and Venice experts is time. If you’ll invest a little more time in reading, you’ll be that much nearer to expert status when it comes to Venice.

Doge’s Palace

Just beside the basilica is the Doge’s Palace, arguably the second most important attraction in Venice. One probable good reason to pay the hefty fee is the chance to walk across the famous Bridge of Sighs. (You can see the bridge from the outside, though.)

Vaporetto

Taking the Grand Canal tour via the #1 Vaporetto, the water-buses of Venice, is equivalent to a city bus tour. It is slow, and it runs the length of the Grand Canal. Enjoy the sights along the way. (You may bring with you some take-along tour guide and some gelato.) Gondolas may be romantic but they are terribly expensive.

Murano glass

Even if you have not seen actual glass-blowing, you need not go with the demonstrations arranged by some packaged tours. Simply catch a vaporetto (not booked by your hotel) to Murano and walk around the streets until you find some open glass-blowing studio and watch the process without the large crowd.

The streets of Burano / Rialto market

Going for a stroll is great in the streets of Burano with its brightly-colored buildings. It is less crowded, and perfect for taking in the view. Check out, too, the Rialto market and see where the locals get their food. One note: if you like something, point at it and the vendor will pick and bag it for you.

Doing the things you want to do in Venice is not that difficult, if you stay away from the crowd and those tourist-filled destinations. Better still, try to visit during off-season. The prices are a little lower and the crowd is manageable.

Don’t limit yourself by refusing to learn the details about Venice. The more you know, the easier it will be to focus on what’s important.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, feel free to visit his top ranked GVO affiliate site: GVO

What You Cannot Miss In Venice

Sunday, October 3rd, 2010

The best course of action to take sometimes isn’t clear until you’ve listed and considered your alternatives. The following paragraphs should help clue you in to what the experts think is significant.

In Italy, the city of Venice is one of the most visited places mainly because of its unique environment. If you are a first-time visitor, the first thing that you need to do is to be familiar about the place. You can do this by conducting a research about the place by browsing various Internet sites or by reading travel magazines that feature Venice.

To make the that you make the most out of your stay in Venice, visit its major tourists attractions, eat in the local stores, visit it’s museums and galleries and just walk around and talk to locals?if you know how to speak Italian?to discover the true feel of the city. If you are not to formal city tours, here are some of the things that you should do and you cannot miss when you’re off for a Venetian vacation:

- Wander through the St. Mark’s Square. This is the major tourist spot in Venice. This is also probably where all the tourists are most of the time. On your first say, make sure that you drop by here so you will have a peak of what is Venice like. Here, you can visit two of the most wonderful places in the city, the St. Mark’s Basillica and the Doges Palace or the “Palazzo Ducale”. You can also find some stores nearby where you can see unique souvenirs.

You can see that there’s practical value in learning more about Venice. Can you think of ways to apply what’s been covered so far?

- Take a tour to the Grand Canal. This is also one of the major attractions in Venice that offers you a view of the city through a cruise. You can opt to hire a gondola where you can enjoy a private cruise of the city as well as its inner canals or take the vaporetto or traghetto ride which is a public transport that will take you to different parts of the city.

- Eat on “bacaros” and “osterias”. The best way to dine in Venice is when you eat at small stores that offer local snacks. Bacaros refer to small stalls where you can grab something to eat while touring. Osterias, on the other hand, offers a bigger and more comfortable dining area where you can taste Venetian home style cooking.

- Indulge in art appreciation. Art works are truly a must to visit when you are in Venice. You can do this by visiting public and privately-owned art galleries, museums, and exhibition areas. The most famous museum in Venice would be the “Peggy Guggenheim Museum” where you can see most of the works of Venetian masters like Tintoretto, Giorgione, Titian and Bellini. For more works by contemporary artists, visit the “Correr museum,” the “Naval Museum,” “Glass Museum at Murano,” the “Gallerie dell’Accademia,” and the “Museo Civico Correr.”

- Visit nearby districts. Venice is mainly divided into six districts or “sestiere”. The “Grand Canal” is considered the main street since it runs through the heart of the city and connects each district together. Then there’s the “San Marco District” where you can find the St. Mark’s Square; the “Castello District” where you can find the Arsenale, and the Biennale Art Exhibitions; the “Dorsoduro District” that features the Accademia, the Peggy Guggenheim Museum, and the Campo Santa Margherita; the “Cannaregio District” where the Jewish Ghetto, and the Ca D’oro are located; the “San Polo District” where you can see the Venetian Mercantile Empire, Rialto Fish Market and the Friari Church; and the “Santa Croce District.”

I hope that reading the above information was both enjoyable and educational for you. Your learning process should be ongoing–the more you understand about any subject, the more you will be able to share with others.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, feel free to visit his top ranked GVO affiliate site: GVO

Why Visit Venice?

Monday, September 27th, 2010

Asking a group of people why they want to visit Venice might give you the same number of answers as the number of people. Everyone has a reason or reasons for visiting Venice and all of their answers are true and correct.

Venice is one unique place where almost everything is interesting, worth looking into and worth taking a photo. They are worth touching with your fingers. Sometimes, you seem to be able to inhale that peculiar combined fragrance of the sea, the land, and the history of the place.

The sites and the sights

Before going to any site you fancy, take time first to soak in the city. Simply walk around its small streets and alleys. You may stop by at the famous St. Mark’s Square and the Rialto Bridge, although at most times of the day they are choked with tourists. If your stay is longer, come back in the evening (or early mornings) when the crowd is thinner.

The Basilica di San Marco is beside the square, and it is one of the biggest attractions in all of Venice. The entry is free, although you have to stand in line for the long queue ? but it is worth the wait. The church’s interiors are all done in mosaic from walls to ceilings to the floors, and it takes your breath away.

Sometimes the most important aspects of a subject are not immediately obvious. Keep reading to get the complete picture.

Right next to the basilica is the Doge’s Palace (Palazzo Ducale) where the former rulers of the city lived. There is an entry fee to the palace, but this is the only way you can traverse the famous Bridge of Sighs which leads to the courtroom. Inside is Tintoretto’s ?Paradise?, the world’s largest oil painting.

Three of the small islands most famous to tourists are Murano, Burano, and Torcello. The closest is Murano, famous for its glass-making all over the world, and large groups of tourists usually crowd shops demonstrating some glass-blowing techniques. You may watch or you can go the other way and perhaps find out-of-the-way shops that do the same thing and satisfy your curiosity without jostling with the crowd.

Then, there is Burano, formerly famous for its lace-making in the past, although most of the island’s inhabitants are fishermen. What strike your eyes’ fancy are the colors of the houses. They are all painted in the brightest of colors, and are so distinctive and fascinating even from a distance. They say the reason for this was to help the fishermen returning late from a long day at sea find their right homes fast and easy.

Torcello is the farthest and has the fewest people actually living on it. It has fewer tourists too, and you can have the oldest church in Venice all to yourself and some few fellows. The church also has its walls and floor done in mosaic, just like St. Mark’s Basilica.

All these are just some of the big reasons why one wants to visit Venice. And we have not even talked about the gondolas and the gondoliers and moving about in those watery alleys. We have not mentioned about the famous yearly Venice carnivals, the masks, the costumes, the merry-making and the music.

Why visit Venice? One probably needs a long list for the other reasons which are good for another article.

The day will come when you can use something you read about here to have a beneficial impact. Then you’ll be glad you took the time to learn more about Venice.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, feel free to visit his top ranked GVO affiliate site: GVO


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