Been to Venice more than 10 times but every time it feels such a special place. It's simply an amazing city. This time we stayed there for 2 nights on the 8th & 9th days of our car tour.

Even though it was boiling hot we walked a lot, sometimes took  vaporetto (the water bus)to the destination and once we travelled the narrow canals by a gondola.

ps. as mentioned been to Venice several times...click.

Foot Wear

Bought some shoes in Venice:

Tod's loafers,

Prada sneekers

& ankle boots

and

Missoni wellies
.

Lots of black men selling

- sometimes quite aggressively -

fake bags in the area

- not at once did any of them try to sell them for me

.

Prada

Salizada San Moise 1464

Missoni

Calle Vallaresso 1312

Tod's

Calle XXII Marzo 2251

.

Campo Marzio Design

it makes a huge difference

how things are packed

.

Just a simple (in gorgeous red!)

ball-point pen,

but the sales assistant (probably the owner!)

took great care with the packaging

- that makes me very happy!

.

Campo Marzio Design

Calle della Mandola 3654/A

San Marco, Venice

http://www.campomarziodesign.it/

- lovely small shop with lots of different pens

in delicious colours & designs

.

Slippers

Disposable slippers

at DD724

- so soft & comfy
.

Michelin Guide: Venice

Print this list of restaurants when travelling to Venice

and you can't really go wrong with your meals:

.

San Marco

Caffe Quadri, Piazza San Marco 120

Ai Mercanti, Corte Coppo 4346/A

La Caravella, Calle Larga 22 Marzo 2398

Do Forni, Calle dei Specchieri 457/468

Bistrot de Venise, Calle dei Fabbri 4685

Bacaro Lounge Bar, Salizada San Moisé 1345

.

Cannaregio

Fiaschetteria Toscana, San Giovanni Grisostomo 5719

Osteria Enoteca Giorgione, Calle Larga dei Prverbi 4582/A

Vini di Gigio, Fondamenta San Felice 3628/a

Anice Stellato, Fondamenta della Sensa 3272

.

Dorsoduro

Lineadombra, Pinte dell'Umilta 19

Ai Gondolieri, Fondamenta de l'Ospedaleto 366

Antica Trattoria Furatola, Calle Lunga San Barnaba 2870

.

San Polo

Osteria da Fiore, Calle del Scaleter 2202/A

Trattoria la Madonna, Calle della Madonna 594

Naranzaria, Naranzaria 130

.

Castello

Hostaria da Franz, Fondamenta San Giuseppe 754

Al Covo, Campiello della Pescaria 3968

L'Osteria di Santa Marina, Campo Santa Marina 5911

Corte Sconta, Calle del Pestrin 3886

Alle Testiere, Calle del Mondo Novo 5811

.

And remember that nothing is cheap in Venice!

.

No Shopping...

...untill Saturday,

except

a lighter

.

to light the candels in the room
.

On Saturday made some more shopping...
.

Taverna San Trovaso

Last meal in Venice

- had a pizza at the terrace of Taverna San Trovaso

next to Ponte di Accademia in Dorsoduro,

- popular place for snacks
.

Tueasday morning back to Budapest

by Wizzair flight at 8.15am

- had booked a water taxi to pick up at 5am,

Wizzair organized a bus transfer from Piazza di Roma at 5.30

- booked the seats in advance via internet

- very well organized!

.

Had absolutely great time in Venice!

.

About Venice

The profession of gondolier is controlled by a guild,

which issues a limited number of licenses

granted after periods of training and apprenticeship,

and a major comprehensive exam

which tests knowledge of Venetian history and landmarks,

foreign language skills,

and practical skills in handling the Gondola

typically necessary in the tight spaces of Venetian canals.
.- read somewhere that it takes 10 years to get Gondole licence

.

An abandon building in one couryard

- it's a pity no-one has restored this gorgeous house

- not so many flats for sale in Venice,

but quite many empty ones.

The reason is in taxation:

no inheritance taxes at all

but rather high sales profit tax

.

There are around 70.000 inhabitants in Venice

- app. 14 million tourists in year

at least in the last years,ű

don't know what's the amount now
.

Palazzo Contarini del Bovolo

- external staircases were common in

Venetian houses of the 14th & 15th centuries

but, even at the time it was built,

the staircase of the Plazzo Contarini was unusual

due to its size & form

"bovolo" = snail
. Torre dell'Orologio

- this clocktower on Piazza di San Marcos dates

from the Renaissance

- local legend tells that once the clock was completed,

the 2 inventors of the complex mechanism

had their eyes gouged out

to prevent them from

ever creating a replica

Gruesome!
.

Spritz all'Aperol

- Venetian drink made of prosecco & Aperol

- it was lovely to sit at a terrace and enjoy

the great weather & people-watching
.

By the way, heard that Jolie-Pitt family

was in Venice at the same time

as Angelina is filming the "Tourist" there

- actually saw some filming equipment & bright lights

along Canal Grande between

Accademia & Campo di Salute

.

Cruising season in Mediterranean has already started
- 2 cruise liners leaving Venice in Monday afternoon
.

Fiaschetteria Toscana

Monday lunch at Fiaschetteria Toscana

(also in Michelin Guide 2009)

The place is located on quite a busy street

but no big signs, billboards etc outside

to attract turists

- once again Italians & French customers
.

White asparagus from Padova parmesan style

- lovely!
.
Waiter taking the bones off Scorpion fish
.

Baked scorpion fish with tomato & black olives

- perfecto!
.

Artichoke hearts Veneta style

for side dish

- not really needed

- nothing special,

wanted to have artichoke but not this kind of
.

No more left small wild strawberries,

so had Passion fuit parfait
- good size, not too huge

- good real fruity taste

.
Fiaschetteria Toscana

San Giovanni Grisostomo 5719

Cannaregio, Venezia
.
Perfect lunch!

.

Basilica di San Marco

Basilica di San Marco blends the architectural

and decorative styles of East & West

- amazing building outside & inside

.

Pala d'Oro

- the jewel-spangled altarpiece is the most valuable

treasure of San Marco

- made up of 250 enamel paintings on gold foil

enclosed with a gilded silver Gothic frame

- situated behinf the altar

- Napolean stole some of the precious stones in 1797,

but there are still plenty of pearls, rubies,

sapphires & amethysts left

.

Lots of beautiful mosaics

both on floors and walls
.

Tried to go inside in the morning,

but the queue was several hundreds of meters long

- tried again the afternoon,

then only couple of people going inside

- free entrance to the main part of the basilica

.

Museo Storico Navale

Not a fan of maritime museums but

if there's one in town

always forced to pay a visit there

.

Bucintoro Barge of the Doge

(in the photo above)

- every year on Ascension Day

the doge used to throw a ring

from Bucintoro

into the lagoon,

symbolizing the marriage of venice to the sea
.

The museum is owned by Italian Navy

- there are 4 floors of ships, mainly models

Lion figure of the gondola of Peggy Guggenheim
.

Palazzo Ducale

Palazzo Ducale (Doge's Palace) is a triumph of

Gothic architecture

- it was once home to Venice's rulers

and the officers of State

- built in pink Veronese marble

and white Istrian stone
.

Courtyard of the palace
. Sala dello Scudo

The walls of this room are covered with maps of the world.

In the centre of the room are 2 giant

18th-century globes
(not allowed to snap photos inside the palace...)
.

Giants' Staircase

- 15th-century staircase with golden ornaments
.
View from the balcony of
Sala del Maggior Consiglio
- not bad!
.
The Palazzo Ducale is absolutely worth a visit!
Unbelievably gorgeous private rooms &
official halls
- lots of paintings by Tintoretto
- dowstairs almost shocking simple prison department
.

Trattoria Do Forni

Sunday dinner at Trattoria Do Forni

- also picked up in the Michelin Guide

- without advance booking got a table

in the "garden" section

(not outside, but muy turistico),

if had known before,

would have ask a table in the main room

.

Raw fish plate for a starter

- delicious!
. Fried very small squids

- fantastic!

- crsipy & no greasy at all
. Baked turbot with potato, tomato & balck olives
- marvellous!

Fish is the thing to eat in Venice!
- they really can prepare it

The Americans on both side of our table

chose caprese, salad Nicoise, pasta...

- unfortunately not the right picks in this kind of restaurant
.

Merenque lemon cake was too much

- should have chosen Frutta di Bosco instead
.

Tea & coffee came with Venetian bisquits
- even though grazy for bisquits,
couldn't eat them all
.
Trattoria Do Forni
Calle Specchieri 468/457
San Marco, Venezia
.
On the way back home
walked across San Marcos Square
& enjoyed the live music there
in front of Caffe Quadri
.
.