Travel Diary: Venice part 2

Lorenzo and I at Cafe Florian

Teatro La Fenice

Part two of the Venice Travel Diary includes my three must dos in Venice.

First up is breakfast at Cafe Florian, which is Italy's oldest cafe, having opened in 1720. The ornate interiors in gold with lush red velvet seating trasnport you back to a bygone era. They do beautiful pastries and specials teas, all with silver service. Dig deep because the prices are high, but I reckon it is worth it for a once in a life-time experience. Next time I would try their afternoon tea.

My next favourite thing was Il Teatro La Fenice. Although we didn't see an opera or ballet, we could still visit this famous theatre. Keeping in theme with Cafe Florian, the interiors were spectacular. Gold detailed ceilings with crystal chandeliers and hand painted motifs. I can only imagine the atmosphere when there is a show on!

Finally the gondola ride. Ok, so I admit at first I thought it was a bit cheesy and I wasn't sure if I wanted to do it, but again I figured when in Venice.... A gondola trip is pricey, especially when you are only in two, however we manged to bargain a little. It costs more at night-time aswell. I would suggest to walk a little outside the centre and then get a gondola as we did. This allowed us to see quaint little Venetian houses as we quietly drifted down the canals. There will be no tourists around staring at you (and quite possibly taking a picture of you) while you enjoy your romantic ride.

If you didn't see part one click here

Travel Diary: Venice Part 1

Well I finally got to visit Venice and after all these years in Italy it was top of my list of places to see. My biggest fear was that this floating city would be overrated, cheesy even. Full of tourists it was, even if carnival had ended the week before,but this did not effect it's charm.
I loved exploring the city with Lorenzo, from getting lost in the maze of narrow, narrow streets to hopping over the little bridges.
We stayed in a little hotel just off Piazza San Marco, called Hotel Antigo Trovatore which I would definitely recommend. Our room was bright, airy and so clean. The price was more than reasonable, also considering we were a 2 minute walk from Piazza San Marco.
On the first day we arrived by train from Rome with Italo, who do great train offers if you can book in advance. After lunch we went to visit the Palace of the Doges, where we could also enter Ponte dei Sospiri and the cells underneath the building, where Casanova was held. Then we took a walk around, just trying to familiarise ourselves and stopped for a class of the famous Venetian Prosecco while we watched the sun set on San Marco.
For dinner we ventured out to find the local Venetians. Living in Rome, we are well aware that the best restaurants are not near the main tourist attractions. I had done some research online and I read that most of the locals hang out in the Cannaregio area. It took us a good 30mins on foot, but we found lots of little restaurants and  small bars along quiet canals, away from the hustle and bustle of the tourists. It was very romantic as we strolled back to our hotel after dinner, with the street lights reflecting off the water.

Part two coming soon....