Would you like to visit a swamp filled with a bunch of people who get drunk and dress in costumes right before having to cleanse themselves for Lent? No I’m not talking about New Orleans, I’m talking about real debauchery, Venice!
Carnival began in Venice to celebrate a military victory in 1162. They enjoyed the party so much that they began to hold it annually and the celebration changed to be a pre-Lent sinful blowout. In fact, the masks that people associate with Carnival were worn to facilitate anonymous trysts as well as trips to brothels and casinos.
We are visiting in November, not February so keep those masks off and those pants on!
Getting Around Venice
Venice was laid out by Satan himself. It’s an absolute shit show. Literally all of the buildings seem to be dropped at random. Any place where there is a decent space between buildings is called a Campo, which serve as plazas.
There are addresses in Venice, but the numbers aren’t always sequential or frankly even logical.
Campos are pretty much the best way to identify where you’re at. If you say “I’m near Campo San Polo” that might be understood, but if you say I’m at 3433 Dorsoduro that may be the address, but it’s completely meaningless, because, you know, designed by Satan.
So you might be asking “Why are we going to a swamp, where it’s impossible to find anything and it’s filled with a bunch of drunken sex perverts?” Good question, and the answer is “Because it’s awesome!”
Attractions
St Mark’s Basilica and St Mark’s Square
Unlike the Duomo in Florence, St Mark’s Basilica has a distinctively Byzantine Style because the Byzantine Empire ruled over the region off and on over many centuries.
The Basilica was built in 828 and was built to house the body of St Mark. His body had been stolen and moved from Alexandria, Egypt. Apparently the head of St Mark the Evangelist remains in Alexandria because, I don’t know, maybe the skull just fell out of the thief’s hands when he was walking and he just couldn’t pick it up. I mean, who does that? Steals his body and then leaves the head? Anyway, the church looks cool, even if they only have like 90% of a saint interred there.
There is also a campanile which is 323 feet tall. It was rebuilt in 1912 after the previous campanile had collapsed a decade earlier.
Tickets to visit the Basilica are free, you can purchase skip the line tickets, but I don’t know if that is necessary in the off-season. I would like to visit this and climb the campanile if possible, we did not do this the last time we were in Venice.
Doge’s Palace
The Doge was the name given to the leader of Venice from the 7th Century all the way up to 1797 when Napoleon Bonaparte ended the reign of the last Doge, Ludovicio Manin. As you can expect from the leader of one of the most opulent cities in the world at the time, this is an enormous palace with lots and lots of art and other grandiose displays of wealth.
Tickets to the Doge’s Palace run around 30 Euros.
Rialto Bridge
Rialto Bridge is an iconic bridge spanning the grand canal in Venice. The Rialto Bridge is near our Airbnb, so we will cross it multiple times. There also is a market nearby called Rialto market that we should visit.
Leonardo Da Vinci Museum
Okay, this isn’t a huge attractions for Venice, but I’ve always been interested in Leonardo Da Vinci and they have an exhibit of his inventions, sketches, etc. The cost to get in is 9 euros. More information here
Murano Island – Glass Blowing
Murano Island is well known for it’s industry of craft glass blowing. There are several glass shops and glass factories on the island. Many of them have demonstrations. One unique place on the island is The Glass Cathedral which is an old cathedral that has been converted into an events center. They also do glass blowing demonstrations that take around 25 minutes and cost 14 euros.
Food
Cicchetti
Cicchetti is a term used for small finger foods. They are often sold at wine bars known as enotecas or bacari. We went to Archicchetti Bakaro the last time we were in Venice and it was definitely a favorite of the locals. Very good. We ate crostini which are little open faced sandwiches similar to bruschetta.
Cicchetti can be found all over Venice, especially at wine bars, You will also find little crustless sandwiches named tramezzini, croquettes, and even salted mashed cod formed into balls called baccalà mantecato (looks like a better version of canned tuna fish)
Risotto
Have you ever watched 12 hours straight of the Food Network and convinced yourself that Squid Ink Risotto sounds delicious? Well now is your chance to try it! You’ll find it all over Venice on the menu as Risotto Al Nero di Seppia. Honestly, you will see a lot of squid ink dishes on menus, and they will all be labeled with ‘Nero di Seppia’.
I’ll stick with vegetable risotto known as risotto primavera. There is a similar dish known as Risi e Bisi which translates as rice and peas which is more of a thick soup.
Places to Eat
- Mare Magno – This place has 4.9 stars on Google (370+ reviews). It’s a little pasta restaurant on the Grand Canal run by a couple. Maybe 6 dishes, mainly pasta, that change daily on the menu, around 15 euros a plate, open 1-3 and 7:30-10. I assume you need to be there at 1 or 7:30.
- Antico Forno – Pizza near our Airbnb, and the Rialto bridge. Known for it’s Sicilian style thick crust pizza, but also has a traditional thin crust.
- Archicchetti Bakaro – This is where we tried cicchetti when we were in Venice last time. There were so many locals there, I have to believe its one of the best. Bonus – they had Birra Morretti Rossa on tap. Oh and its very cheap.
- Al Merca – A little wine bar that has a ton of little 2 euro sandwiches.
The Vaporetto
The Vaporetto is the only form of public transportation on the islands in Venice. They travel around the outside of the main cluster of islands in Venice as well as through the Grand Canal. They also connect the main part of Venice with other islands such as Murano, Burano, and Lido. A map of the main lines of the Vaporetto can be found here.
We should be able to buy Vaporetto tickets at the train station. Ticket prices for the Vaporetto depend on how long you want the ticket.
- 60 minute pass – 7.50 Euros
- 24 hour pass – 20 Euros
- 48 hour pass – 30 Euros
- 72 hour pass – 40 Euros
- 7 day pass – 60 Euros
I know we are only in Venice for a few days so we will have to make a decision about whether we want to spend the entire time in the main cluster of islands or if we want to venture off using the Vaporetto. I did find some interesting places on other islands if we choose to go wandering off.
- Murano Island – glass blowing factories, shops, demonstrations
- Lido Island – It’s likely too cold to really enjoy this, but its the beach area for Venice, there are a number of beachfront bars, such as Bluemoon Spiaggia Lido di Venezia
- Guidecca – Skyline Rooftop bar, on the roof of the Hilton Milano Stucky. This looks a bit bougie, but the views of Venice would be pretty amazing
Newby to Expert Traveler 