The One Where it Rains in Venice

The view outside our hotel window

We left Florence and continued on our road trip to Venice. Venice is a city that received mixed reviews from friends and family before we went. Some said, "You'll love it - it's magical! It's amazing!" Others said, "One night should be enough. It isn't that great." Unfortunately for us, we didn't have great weather. So I will resolve to return someday and hope for better weather. We arrived on Wednesday afternoon and made our way to our hotel, Palazzo Schiavoni. We rented a 2 bedroom, 1 bath apartment with a kitchen. We unpacked a little and got settled and then headed out to explore. Venice is great for exploring. There are so many little streets and alleys that you could just get lost wandering for hours. With three small children, our first task was to find a place to eat at 4:00 in the afternoon. We found a little trattoria and had sandwiches and pastas and pizzas (and lemon soda - always lemon soda in Italy).

Cin cin!

The bridge right by our hotel

One of my favorite memories of Venice is Charlie chasing the pigeons

Shops all over Venice sell masquerade masks & clothing

After that, we meandered along the streets and over bridges to Piazza San Marco. It was starting to get dark and it was a little misty, but do you think that stopped us from getting gelato? The Laczkowskis will always find a way to get gelato! We walked around and stopped into shops (Mom and I went a little nuts at the amazing pharmacy we found) and eventually made our way back to the hotel.

always gelato

Grandma & the kids in Piazza San Marco

On Thursday morning we woke up to rain. Lots and lots of rain. But we had already arranged with the hotel for a boat trip to the island of Murano to see a glass-blowing factory tour. So we decided to go forth in the rain. That was an interesting boat ride and one I'm not eager to repeat. But the kids enjoyed it and Charlie especially enjoyed watching the glass-blower make a vase and various glass animals. It wasn't really the fun outing I'd hoped for so we didn't tour much of the island in the torrential downpour. This did, however, afford us an opportunity to go to a cafe for espresso and . . . wait for it . . . gelato!

The rainiest boat ride ever. Thank goodness we were covered.

Gorgeous view of the canal, eh?

Glass blower in Murano

We decided to head back to the hotel and wait for the rain to quit. The kids really just enjoyed playing in the apartment. When the rain finally ceased, Mom and I took a little walk and found the best lasagna I've ever eaten. Later, Mom stayed in the hotel with the kids so Tobi and I could venture out on our own. After Tobi also tried the amazing lasagna, he and I wandered around and made our way to the Realto bridge and the Grand Canal. It's very touristy there, with lots of cruise ship passengers taking advantage of Italian specialty stores like the Disney store and Esprit (insert eyeroll here). I was really glad we picked a hotel that wasn't in that area.

Self portrait on the Rialto bridge, Grand Canal behind us

The hotel let us know about an opera performance we could attend at the Scuola Grande San Giovanni Evangelista on Thursday night. My mother is an opera buff and has season tickets to the opera in Chicago, so I knew this would be a highlight for her. I am not an opera buff, but I love my mom so I definitely wanted to go with her. Tobi stayed in with the kids (after I made him pumpkin ravioli and the kids buttered noodles from a shop in our neighborhood) and Mom and I took the ferry to the other side of Venice to the school. That was a nice boat ride because the rain had stopped and we could see the city all lit up at night. We had a quick dinner at a nearby restaurant and made it to the school in time to hear a compilation of highlights from many famous operas. I am in no way knowledgeable about opera and I recognized nearly every aria. The performers were terrific and the venue was amazingly beautiful. Saint John's Hall, where the performance was held, was built between 1727 and 1762 and contained amazing works of art and a beautiful altar, which served as the backdrop to the performance. I hope it was a highlight for my mother because it certainly was for me.

Beautiful hall at the opera school

On Friday we decided to leave Venice after breakfast so we could make our way back to Zurich. The ferry boat ride back to our parking garage was the best view of the city during our stay because the sun was shining. Hopefully Venice will have nicer weather for us next time!

The city in the sun as we were leaving

The kids at the 2,000 year old arena in Verona

We stopped in Verona on our way to have lunch and see the arena there. The arena is one of the best-preserved Roman structures, built in 30 AD. I personally enjoyed it more than seeing Rome's Colliseum because it was easy to walk onto the floor of it and get a sense of its scale. Tobi, Grant, and Charlie walked around the entire thing. The boys really enjoyed that. After seeing the arena, having our last Italian meal (pizzas and pasta, of course!) and having one last gelato, we got back into the car and didn't stop again until we got to Switzerland.

Piazza in Verona

Grandma & Caroline enjoying a break in the arena

This was my third trip to Italy and I have to say that I love it more each and every time. The food is delicious, the scenery is amazing, but the people of Italy are the best. They genuinely enjoy life. They always make us feel so welcome and dote on our children. There is something about Italy that gets into your soul, I think. It's the only place I've traveled where I sorta feel homesick for it once we've left. Homesick for a place that has never been home. That's how I know we'll always go back.

Ciao!

Tiffany

Up Next: Christmastime in Vienna