Another trip to our favourite place

Well, trip number five to Venice is on the horizon!  It's not quite 12 months since we spent our month there and the return is much sooner than we expected - I thought we'd be back when my long-service leave kicked in - in 2013!   Never in a million years would we have imagined a return so quick, but life is full of wonderful surprises.

Once again, we'll be there in off-season - arriving just before Christmas and leaving shortly after the New Year.  We know it will be cold - really cold! - but we're excited by that.  Christmas Day in Sydney, for example, is generally a hot day.  And we've never been a fan of summer, so why not head off to the Northern Hemisphere for a nice cold Christmas break?!  And a hot meal on the day rather than cold meats and seafood will be wonderful!  We just have to remember to organise everything as soon as we arrive because we'll have to work around public holidays and shop closures for the festive season.

We've organised an apartment through Lux-Rest - the third time we've used them -  and funny enough it's the same one we stayed in back in 2008, up around St Mark's. While we prefer to be out of the main hub of Venice, we're actually quite happy to be central again. For example, it will be great to watch NYE fireworks in the square and know that we're less than a minute back to the apartment and not a 30 minute vaporetto ride to San Croce.  The apartment is on a canal and close to absolutely everything.  And it's literally a hop, skip and a jump to the Basilica and Palazzo Ducale.

Part of me wanted to stay in another sestiere (Dorsoduro, Cannaregio, San Polo) but with only six weeks to go, we didn't have a lot of planning time!  It's a holiday that's being added to a work trip for the "better half" and is something spontaneous.  We still can't believe the flights are booked, accommodation is being finalised, train rides too (we're going to go via Siena, Bologna on the way up from Rome).  This time a fortnight ago we wouldn't have even contemplated it!  We were gearing up for summer in Sydney not winter in Italy!

Ah, as I said, life is full of wonderful surprises. So with another Venice trip on the horizon I'm back on this blog.  We know the place so well so I'll be posting the odd thing while we are there.  Perhaps providing more information to those travellers that go off-peak like us.  Share the love, so to speak.  Afterall, it is a place we love dearly....

Tourists Tourists and more Tourists

After several weeks in Venice, we wish we could be defined as being "locals" rather than "tourists". What point do you cease being a tourist and become a visitor, a local, a resident?  I'm sure there are legal definitions but in our hearts, we don't wish to be tourists. (That said, I'm a photography nut so I've always got the digital SLR close-by - a dead-giveaway we're not as local as we'd like to be!!!).

I once read the average time someone visits Venice is one day.  ONE DAY!  How on earth can you get a feel for La Serenissma in 24 hours?  A large number of people come here on cruises and basically hop off for some general site-seeing, shopping and eating, before heading off to the next destination. Tourists come in droves - from the airport, from the train station, from the buses.  And it gets worse on the weekends, particularly when the weather is nice.  You can't cross a bridge without running into massive tour groups, even in our quiet and suburban canal.

At a vaporetto stop today we overhead a conversation between several British people and they were all basically staying for three days. Now three days I understand. Three days is the number I spent here when I was a 21 year old backpacker and then again some 15 years later. Since then it's been seven days and now this one at 30 days. Even now, we're trying to work out how often we can get back and how long should we stay for each time. Apparently we're moving here but after checking the property prices - and not speaking much Italian - I seriously doubt it! But we dream....

Venice is a tourist mecca regardless of the time of year you travel. We like to come in the "off-season" as I previously mentioned on this blog. The downside is that some restaurants are closed over the colder months and general tourist sites often have shorter hours. But you can get around much easier. Except in St Mark's, you aren't generally bustled about it. You've got room to move. You can soak it up much easier. You can be at one with the place.

Except on the weekends when even more tourists pour into this place!!!  Note to the large French group we passed this morning.  It was obviously day one, first hour, of your trip.  Yes, you are looking forward to all the wonders of this glorious city.  But learn the "road rules".  Keep to the right.  And don't friggin "hog" the bridges, especially the smaller ones used for local routes.  The locals like us get really p***ed off when you don't move across and let us pass.

Yep, when then are dozens and dozens of tourists around and you've been here for a couple of weeks (and it's not the first time visiting the place) THAT's when you call yourself a local! :)

The sounds of Venice

After being in this wonderful city for the last fortnight, we're getting to know the sounds of Venice.  Yes, we've been here several times but for this is the first time we've spent a whole 30 days in La Serenissima.

Firstly, the main sound you'll hear is the sound of luggage wheels going across the pavers.  Big bags, small bags, early morning until late at night.  Click Click Click as they go from their landing spot (Piazzale Roma or the Ferrovia vaporetto stop outside of Santa Lucia train station or boat/water taxi) to their accommodation. And back again. Some might be like us - renting an apartment through one of the agents based here.  Others might be enroute to a hotel or a pensione.  Either way, tourists are coming and going. Constantly.

The second sound -- and one of my personal favourites -- is the sound of church bells ringing out across the city. Again, they ring at all times of the day. And with 100+ churches in Venezia, there are bells ringing close to where you are staying. On this trip I've heard church bells ringing so often my partner jokes that I must have tinnitus! But I know I'm hearing them. They are beautiful.

With all the water around us, there's the sloshing noises as we all weave around/ jump across/walk through the puddles. Sometimes there is a little and sometimes there's a lot of sloshing to do! Particularly in St Mark's after high tide.

Speaking of high tide - there's the sirens. We've never noticed them when we've visited the city before, but it's November. That equals Acqua Alte. The siren blares out across the city at various times (early morning, evening, night) and then you listen for the rising tones that indicate the height of the water. We heard one a little while ago - two tones x 5. If we look out our front door in another hour or so, we'll be glad we had the flood barrier left up!

Then you have the noises of the raised walkways that are placed strategically around the city. Around Rialto, St Marks, anywhere that has localised flooding. Tourists and locals go bang bang across them. Lots of feet over raised boards. They aren't usually quiet things to walk across..

Of course in a city dominated by waterways, there's also the waves lapping against the sidewalks. Or against the vaporetto stops. There's the noises of the vaporettos heaving to a stop. And all that accompanies the ferries up and down the major canal routes.

Of course, this is Italy. And Italy = food and wine. So another sound of the city must be associated with the restaurants - whether an Osteria, Pizzeria, Trattoria or Ristorante - there are glasses clinking, cutlery and plates being taken out to diners. The sounds of a kitchen. Of waiters. Of movement.

Speaking of movement, what's Venice without gondoliers?  There's nearly always a gondolier close by asking whether you want a "gondola" trip.  "Gondola?"  they ask.  "Gondola, Gondola?" Sometimes you hear them singing. Sometimes you hear music. Lately we've been hearing accordians more often. In fact there was a group of gondoliers going down our relatively quiet canal the other night making quite the song and dance. It was entertaining. If only I could capture the moment better for you.

Speaking of capturing moments. Cameras clicking. Now THAT's a sound of Venice. Click Click. There's ones that are old fashioned, others that are more electronic. Cameras whirring this way and that. There's the noises as they are turned on and off. And of course the camera shutter opening and closing, opening and closing. That's a noise that is all around you.

And then there's the lovers. Kissing. Afterall this is a city of love. Sometimes they are a little noisy (too noisy!) and sometimes they are sweet. Sweet nothings whispered into ears. A nuzzle here and there. You can hear it. Love is definitely all around here.....!

Three weeks and counting

It's only three weeks until we're off to Venice again. It will be trip number four for me and will be the longest, at some 30 days in La Serenissima. I mentioned it to an industry colleague recently and they looked at me and said "30 days in Venice, you'll be soo bloody bored!". I was horrified! Most people remark about how envious they are. Many want to share their favourite sights, their favourite memories. However this is a different trip, as it's in memory of mum. I actually made another colleague cry when I told her the reason for the trip - she thought it was a beautiful idea and having lost her mum two years ago, wished she had also done something to honour her mum's memory and spend time recovering and healing.

With three weeks to go until the next visit, I'm starting to think about what to do. Normally when I travel I have a schedule of sights I want to see, places I want to go, things to do, food to eat, shops to explore etc. This time I've highlighted bits and pieces in a guidebook but there's no real plan. We're going to live there and just soak it up. Literally, afterall it will be during Acqua Alta time! Cold, rainy, flooding. Great for photography!

I've actually never been to Venice in the peak tourist season. It has soo many visitors at the best of times, the thought of tens of thousands more just makes me shudder. It's nice going in off season. The queues are less, you can roam the streets without being pushed day in, day out. Mind you, they still get busy, but it's not the same. And of course, from what I gather, the smells are different. Then again, we've been there while they've been doing work to smaller canals and I can't say that was particularly pleasant, but throw in the summer heat and tourist overload, I'd rather have off peak any day!

That said, there are problems. From November onwards many of the bigger shops and prominent restaurants close for the winter. Places like the Hotel Cipriani and their dining establishments are closed. Opening hours are different. Day trips need additional research as many attractions shut down totally. Reduced daylight hours do have an impact, you can't deny it. It gets dark earlier. You need to be prepared.

But we don't mind. I have very fond memories of the last trip to Venice when we went out to Torcello. It was misty and cold. On the vaporetto from Burano there was no one onboard but us. When we got off at Torcello we walked our way around a canal with not a person in sight. We crossed a bridge and went into the Cathedral that was founded in the 600s. The Byzantine mosaics from the 12th century were mind-boggling. The only other visitor to the Cathedral was a cat who purred away and led us around the church. It was a local, no doubt, and we loved the way it sat on the charity box. We were free to observe the mosaics in silence. It was glorious. As we left the Cathedral we saw some other people who had come in on another vaporetto. It was still misty and cold, but for a while it was all ours. It was magical.

Having seen all the major attractions in this glorious city, we have no plans. We will have time to spend shopping. We can soak up the place without being rushed. We can blend in. We can be at one with the magic. I can't wait.