Monday, 23 November 2009

• $22 Cappuccino in Venice, Italy and totally worth it

  My beloved and I were suggesting places to visit to each other, and at some point Venice came up.  We had never been there, and surely, this is a place you just have to visit one day?

  I had my reservations. Overly touristy, expensive, reports about smelly canals, tacky souvenirs.We booked and went to check the place out for ourselves.

  We landed in Treviso, which has a neat little airport.  The bus to take us to Venice was ready to leave and an hour later we arrived at the large main square where you must leave your automotive transport behind and switch to Venice's famous water transport.  Our hotel was boarding the Canareggio, a canal arming out of the Canal Grande that slices the main island in half.  It was only ten minutes walk, past the train station.

  

  First impressions count, and the first impression was the neat absence of any cars.  Absolutely everything and anyone has to be transported over the waterways.  As a result, all the streets are handed over to you.  So, we took a water bus the next day, which sets you back $10 for a single trip.  But it's nice, there's nothing like taking in the city's skyline this way. 
  

  And of course, we headed for the Plaza San Marco, perhaps the most photographed square in the world. Its fame is well-deserved: its centuries-old grand buildings tower above the hordes that shuffle by. 

   

  "I'll buy you a coffee" said my companion. Ha! Little did she know. We spotted Florian, one of those grand old cafes that no guidebook would dare not to mention.  There was an orchestra playing, and a good one at that. We settled down, and enjoyed an hour of pure Venetian bliss.  

  The sunshine, the music and the beautiful backdrops and of course coffee served as if you are royalty all added to our contentment. Not even the bill of $40 could take any of that away - it was the most expensive cuppa ever, and still worth every cent.

  

  You can easily make your stay in Venice very expensive, as this example has shown.  But unusually for such an overtly touristic city, you can just as easily keep it sweet and cheap too. Buy a delicious roll at a confectionery for a few dollars and your lunch is settled. We discovered a coffee roaster in a main street, it had the freshest espresso you could possible want and they only charged just over dollar for it.  And take it from two coffee aficionados: it was to die for. For dinner, we asked for some advice and were sent to restaurants that offer good local fare starting at 15 dollars for a 3-course meal.  A la carte would be just double that.

  We took a train to the Lago di Garda, again paying peanuts for the two-hour ride. A very nice day trip indeed, especially if you fancy a day at the beach. The train stop in the walled town of Peschiera del Garda, in itself worth the trip.

  One odd thing: Venice goes to sleep unexpectedly early. We go out to dinner quite late, around 11 p.m.  This was not such a great idea, most restaurants were already closed. Getting a coffee after midnight - it would have been impossible, were it not for an open-all-night vending machine shop.

  Our tip for Venice: Sit down on the water's edge at 3 a.m. You won't hear a sound. No cars. No horns. No people. Just occasionally a water taxi gliding past, taking George Clooney back to his hotel - well that may have been just in my imagination.

  Have you ever wanted to travel to Venice? Do you enjoy touristy cities?
  

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