Venice & Burano 2015 ~ A Photo Journal

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We love living six months a year in Umbria for a multitude of reasons, but one of the most important assest of living in central Italy is location. We can drive to either Florence or Rome or either coast in under two hours. We also discovered a few years ago that we can be in Venice in just four hours driving time after leaving our farmhouse in Umbria. We now make quick trips to Venice every year, often during breaks between taking care of our farmhouse guests. These trips help us to recharge and enjoy this Italian treasure of a city, so different from where we live in the Umbrian countryside.

fishmarket1My husband and I have both always loved Venice, having visited it many times over the eight years that we lived in Milan. Venice is a unique city built on water and tied together by bridges, and we just love exploring on foot, often getting lost as we admire the breathtaking views as we ramble through the city. Another reason we love to visit Venice is for the seafood, and it is very rare for us not to eat seafood at both lunch and dinner throughout our stay. If you keep away from the tourist traps, Venice has amazing restaurants serving authentic Venetian cuisine that would please any food lover. We usually gorge ourselves on seafood for two days during our stay in Venice, then we pack a cooler with fresh seafood purchased from the wonderful Venice fish market to bring home to Umbria with us the day we are leaving If you are visiting Venice for the first time, I highly recommend visiting the local Bacari, or Venetian wine bars for lunch. At these wine bars, you can get a glass of wine and some finger foods, called cicchetti, which are often seafood based. On every trip, our lunch in Venice includes walking to two or three bacari and enjoying a glass of local wine and some cicchetti. You can find some of my favorite baccarat listed here. If you are unsure about searching out these baccarat on your own, our friend Monica Ceserato lives in Venice and gives chichi tours of her favorite Venetian wine bars. (See details below)

Although I do enjoy trying out new restaurants, often recommended to us by locals, I am also always drawn to returning to our favorites. One of these is Corte Sconta, where the seafood appetizers seem to be never ending, and where we’ve always enjoyed a fantastic meal. If you book a reservation, do request the outdoor patio area that is very pretty! (See details below)

lobsterpastaIf Venice alone isn’t enough, you can also take a boat ride to one of the islands just off of Venice, Burano being my favorite. We love to visit the quaint island of Burano with it’s brightly colored homes, and always book lunch at Trattoria Gatto Nero for a memorable seafood lunch. This past trip the specialty of the day was a lobster pasta dish that was one of the best seafood pasta dishes I have had in years. (See details below)

We have stayed at many hotels in Venice over the years, and this year we returned to Hotel Flora, a small family run hotel just off Piazza San Marco. We first stayed at Hotel Flora back in 1987 and often stayed there when our kids were young. We haven’t been back to this hotel for years, so decided to give it a try. For a hotel in Venice, the price was reasonable, they accept small dogs (we travel with our Yorkie Luca), our room was very nice, and the breakfast garden is lovely. I would certainly recommend this hotel, and we will return there soon! (See details below!)

Hotel Flora
San Marco 2283/A 30124 Venice Italy
Tel. +39.041 5205844 – Fax +39.041 5228217
Email

Trattoria Gatto Nero 
Via Giudecca, 88 – 30142 Burano
Tel. +39.041.730120 – Fax. +39.041.735570
Reservations Required

Corte Sconta
Calle del Pestrin
Castello 3886
20122 Venezia
Tel. +39 041 522 7024
Closed Sunday & Monday
Reservation Required

Monica Ceserato
Chicchetti Tours
Email
Tel. 1-213-550-5452 U.S.A.
Tell Monica I Sent You!

VIEWS Of VENICE 

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Crowded Venice Streets

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View Of Piazza San Marco From Water Bus

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View From Accademia Bridge

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Gondola Ride Anyone?

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Buying Our Seafood To Take Back Home To Umbria

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Venice Fish Market

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Bridge of Sighs

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Walking Around Venice Over One Of Many Small Bridges

BURANO

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Deborah Mele
June 2015

6 Comments

  1. The last time I set foot in Venice was at the tender age of 12…and that was way too long ago. Your images are wonderful…all that’s charming about Venice was absolutely captured in this post. The colors alone have put a smile on my face.

    I was wondering about a cookie named ‘Zaletti’…would you by any chance have tried an authentic version of a recipe for this cookie? I’ve looked into it briefly and find that the recipes differ substantially. Any feedback would be appreciated ;o)

    Have a lovely day,
    Claudia

      1. Deborah…how wonderful to read your reply. Looking forward to your selected version of this cookie. My polenta jar is waiting ;o)

        Have a fabulous giornata!
        Claudia

  2. Thank you both for spending so much time with me!!!! It was a pleasure as always working our way through food in Venice! And for the recipe of zaleti you know someone here who can give you a good one! Baci

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