A Month In Venice

Okay so now you are in Venice, Italy and are a night owl so now what? Is this place designed for the elderly tourists? Does this place have any kicking clubs that I can go to? I am sure that if you are young and still active these are just some of the questions you may have asked if you are planning a trip. The answer to this question is maybe. It really is a crap shoot to find a place that is hip and active in Venice.

I am not trying to dissuade you from going if you are young, rather I just want realistic expectations. The best advice is to find a friend in Venice that shares some of the same interests as you do and follow their advice. Perhaps there is a club where you both can go and have a good time. For each individual this can really vary as much as the bars and nightclubs in the city.

Here is just some of the places that I have discovered in my research on the subject and through exhaustive verification.

Iguana
Cannaregio 2515, Fondamenta della Misericordia
This is a Latin club that serves Mexican food and offers dancing. There is live music on Tuesdays. They are open from Tuesdays to Sunday from 6pm to 2am with a happy hour from 7pm to 9pm.

Bacaro Jazz
San Marco 5546, Salizzadda del Fondaco dei Tedeschi
This is a jazz club that is open from Thursdays to Tuesdays from 11am to 2am. Food and drink is served at this club and you can eat until late at night. Obviously Jazz music is played in this club so if you are not a fan of that type of music stay away.

Il Caffe
Dorsoduro 2963 Campo Santa Margherita
This is a café by day and turns into a open air nightclub. This is a very eclectic place but it is not open as late as others. The hours of operation is from 7am to 1:20am from Monday through Saturday.

Piccolo Mondo
Dorsoduro 1056 CAlle Contrarini Corfu
This is a very small place that will be an acquired taste to many. The hours of operation for
this club is from Tuesday to Sunday from 10pm to 4am. Since this club stays open later I am sure there will be more drunk people around in the area.
This is just a small sample of what is available as the city has a variety of places that caters
to each and every desire that either the locals or tourists could desire. I would be extremely careful when visiting these places to start. Always be cautious and use some common sense and you should be alright.

The Island of Murano is not really part of the city of Venice however it is part of the Venetian lagoon and a very famous tourist destination. Well renowned for its glass blowers and craftsman the island of Murano actually started out as a fishing port and was first settled by the Romans.

A trip to Venice would not be complete if one did not stop at Murano to see the creation of unbelievable works of art formed before your very eyes. The feel of the heat furnaces and smell of the glass will stay with you for a long time as you admire other works created by these unique and hard working artisans. Murano separated itself for years by minting its own coins and this is really part of the reason I do not consider it actually part of the city. When you create your own currency then you are a separate soverign nation in my eyes.

It was not until 1291 when the city of Venice feared the glass makers would burn down the city, which at that time was made mostly of wood, forced the glass makers to leave the city and settle in Murano. It was here on Murano that Aventurine or Goldstone glass was being made. Since for a time in history this was the primary place to obtain glass for the whole of Europe you can probably tell that there are many historical buildings and places to see in Murano. It was not until the 15th century that this island became a resort destination for many of the residents in Venice and surrounding areas. Because of the rise of the popularity of this island many palaces were created.

The attractions to see on this island include:

•    Church of Santa Maria e San Donato
•    Church of San Pietro Martire
•    Palazzo da Mula
•    Palazzo Giustinian (contains the glass museum)

Plus many free glass blowing seminars that the island uses to attract as many tourists as possible in order for them to sell their goods to you. It is not uncommon for someone to be waiting around at least one of the days in St. Mark’s square to offer you a free ride to Murano. My question always is sure it is free to go to Murano but how much does it cost to leave. All in all this is definitely a place you want to check out if you are interested in history or art or just curious.

You may be wondering if you are planning on a trip to Venice, Italy what is there to see? Well hopefully I have already given you some ideas already however I think a good list is in order here.

Here is my list in no particular order of some of the top sights to see while staying in Venice.

• Doges Palace
• St Marks Basilica (and St. Mark’s Square)
• St. Mark’s Campanille
• Harry’s Bar
• Palazzo Dandolo
• La Fenice Theater
• The Accademia Gallery
• Peggy Guggenheim Museum
• Santa della Maria Salute Church
• Campo Santa Margherita

I am not going to number these sights as each and every person has their particular preference for what they want to see whenever they visit a city. However a visit to Venice will not be complete unless you go to each and every one of these places in my opinion.

Also since these are the most visited parts of Venice keep in mind there will be crowds of tourists in the area and you will not get a true taste of the city if you only hang out in these areas. Rather it is much better to find out where the locals go to for fun and see where they hang out. This is the only way to get a feel for the true city of Venice and not what they show to the public.

I am feeling somewhat ashamed that I have not written any tribute to the late Luciano Pavarotti until now. Unfortunately I have been just too busy.  However I think it would be a great mistake not to write something about this great tenor here on a blog dedicated to one of Italy’s greatest cities. He is perhaps best known for his performances as one of The Three Tenors. He could be properly credited for introducing opera to the masses and for me he really helped stir interest in all things Italian. Well known for his “high C” notes Pavarotti maintained his stature as a opera star although he would do some cross over work with other performers to help other various charities.

Pavarotti was born in the city of Modena which is located in the north central part of Italy for those that do not know. His father is the one he credits for stirring his interest in opera however it is well known that Luciano’s father could not perform due to stage fright. What is not so well known is that Pavarotti was trained as a teacher and taught in elementary school for two years before he started to go for music full time. He also worked part time as an insurance salesman before he became famous. This just proves that if you have the dedication and talent you can succeed at your true passion.

If it were not for this man I am sure many of my generation would not know anything of Italian opera. He should be given credit for revitalizing an art form that was in decline before he came to the stage. He is a great example of how the great culture of Italy continues to spread and make the world a better place. I know I will miss him.

Doges Palace in Venice or Palazzo Ducale di Venezia in Italian is the large palace that is the symbol of the city. The designer of the palace is not really known however we do know that the construction of the palace took place between the years 1309-1424. The name of the palace comes from the fact that this was the residence of the Doge or magistrate of the city. Since this was the magistrate’s primary residence much of the governing of the city and later of the region took place here.

The first floor of the Ducale di Venezia contained offices for lawyers, the offices for the Navy and the Chancellery. The second floor contained the Grand Council chamber, the ballot chamber and the apartments for the Doge. The third floor on the other hand contains many rooms where many dignitaries were entertained so there is many works of art on this floor as the need to impress was well and alive back then. Of note this building contained a room dedicated to the people so that they could place a complaint to the government, this room was called the Bussola chamber.

This building has seen much of the history of the world and was the residency for many years of magistrates. Of significance is that this building contained a room for the council of Ten. The council of ten was a governing body who ruled secretly for the Republic of Venice from 1310 to 1797. Although the council of ten did meet secretly the decisions made by them were generally considered fair and effective.

This is a significant example of the transition between gothic and renaissance architecture of that time. In fact this building incorporates all three architectural styles of gothic, Moorish and renaissance so this fact alone makes this a noteworthy sight to see while in Venice.