Venice

We went to Venice on February 7th. A much cheaper time to visit, less crowded, and the weather was surprisingly warm. 10 degrees didn't feel like a great, British 10 degrees.

We didn't stay on the islands of Venice; we stayed in Mestre on the mainland, in a hotel called Quality Hotel Delfino Venezia Mestre. It was a nice enough hotel. Great shower. Good value for money. Plus, there's a bus stop right outside, literally outside the door. Getting to Venice couldn't have been any easier. Our room was boiling when we arrived, due to air conditioning being set to 25 degrees (???). But it was turned off when we asked.

Italians don't eat breakfast like Brits eat breakfast. Breakfast was included with our room; however, it was bread rolls, cold meats, a tray of baked eggs, bacon, cheese, and—I assume for the masses of Asian visitors—rice and green beans. I like rice and veg, but not for breakfast. Don't expect a full English anywhere. We stocked up on eggs and pastries at breakfast, to keep us going for a few hours. We also had some snacks in my bag, but they were only small, individual kinder Bueno and Choco-Bons. They were a godsend on the second day, though.

Day one: We got a very early flight, and arrived to Treviso airport. There is also Marco Polo, but it's cheaper to fly into Treviso, and TBH, you can see why. There was a lovely lady, speaking a range of languages, at the information desk, where we got a map and bought bus tickets. The bus was right outside the terminal and went to the train station, then straight on to the ferry port. We got onto what I'm certain was just someone's boat making money from it, but I'm all for that. As ignorant Brits, we didn't get any euros, so he said, "You wait me, and get cash at the end." Something mind boggling to us, but we obliged. It took ages. There is an official ferry, which costs the same but is quicker. We arrived, paid the man, and went about our exploring. It was still pre-11 AM when we arrived. We walked around a little, looked at what we'd like to do, made some mental notes of bars we'd like to go in, and, most importantly, hunted for coffee. We found coffee, and had lunch at the same time in a restaurant that is in St Mark's Square, on a corner. I think it was red. Bruschetta and pasta. Cheap eat. We walked around some more, and went to the hotel "for a nap"—He had a nap. I unpacked our things, then laid down with him until he woke up. We went for dinner in a mainland restaurant that night, that was a short walk from our hotel, All'ombra del gabbiano. I'm sure that translates to "the shadow of the seagull." Nice enough food, but not the most amazing English if you don't speak Italian. Then, we went to bed. Exciting pair we are.

Bright and early, day two: We had breakfast, and headed to the bus. We had booked a tour on TripAdvisor the night before, to include the main attractions. It started at 10:45 under the clock tower. It was a little unorganised due to other tours starting in the same place, but we soon figured it out. We had a tour guide who took us into Doge's Palace, where you're not allowed backpacks or large bags, so we stored these in a safe locker and the guide kept the key. She was very informative, spoke brilliant English, and gave us time to look at things while I saw other tour guides speed through rooms.

Then, we went onto St. Mark's Basilica, also no bags. There is a bag drop off between two glass shops at the left hand side of the building. They say "one hour," but they don't time you. However, bags are placed on shelves, not locked away, so they refuse to take valuables. I put my bag in twice, and no one went through it. No photos, with or without flash, are allowed, but it's a truly beautiful building. Following, we went to a glass blower's for a demonstration. We were told we'd get a small gift at the end, but didn't. There was a sales speech, and everyone left except us, who stayed to look around. However, with only hand luggage, we didn't want to purchase anything. The others in our group went on to a gondola ride, while we went for lunch in the Michelin-starred restaurant, Bistrot de Venise. While it was lovely here—the staff were fantastic and the food was good—it was very, very expensive. So, don't go if you're looking for a cheap eat. We took our time, and went to the gondolas around 5 PM. You are taken over in a group, and board in groups of six. For the best seats, you need to be the first two people. We were. 😉We downloaded an app for an audio guide that gives facts based on location. They give you the info and code for this, when you arrive to show your tickets. We'd pretty much done everything at this point. We had dinner in a cute little restaurant located above a bar, in some slightly less touristy area that took a little while of walking through the labyrinth-like streets to stumble upon.

Day three: Packing, breakfast, bus. We went to Museo Correr, which is included in the Doge's palace ticket. We walked along the seafront to the Venetian arsenal (which was closed). There's a museum at the entrance, but we didn't go in. We explored back areas, where you couldn't see a tourist except us. Had drinks and pizza in a seafront cafe, and hit a brick wall, because we realised we had already done everything there was to do. Had gelato, and walked some more. We returned to Rialto bridge, but it was a Saturday, so it was 80 percent busier than it had been the previous two days. We did a Google search of somewhere to eat before we travelled to the airport, and on our way, we came across Vinneria All'amarone, which turned out to be the best food we'd had the whole time. The first time I'd seen garlic since leaving the UK. It's a wine bar and restaurant, with brilliant food and wonderful staff. The lasagne was amazing 😛😛 I'd go back to Venice for that alone.

I woudn't go back for anything else, because I think it's a day trip kind of place. It always looks so beautiful and glorious in photos, which it is, but it also smells of sewage and you could complete everything in a single day if you had a plan. We finished our trip in this wonderful restaurant, then headed back to Treviso to wait in the airport before our delayed, but unannounced, plane. Ryanair. 👍

All in all, it's a lovely place. It's romantic and sweet, but you need a tour guide for things, as nothing is in English inside, so you wouldn't get the same kind of interaction without one. There are loads of cheap eats serving take-away pasta, giant pizza slices, sweets, etc. There's a chocolate shop that looks exactly like Lindt, with an ice cream bar. If you don't want to spend much on food, it is easy to avoid. A coffee in the square was €11, but only €5 three metres away.