take the vaparetto to the Arsenale stop and visit the maritime naval musuem. worth the time. also in lido, there is a casino if you like to gamble. take the vaparetto the island of Burano for the lace making. have fun.

Bookmarking---a great thread with a lot of helpful info! Glad to hear the clock tower has been reopened.

I'm baaaack! Hubby had 2 teeth pulled & I've been playing nurse. Because of his blood thinner meds he took longer to mend - but all is well now & how great that this problem occured before our trip! (TIP: need to stop bleeding; compress area with wet (unused) tea bag! REc. by oral surgeon & it works!)

Anyway, I've copies & pasted more info from those of you who gave me such great info since I was here last. Thanks a lot to everyone.

Tomorrow I'm going to start the advance prep & gathering items that need to be packed, rather than wait till the last minute & panic! Then I hope to have time to put together the Rome info I already have & come up with Rome questions, if any - surely there will be some!

So, the Venice info I have should cover about 2 weeks or more & we have 1 week! Already talking about going back next fall!

Another Venice question - (see, it never ends!) - do any of you take "boots"; not the fashion kind; the rubber, can walk thru flooding kind! I've looked around & the "real" ones seem awfully heavy to pack "just in case". If the need arises, can the proper kind be purchased in Venice for a "reasonable" price?

Thanks again everyone, Julie

ttt

I have just received an email from the City of Venice website, advising that the new, guided and reservation only visits inside the Clock Tower in Piazza San Marco are available for booking, starting November 13th. There must be at least 2 persons, maximum 13, there are long windy, ancient, very narrow stairs to navigate, therefore, handicapped persons would not be able to access it, not recommended for persons who have claustrophobia, or pregnant women either.

The cost is 12 Euro, and must be booked in advance, (like the Secret Itineraries Tour).

You can book your English tour here, on the Musei Civici Veneziani (Venetian Civic Museums) website:

http://www.museiciviciveneziani.it/f...;sezione=musei

In order to access the Clock Tower tour, when you go to the website posted above, click on the "Info" link at the bottom of the page, then click "opening times" or "tickets"

Just bookmarking!!

great thread - bookmarkng

Excellent response and info, bookmarking for our trip next week!

hi, Julie,

REgarding the times when the lights are on in San Marco, last November, they were on for most of Sat and sun, plus one hour on other days [sorry can't remember which ones]. the times were posted on a notice ? inside and we went back specially to see it with them on. there were hardly any queues and those there were moved quickly, but that's probably not the same in July!

an interesting walk can be made by following the signs from san marco/the rialto to the train station - look for the "ferrovia" signs on the walls. this takes you up the main drag, past many interesting "local" shops, veg and fish markets. AS high water was forcast,[it never turned up while i was there] I bought a very smart pair of shiney black rubber boots [wellies or wellingtons to us brits] in a shop along there for 15E. On return home, i gave them to DD who now looks very smart cleaning out the donkeys!

also delis, lots of cafes, a shop where they sell wine by the litre [take your own bottle] etc. etc. you can access jewish Venice by heading off to the north, and also get to one of the vaporetto stops for the islands.

I'm sure there are lots of other gems to be found just by heading away from the normal tourist areas.

regards, ann

I love the idea of bringing your own bottle and buying wine by the litre!
Can you be a little more specific about where I can find that place?
thanks

hi, Julie,

If you follow the strada nova [the "main drag" between san marco and the station] it is a tiny shop on the right about half way betwen the two. from memory it is near a rather good deli and some other locals type shops. it had some barrels in the window.

the strada nova is quite long, and although in the space of 5 days I must hve walked along and back at least 1/2 dozen times, I still got the order of the shops mixed up! but it was along there somewhere.

hope you have fun finding it!

regards, ann ((D))

Hi Ann, just to let you know the op has gone and returned from italy, since last november, although I'm sure your advice would help another reader. I came across her trip report by chance...great reading.

hi, phatfree

the no. of times I've missed the date where old threads are being bookmarked, it must be my age.

thanks for mentioning it.

regards, ann ((E))

[but it does give me a chance to practce my smilies]

opps - didn't mean that one. :-[

marking....3 trips to Venice, and her list of questions gives me new things to see on my 4th trip!

Anne

Annhig - I love the idea of bringing your own bottle and buying wine by the litre!
Can you be a little more specific about where I can find that place?
thanks

Arsenale:- I endorse what has been said already . The Art Biennale opens to the public on the 10th or 11th June and runs until November . The Arsenale is an important annexe from the Giardini where the main pavilions of participating countries are located . It is has a huge variety of art forms . It is a vast and impressive space . It is well worth a trip and the cost of admission if you are at all interested

I just realised this was a post from last year ! Any way the info is still relevant

ttt

I was looking for one of my recent posts & found this old one of mine. Since many of the responses were after we returned, I missed them. However, there's some great info here. Since we are revisiting Venice in November this year, I'll use some of the info. Thanks everyone, Julie

Response to question #2: Masks - On a 2004 visit to Venice I discovered a small mask shop, L'Arlecchino (789 Ruga Vecchia S. Giovanni). The woman there works in the back, making only papier mache masks (not the fake stuff). The shop is packed with masks, floor to ceiling -- intricate designs, simple designs -- all with unique character. Worth a visit -- if not to buy then to admire. The silver leaf mask I bought is still my most prized travel souvenir.

I can only answer the question about glass.. take the ferry to murano, it's a great and inexpensive ride.. you can watch them blow glass and look in the quite shops on the island.. very cool!

Topping - many thanks Julie:)

Julie,

This old thread about gondola building may be helpful:

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threadselect.jsp?fid=2

Hi Julie,
I was in Venice last November over Thanksgiving. We did tour the Jewish Synagogue, as did my son and daughter in law on their honeymoon in October. We all thought it was a worthwhile experience. The book shop had some additional reading material, if you are interested.My advice is to check the tour times and try to get there earlier in the day. I wanted to find some gift items for my sons, and I found some adorable rabbis in gondolas in a murano glass gift shop in San Marco Square and the prices were quite reasonable. The lovely owners took the time to wrap my purchases so carefully everything made it home safely.The name of the shop is Palesa Gallery at 145 Piazza San Marco. Also, we went to the Guggenheim Museum and really enjoyed viewing Peggy's home and art collection.The views from her terrace as great. We also found that the Murano glass shops away from San Marco were very reasonable on the same items near the center of town.There were great gift items, bottle stoppers for wine, glass fruits and insects,etc, battery operated tabletop clocks for under 20 euros. As you walk around you will see many of these shops and get to know the better prices! The trick is to find the shop again. Hope this has been helpful, have a great trip!