Lovener's 2012 Great Italian Caper
Aug 11th, 2012, 09:54 PM
#23
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* thanks for all the kind replies & compliments of Lovener2's photographs. Ellenem, glad we could bring back some lovely memories for you. I'm also jealous of those of you with great trips planned to Venice soon! I just can't get enough of the place!
Day 7: Wednesday 9th May: Exploring Venice
Today we wanted to pause a little, knowing that we had a few big days ahead of us. We sent Lovener2 & his Mum off to explore together at the Rialto market and it was time for Dad to start carrying Mum’s shopping bags for her ☺
Being in an apartment certainly makes things easier for doing your washing but one thing travellers should remember (when renting an apartment in a first time location), is that you also miss out on local connections available through the hotel staff. Occasionally it is nice to be able to check your directions with the concierge. This wasn’t a bother for us in Venice but did require a bit more pre-planning. It wasn’t something that I considered when booking our accommodation.
For our internet connection, we purchased a E20 sim card from the Tim office which wasn’t far from Rialto. We used this in our iphone for calls and used it for internet connection to our laptop using ‘hotspot’ and a cable to connect the laptop to the iphone. The card worked for 30 days and was more than sufficient for our internet use. Simple to use, no issues.
Feeling the need to see if my credit card was operating appropriately & my nightie looking decidedly drab in comparison to my neighbour's Italian number, I ventured forward to the local Intimissi branch and did my annual stock up. Now seems a good time to talk a bit about the Tourist Refund Scheme, which was soon to become my new best friend… ☺
Tourist Refund Scheme Low-down:
* spend a minimum of E155 in a participating store (we found it was available in most places)
* take your passport (or know your passport number)
* make sure you & the retail assistant fill out every part of the form
* keep hold of the forms
* don’t use the goods in any way (they must be brand new when you leave the country)
Retail businesses use one of a number of scheme administrators so you may find yourself with different colour envelopes from different providers. Some providers, have an outlet in the main centres and you can actually collect your tax refund (could be up to 22% cash back) before you even leave the country. Fantastic! One warning though if you do collect before you depart: you must depart within 30 days of collecting the cash or the refund will be clawed back off your credit card).
The easiest way to take advantage of the scheme is to quarantine the goods you’ve bought in a separate part of your suitcase and store your forms carefully. When you get to the Airport, pay attention. First checkin but do not check your bags in (explain that you have to collect your refund first & the goods must be available for sighting), then go through customs, then look for signs to the Tourist Refund/Customs agent. Next, show your forms and the goods to the Customs Agent who will stamp your form. After they've done the stamping, they will put your bags onto a special luggage conveyer belt behind them. You then walk to the nearby TRS booths (match the brand off your form to the booth, you may need to line up for multiple booths).
The scheme works incredibly well – we only had two small issues. We had one retailer that didn’t fill in the form completely which made the Customs Agent very grumpy. Our second issue related to an expensive pair of earrings which were the only item the Custom Agent asked to view. When I purchased these, they were essentially packaging-less and the Agent didn’t like the fact that he couldn’t tell if I had used them before leaving the country. We did witness one very upset tourist who checked their bags in first and then tried to claim their refund – they lost a lot as it was a multiple thousands handbag that they’d bought. The signage isn’t fantastic so one needs to be on their toes and follow the rules outlined above.
After doing my own bit to get the Italian retail sector out of recession, I met Lovener2 and his Mum for lunch in Dorsoduro. I arrived 20 minutes early and sunned myself on a bench in the square and people watched. It’s a lovely neighbourhood and fun watching people purchase their fish for dinner and kids playing soccer in the square.
The initial lunch spot chosen had a lovely location but unexciting menu so we enjoyed a pre lunch drink there before moving onto Ristorante Oniga.
Ristorante Oniga
Campo San Barnaba
Dorsoduro 2852
041 522 4410
This was a fabulous lunch where we enjoyed good banter with the waitstaff and other travellers seated nearby. We enjoyed 1 antipasto, 3 primi, 1 secondo, and 2 contorni plus beverages for E90. The oven roasted rosemary potatoes had a wonderful, earthy flavour and would be in the running for most favourite side dish of the entire trip. I’m not sure what they do to those potatoes from Saint Erasmo but they are truly delicious. The mains were prawn and pumpkin pasta, octopus spaghetti and fresh fish.
We wandered around leisurely for the remainder of the afternoon. There was a glass bead shop I wanted to check out (Riflessi Veneziani (glass beads and jewelry) Santa Croce 1834-1867. Alas they were closed for “La Pausa” and I wasn’t motivated enough to return later in our stay after peering through the window.
We also visited Antica Legatoria Piazzesi- Venice’s oldest paper shop: Sestriere San Marco 2511/c (Campiello della Feltrina - Santa Maria del Giglio). I have to say that our visit to this store was tremendously disappointing. The shopkeepers are no longer Italian and were unhelpful. Almost nothing was priced and one got the feeling your capacity to pay was being sized up when you enquired over the price of anything. We left empty-handed.
A lovely day drew to a close so we meandered back to the Apartment to cook our only home-cooked meal of the stay. We did our own version of Steak Florentine and didn’t do too bad! Btw – a note to all of you out-there ‘determined that you’ll rent an apartment in Venice and then save lots of money going to the markets and cooking your meals’… I’m not sure the intention matches reality, particularly when one has cut through the tourist trap restaurants and discovered a few local osterias where delicious mains can be had for E12…. ☺
Day 7: Wednesday 9th May: Exploring Venice
Today we wanted to pause a little, knowing that we had a few big days ahead of us. We sent Lovener2 & his Mum off to explore together at the Rialto market and it was time for Dad to start carrying Mum’s shopping bags for her ☺
Being in an apartment certainly makes things easier for doing your washing but one thing travellers should remember (when renting an apartment in a first time location), is that you also miss out on local connections available through the hotel staff. Occasionally it is nice to be able to check your directions with the concierge. This wasn’t a bother for us in Venice but did require a bit more pre-planning. It wasn’t something that I considered when booking our accommodation.
For our internet connection, we purchased a E20 sim card from the Tim office which wasn’t far from Rialto. We used this in our iphone for calls and used it for internet connection to our laptop using ‘hotspot’ and a cable to connect the laptop to the iphone. The card worked for 30 days and was more than sufficient for our internet use. Simple to use, no issues.
Feeling the need to see if my credit card was operating appropriately & my nightie looking decidedly drab in comparison to my neighbour's Italian number, I ventured forward to the local Intimissi branch and did my annual stock up. Now seems a good time to talk a bit about the Tourist Refund Scheme, which was soon to become my new best friend… ☺
Tourist Refund Scheme Low-down:
* spend a minimum of E155 in a participating store (we found it was available in most places)
* take your passport (or know your passport number)
* make sure you & the retail assistant fill out every part of the form
* keep hold of the forms
* don’t use the goods in any way (they must be brand new when you leave the country)
Retail businesses use one of a number of scheme administrators so you may find yourself with different colour envelopes from different providers. Some providers, have an outlet in the main centres and you can actually collect your tax refund (could be up to 22% cash back) before you even leave the country. Fantastic! One warning though if you do collect before you depart: you must depart within 30 days of collecting the cash or the refund will be clawed back off your credit card).
The easiest way to take advantage of the scheme is to quarantine the goods you’ve bought in a separate part of your suitcase and store your forms carefully. When you get to the Airport, pay attention. First checkin but do not check your bags in (explain that you have to collect your refund first & the goods must be available for sighting), then go through customs, then look for signs to the Tourist Refund/Customs agent. Next, show your forms and the goods to the Customs Agent who will stamp your form. After they've done the stamping, they will put your bags onto a special luggage conveyer belt behind them. You then walk to the nearby TRS booths (match the brand off your form to the booth, you may need to line up for multiple booths).
The scheme works incredibly well – we only had two small issues. We had one retailer that didn’t fill in the form completely which made the Customs Agent very grumpy. Our second issue related to an expensive pair of earrings which were the only item the Custom Agent asked to view. When I purchased these, they were essentially packaging-less and the Agent didn’t like the fact that he couldn’t tell if I had used them before leaving the country. We did witness one very upset tourist who checked their bags in first and then tried to claim their refund – they lost a lot as it was a multiple thousands handbag that they’d bought. The signage isn’t fantastic so one needs to be on their toes and follow the rules outlined above.
After doing my own bit to get the Italian retail sector out of recession, I met Lovener2 and his Mum for lunch in Dorsoduro. I arrived 20 minutes early and sunned myself on a bench in the square and people watched. It’s a lovely neighbourhood and fun watching people purchase their fish for dinner and kids playing soccer in the square.
The initial lunch spot chosen had a lovely location but unexciting menu so we enjoyed a pre lunch drink there before moving onto Ristorante Oniga.
Ristorante Oniga
Campo San Barnaba
Dorsoduro 2852
041 522 4410
This was a fabulous lunch where we enjoyed good banter with the waitstaff and other travellers seated nearby. We enjoyed 1 antipasto, 3 primi, 1 secondo, and 2 contorni plus beverages for E90. The oven roasted rosemary potatoes had a wonderful, earthy flavour and would be in the running for most favourite side dish of the entire trip. I’m not sure what they do to those potatoes from Saint Erasmo but they are truly delicious. The mains were prawn and pumpkin pasta, octopus spaghetti and fresh fish.
We wandered around leisurely for the remainder of the afternoon. There was a glass bead shop I wanted to check out (Riflessi Veneziani (glass beads and jewelry) Santa Croce 1834-1867. Alas they were closed for “La Pausa” and I wasn’t motivated enough to return later in our stay after peering through the window.
We also visited Antica Legatoria Piazzesi- Venice’s oldest paper shop: Sestriere San Marco 2511/c (Campiello della Feltrina - Santa Maria del Giglio). I have to say that our visit to this store was tremendously disappointing. The shopkeepers are no longer Italian and were unhelpful. Almost nothing was priced and one got the feeling your capacity to pay was being sized up when you enquired over the price of anything. We left empty-handed.
A lovely day drew to a close so we meandered back to the Apartment to cook our only home-cooked meal of the stay. We did our own version of Steak Florentine and didn’t do too bad! Btw – a note to all of you out-there ‘determined that you’ll rent an apartment in Venice and then save lots of money going to the markets and cooking your meals’… I’m not sure the intention matches reality, particularly when one has cut through the tourist trap restaurants and discovered a few local osterias where delicious mains can be had for E12…. ☺
Aug 11th, 2012, 09:59 PM
#24
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See http://tinyurl.com/8ujeksz for Day 7 Rialto and Dorsoduro photos. No responsibility taken for any hunger that ensues.
Aug 13th, 2012, 11:43 AM
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Thank you so much! This is a fabulous report so far, and I can't wait to read about "the big day!" You are a great story-teller and have a good sense of humour. And I appreciate your insights about the little things--like the fact that in an apartment, you lack a concierge. We are renting an apartment when we go to Venice in September, and it's our first time there (though we've been to other parts of Italy). So that's something to think about. Your photos are great as well. Can't wait to read the next installment!
Aug 14th, 2012, 12:48 AM
#34
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oh gee, thanks everyone 
Day 8: Thursday 10th May: “il mio compleanno”
(bare with me here, there is a tenuous link from the pre-amble to the write-up of the day's activities....)
Five years ago, I felt remarkably relieved that Lovener2 & I were travelling to Venezia to celebrate my thirtieth birthday as the thought of being the centre of attention (& “old” to boot) filled me with dread. I've subsequently grown into my skin a bit more & now realise there are far bigger things in life to worry about! Lovener2 also probably hasn’t clicked that I now aspire to be somewhere remarkable for all major birthday milestones
Returning to Venice exactly five years later was very special, particularly for me to be able to share the milestone with my parents.
We knew this was going to be a special (read: expensive) trip for us and we had been diligently saving for the trip for over 3 years. We made many sacrifices to be able to afford a few special treats – I’d spent months researching where in Italy we were going to enjoy 3 fabulous meals. I came very close to running a spreadsheet shortlist of all my preferred possibilities before Lovener2 caught me out for over planning (my defense of “you start enjoying the trip the moment you start planning it” didn’t cut it & a fair bit of playful mocking continues to follow...). I had to abandon plans for my super spreadsheet that was going feed in reviews from a variety of different websites (discounting any reviews that mentioned foods I disliked) and then pop out the magic answer for my 3 fabulous meal locations, hehehe ☺. See, I can laugh at the twisted joy I get from planning too
I settled on 3 meals in a less scientific fashion – il Ridotto (Venezia), Antiche Carampane (Venezia) and Le Calandre (Padua). Just after I had secured my highly sought after reservation at Le Calandre (the jewel in the crown of my selections), I started talking with the lovely Nan McElroy from YourfriendinVenice.
I’d asked Nan to help me arrange the gondola for our wedding day. Being no-fuss types (& needing to save $ for other things we valued more), we didn’t want a gondola decked out in wedding garb. What we wanted was a great meandering ride from our Apartment to Palazzo Cavalli. Nan planted the seed about the possibility of being taken in one of the wonderful gondolas that belonged to Arzana (see http://arzana.org/), Venice’s gondola preservation society. The more we read about the vision & foresight being shown by Arzana’s founders, the more shallow our desire to eat at Le Calandre became… So to cut a tale of much angsting over dinner at Le Calandre short, we swapped our meal at Le Calandre for a ride in a reproduction antique gondola.
Luckily for us, as part of the wedding arrangements, we were able to view the gondola that would be taking us to Palazzo Cavalli the next day for our nuptials. This was how we were to spend part of my birthday.
What a birthday treat it turned out to be. Visiting the Arzana workshop was like a trip to Santa’s Grotto. It was a fascinating collection of antique gondole and wonderful artefacts associated with gondoling activities. What we loved most was imagining the lives of the gondoliers that had used the equipment we were admiring. There was an enormous variety of shapes (different boats, oars, lanterns, fishing nets) and the colours ranged from bright & fresh to aged & distressed. We loved being there and will treasure the memory for much longer than a meal at Le Calandre.
Our next adventure was to visit an old friend, Andrea. Andrea D'Agostino is a master artisan jeweler:
Bottega Orafa ABC di D'Agostino Andrea
Calle del Tentor 1839 Santa Croce 30125
Venezia ITALY
Tel-Fax+39-041-5244001
E-mail: [email protected]
(see http://www.orafaabc.com).
Andrea is a lovely kind soul who we met on our last visit to Venice. His personality, workmanship, and artistry would make anyone warm to him. Our first purchase from him was a ring Lovener2 gave me on my 30th birthday which combines layers of rose gold, palladium, and white gold. I treasure it and was hoping to procure another such treasure for my 35th.
Andrea remembered us well from our first visit and we enjoyed a lovely afternoon chatting in basic Italian and basic English and admiring his latest work. It was impossible to leave the shop empty-handed when faced with such an amazing collection of treasures. As we parted the store, and spoke of our plans for tomorrow, Andrea was so pleased for us and offered to come along. We were chuffed.
Well, it seemed we were overdue for a lesson in the Italian way of doing things - everything was going far too smoothly... I’d made an appointment several months earlier at a manicurist in Dorsoduro (it was token attempt to do something ‘bridely’). Well, we got there and put my Italian to the test again. It was a rather funny exchange followed between myself and the two Italian manicurist Madams. Chief Madam (with her caramel blonde hair swept up in a fairly spectacular Beehive) used her bright pink, diamante-encrusted talons to claw through the appointment book and pronounce that no appointment existed. Much huffing and puffing was emitted from the Beehive until I advised when the appointment had been made. A nonchalant Italian laugh was followed by the proclamation that they never made appointments that far in advance. Well, it’s lucky I’m not a bridezilla because it could have been ugly!
Next up we had drinks scheduled with the lovely folks from Slowtrav at La Cantina.
Packing too much in plus a few wrong turns meant we ended up being terribly late. Our parents’ navigation skills were also put to the test, needing to navigate their way there solo. Thankfully the slowtravs are as lovely in person as they are online and were very gracious about our lateness.
Several bottles of prosecco later, it was time to head to dinner.
We were greeted by Giovanni at il Ridotto
Il Ridotto
Sestiere di Castello (n. 4509) in Campo SS. Filippo e Giacomo
041 5208280
I’m still not quite sure what to make of our meal at il Ridotto. Parts of it were sublime but the main event itself was a touch disappointing. Giovanni’s passion for the food was clear and his execution precise. We loved almost all of the degustation menu but the main event was a bit hohum. It was a lagoon fish served on lentils and Dorrie’s had been double salted. I wish I had realized earlier and we would have returned it to the kitchen as it was essentially inedible. One aspect I’m not so sure of is the fact that males & females were served different courses – particularly when the blokes’ ones were better!!!
The meal itself was special for different reasons, namely the Offer & Acceptance. You see, Lovener 2 & I had discussed getting married for many years but there’d never actually been an offer or an acceptance. I started making this point a bit more loudly in the months preceding the trip until Lovener2 clicked that he just might not get away without the formal offer and acceptance taking place ☺
So after at least 3 bottles of prosecco over a few hours, Lovener2 plucked up the courage and got down on a bent knee and issued the offer. I was so embarrassed with all the fuss that I said yes very quickly and the smiles began. It was a lovely feeling and special moment. The discussion that followed with the parents was hilarious. Fifty questions followed, mostly all variants on when & how will the marriage take place. Lovener2 offered up “well, how about tomorrow?” which was quickly snatched by the two Mothers (clearly concerned that the deal needed to be sealed before either Lovener2 or I changed our minds) until they decided that would be too difficult and a host of insurmountable obstacles were raised. We finished the meal with “well, tomorrow it is”. I think our parents went to sleep wondering would there really be a wedding tomorrow???
Day 8: Thursday 10th May: “il mio compleanno”
(bare with me here, there is a tenuous link from the pre-amble to the write-up of the day's activities....)
Five years ago, I felt remarkably relieved that Lovener2 & I were travelling to Venezia to celebrate my thirtieth birthday as the thought of being the centre of attention (& “old” to boot) filled me with dread. I've subsequently grown into my skin a bit more & now realise there are far bigger things in life to worry about! Lovener2 also probably hasn’t clicked that I now aspire to be somewhere remarkable for all major birthday milestones
Returning to Venice exactly five years later was very special, particularly for me to be able to share the milestone with my parents.We knew this was going to be a special (read: expensive) trip for us and we had been diligently saving for the trip for over 3 years. We made many sacrifices to be able to afford a few special treats – I’d spent months researching where in Italy we were going to enjoy 3 fabulous meals. I came very close to running a spreadsheet shortlist of all my preferred possibilities before Lovener2 caught me out for over planning (my defense of “you start enjoying the trip the moment you start planning it” didn’t cut it & a fair bit of playful mocking continues to follow...). I had to abandon plans for my super spreadsheet that was going feed in reviews from a variety of different websites (discounting any reviews that mentioned foods I disliked) and then pop out the magic answer for my 3 fabulous meal locations, hehehe ☺. See, I can laugh at the twisted joy I get from planning too
I settled on 3 meals in a less scientific fashion – il Ridotto (Venezia), Antiche Carampane (Venezia) and Le Calandre (Padua). Just after I had secured my highly sought after reservation at Le Calandre (the jewel in the crown of my selections), I started talking with the lovely Nan McElroy from YourfriendinVenice.
I’d asked Nan to help me arrange the gondola for our wedding day. Being no-fuss types (& needing to save $ for other things we valued more), we didn’t want a gondola decked out in wedding garb. What we wanted was a great meandering ride from our Apartment to Palazzo Cavalli. Nan planted the seed about the possibility of being taken in one of the wonderful gondolas that belonged to Arzana (see http://arzana.org/), Venice’s gondola preservation society. The more we read about the vision & foresight being shown by Arzana’s founders, the more shallow our desire to eat at Le Calandre became… So to cut a tale of much angsting over dinner at Le Calandre short, we swapped our meal at Le Calandre for a ride in a reproduction antique gondola.
Luckily for us, as part of the wedding arrangements, we were able to view the gondola that would be taking us to Palazzo Cavalli the next day for our nuptials. This was how we were to spend part of my birthday.
What a birthday treat it turned out to be. Visiting the Arzana workshop was like a trip to Santa’s Grotto. It was a fascinating collection of antique gondole and wonderful artefacts associated with gondoling activities. What we loved most was imagining the lives of the gondoliers that had used the equipment we were admiring. There was an enormous variety of shapes (different boats, oars, lanterns, fishing nets) and the colours ranged from bright & fresh to aged & distressed. We loved being there and will treasure the memory for much longer than a meal at Le Calandre.
Our next adventure was to visit an old friend, Andrea. Andrea D'Agostino is a master artisan jeweler:
Bottega Orafa ABC di D'Agostino Andrea
Calle del Tentor 1839 Santa Croce 30125
Venezia ITALY
Tel-Fax+39-041-5244001
E-mail: [email protected]
(see http://www.orafaabc.com).
Andrea is a lovely kind soul who we met on our last visit to Venice. His personality, workmanship, and artistry would make anyone warm to him. Our first purchase from him was a ring Lovener2 gave me on my 30th birthday which combines layers of rose gold, palladium, and white gold. I treasure it and was hoping to procure another such treasure for my 35th.
Andrea remembered us well from our first visit and we enjoyed a lovely afternoon chatting in basic Italian and basic English and admiring his latest work. It was impossible to leave the shop empty-handed when faced with such an amazing collection of treasures. As we parted the store, and spoke of our plans for tomorrow, Andrea was so pleased for us and offered to come along. We were chuffed.
Well, it seemed we were overdue for a lesson in the Italian way of doing things - everything was going far too smoothly... I’d made an appointment several months earlier at a manicurist in Dorsoduro (it was token attempt to do something ‘bridely’). Well, we got there and put my Italian to the test again. It was a rather funny exchange followed between myself and the two Italian manicurist Madams. Chief Madam (with her caramel blonde hair swept up in a fairly spectacular Beehive) used her bright pink, diamante-encrusted talons to claw through the appointment book and pronounce that no appointment existed. Much huffing and puffing was emitted from the Beehive until I advised when the appointment had been made. A nonchalant Italian laugh was followed by the proclamation that they never made appointments that far in advance. Well, it’s lucky I’m not a bridezilla because it could have been ugly!
Next up we had drinks scheduled with the lovely folks from Slowtrav at La Cantina.
Packing too much in plus a few wrong turns meant we ended up being terribly late. Our parents’ navigation skills were also put to the test, needing to navigate their way there solo. Thankfully the slowtravs are as lovely in person as they are online and were very gracious about our lateness.
Several bottles of prosecco later, it was time to head to dinner.
We were greeted by Giovanni at il Ridotto
Il Ridotto
Sestiere di Castello (n. 4509) in Campo SS. Filippo e Giacomo
041 5208280
I’m still not quite sure what to make of our meal at il Ridotto. Parts of it were sublime but the main event itself was a touch disappointing. Giovanni’s passion for the food was clear and his execution precise. We loved almost all of the degustation menu but the main event was a bit hohum. It was a lagoon fish served on lentils and Dorrie’s had been double salted. I wish I had realized earlier and we would have returned it to the kitchen as it was essentially inedible. One aspect I’m not so sure of is the fact that males & females were served different courses – particularly when the blokes’ ones were better!!!
The meal itself was special for different reasons, namely the Offer & Acceptance. You see, Lovener 2 & I had discussed getting married for many years but there’d never actually been an offer or an acceptance. I started making this point a bit more loudly in the months preceding the trip until Lovener2 clicked that he just might not get away without the formal offer and acceptance taking place ☺
So after at least 3 bottles of prosecco over a few hours, Lovener2 plucked up the courage and got down on a bent knee and issued the offer. I was so embarrassed with all the fuss that I said yes very quickly and the smiles began. It was a lovely feeling and special moment. The discussion that followed with the parents was hilarious. Fifty questions followed, mostly all variants on when & how will the marriage take place. Lovener2 offered up “well, how about tomorrow?” which was quickly snatched by the two Mothers (clearly concerned that the deal needed to be sealed before either Lovener2 or I changed our minds) until they decided that would be too difficult and a host of insurmountable obstacles were raised. We finished the meal with “well, tomorrow it is”. I think our parents went to sleep wondering would there really be a wedding tomorrow???
Aug 14th, 2012, 01:00 AM
#35
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see here for Day 8 photos: http://tinyurl.com/d9ht2x3 how good does the Tiramisu desert from il Ridotto look? (only about 1% of how good it tasted!!!)
