Vini da Gigio
Fondamenta de la Chiesa, Cannaregio
Located across the canal from Al Fontego dei Pescaori - just off Strada Novo. I had some cicheti, ravioli, cheeses, a bottle of veneto red. There was a wonderful elderly American couple dining here who's southern accent I could not place - it wasn't Carolinian, nor Texan or Georgian - I finally had to introduced myself and learned they were from Norfolk, Virginia - it was like their 6th time to Venice and oh how they love Venice - sweet couple. I would like to come back to this restaurant another time - mainly because it has a very good reputation among Venetians and what I had was good (especially the ravioli) but I was a bit cuisine fatigued.

Afterwards, walking through San Marco late that evening, in a moment of silliness, I did a twirl in the center of the Piazza - suddenly cheers broke out. A group of Italian architect students were hanging in the Piazza drinking wine and invited me to join them - for the next hour in broken english and italian, we talked life, architecture, Carlos Scarpa (who is a god) and the joys of architecture school (some of my fondest memories). Hanging in the Piazza laughing - the cafe chairs being put away - embracing couples scattered about - it was a sweet moment and very Italian.

I'm very much enjoying following you thru Venezia, Carta. I just returned a couple of weeks ago and your report is very reminicent. :)

I LOVE it ~ may you never stop twirling, Carta.

((F)) Tiff

What a wonderful report! I want to follow you around to restaurants. And sounds like such fun talking in Piazza San Marco. I had a great time conversing for quite a while one evening with one of the artists in Piazza Navona in Rome. One of those things that's even more likely to happen when you're travelling alone.

Great report. We are looking forward to our trip to Venice in a few weeks time.

Diz01

S(orry - but the holidays, work and such got in the way for the past week.)

11/10
Woke to blue skies and mild temps (where was the acqua alta? where was the fog?) By Thursday, Barbara, at Locanda Orseolo, had accepted that I only wanted a double espresso for breakfast. Barbara suggested visit the Scuola Grande di San Rocco, being that I liked the Tintoretto at the Palazzo Ducale. I would recommend doing the audio tour which is included with admission (sorry - can't remember how much). Once again - the upper floor is the most grand, though not as sun drenched as the one on the Palazzo Ducale - I could imagine the meetings that occured here - the negotiations - the deals - the intrigue. When stepping into churches and visiting palazzos in Venice I found myself transported. Different than when visiting palazzos and churches in Genoa. After spending about an hour at the Scuola Grande I headed off to meet a friend of a fellow Fordorite, for lunch at La Zucca. We had agreed to meet at San Stae - once again I was able to find my way there with relative ease (okay I confess - I just followed the vaporetto sign - hoping that it was the correct one). We both were on time and luckily Linda knew the way to La Zucca. While we meandered we talked about life in the NE and what we had been doing, eating, and seeing in Venice. La Zucca is located next to a small canal (and one of the owners is mentioned in City of Falling Angels). Linda recomended one exceptional dish - the pumpkin flan, which is so rich that two people could share it. This is dish is amazingly rich and dense - she was correct, 2 people can share it - for one person it would be too much richness (and I who believe in 'more is more, and less is less') I ordered pasta with gorgonzola and pine nuts and a zuchinni and tomato gratin - Linda ordered (I believe) a veal dish. For dessert I order a chocolate semi freddo with cardamon and ginger. Linda had something chocolate. We order a carafe of both red and white - we split the bill, 30E each. A wonderful and pleasent afternoon lunch - thanks Linda.

Alla Zucca
Santa  Croce 1762 (S. Gaicomo dall'Orio)

After saying our goodbyes, I went to the Accademia Museum for the afternoon. The ceiling in the first room - with the cherub angel faces and wings - is great. I made point of taking my time - information sheets are provided in each room, in numerous languages. Surprised to learn that Carlos Scarpa renovated many of the rooms. There are also some great icons in the first room. Afterwards I walked over to the Peggy Guggenheim. (In City of Falling Angels - I learned that she was the last person in Venice to have a personal gondolier and she's buried, along with the laso apsos, in the garden, somewhere). The art she collected is amazing - wow - chagall, kandinsky, modigliani, picasso, giacometti, miro, modrian, so many - plus many italian futurists. And that view from her terrace - it was sunset on the canal - the lights shimmering on the water, palazzos lit from the inside, there was a lavender hue to the early evening - I could have sat on that terrace for an hour. I realized I hadn't sat along the Grand Canal yet - I remember seeing plenty of cafes near the Rialto with seating along the Canal. They were setting up for a party at Peggy Gugenheim so I took my leave and went back to the hotel for an early evening nap. For dinner I had reservation at Corte Sconta.

La Corte Sconta
Castello 3886, Calle del Pestrin

Rita, who runs the front of the restaurant very efficiently, allowed me to order the seafood antipasta - though normally it's for two people and for my primi, pasta with white truffles. I was about to order a secondo but she said i should wait and see how feel. My handsome waiter recommended a good Vento red. Within a hour the photo taking dining groups had left and a quiet mood settled over the room. The seafood antipasti was fresh and varied - the white truffles were so fragrant. I decided to order a secondo - much to Rita's surprise - soft shelled crabs. A couple from Arlington,sitting next to me, struck up a converstion with me regardng 'City of Falling Angels' - after my soft shelled crabs were served, Rita walked up a couple minutes later - "are you going to keep talking or are you going to eat? the soft shelled crabs are going to lose their texture if you wait any longer". Like I said - Rita runs a tight ship. Also - as a side, a fragrant grilled square of polenta - mixed by hand for 45 minutes according to Rita, no mixer used. For dessert - some cheese and a couple dulce vinos - followed by espresso and grappa. Total came to 115E. I will defintely come back here next time.

Completely transcended I am. Thank you Carta!

57 days to go, hee. We can't wait.

Thank you for the time we spent together.....it made La Zucca that much more memorable!!!!

Terrific report!!

I'm ready to go back....you too??

Hi Linda - I would love to get the recipe for the pumpkin flan - that would make a perfect Thanksgiving dish.

11/11
Woke up once again to blue skies and moderate temps but could tell there was a slight chill in the air. I had been meaning to go to the campanile at San Giorgio Maggiore all week - so I hopped onto #82 from Zaccaria.  The view from the top of the campanile cost 3E - and is worth so much more than that. Thank you to the Fodorite(s) who recommended doing this - being across from San Marco crystalized for me the layout of Venice - where the Lido was located, the numerous other islands, the curves of the major canals which can only be appreciated from above. It was a beautiful day - the canals were busy with boat traffic - the sun glittered on the water. There were only 3 other people at the top of the campanile with me - to have this view practically to myself was astounding. I really wish I had done this earlier in the week - I recommend to anyone, on your first day of great weather in Venice - go to San Giorgio. The campanile closes at 12:30 (reopens at 3, I think). Afterwards I sat in the church designed by Palladio - the white interior spaces brought to life by the sunlight. I caught the #82 back to San Marco. Making my way to the Rialto, I passed the Etro store - I had to restrain myself from going in until tomorrow. Passing through the Rialto vegetable and fish markets - the scent of soil and produce hanging in the air - the banter of merchants.

Carta what a beautiful report! YUMMM.. you have a lot of style!!
Epicurious.com has a delicious recipe for a pumpkin flan.

Tiff --

I've stayed at Orseolo twice (just got back from second visit on the 26th). Although they do have a hair dryer in the bathroom, I *hate* it. I brought my travel dryer both times and was so glad I did. The one that is on the wall is like a very low power vacuum in reverse -- I have thick hair and it would have taken an hour to dry it. Keep that in mind if you also have thick hair!

C_P -- GREAT trip report...I love reading it. I need to write my own which will also emphasize food and beverage. :) Glad you enjoyed Orseolo - I would never stay anywhere else.

I can't believe I am such a dope....I have been in Venice two-handfuls & have never been to the campanile at San Giorgio Maggoire!!
Top of my list for the next trip...yes, I have already started another list...haven't totally unpacked & I've started a new list!!
Your description is wonderful....I love the light dancing on the water. I also love the view from San Marco campanile....but have always had to share the experience with dozens of people.......NOT the same as your peaceful view from the other side!!

I'll check out the flan recipe on Epicurios....and make a copy & bring it to Felidia's........

Many thanks for a marvelous report!

hi beanweb ~ ummmmmm, that bad, huh? Perhaps I will rethink. I would say I have medium thickness, and I always let it airdry for about 30 minutes to lessen the time under the dryer and keep it healthy. We are traveling light this time and I was thinking of going without mine, but I will rethink this one...

Thanks!

Dear Carta P,

Thanks for taking the time to share your wonderful trip with us. I am so enjoying it and can't wait to visit Venice one day.

Carta P,

Thank you sharing a lovely trip report.

We were in Venice shortly after you, and had very similar experiences. We too stayed at the Locanda Orseolo (which exceeded our expectations!), dined at La Zucca, and saw many of the same sights. We can hardly wait to return.

Woody

Tucked on a sottoportego, Vecio Fritolin, is a restaurant one could pass by very easily. The chill in the air was becoming more pronounced and the warm glow of Fritolin was inviting and comforting. After ordering a Campari spritz, Irina asked me how had I known about her osteria. To be honest I had read and cross referenced so many restaurant reviews I couldn't remember specifically which review had piqued my interest - all I could do was show her my tattered 1 page condensed cheat sheet/itenerary for my week in Venice. I started with a plate of cicheti - delicate and fresh, the white polenta just warm enough. For my primi - pasta with tuna and radicchio - generous and plentiful, in a reduction sauce of some sort. For my secondo - I was uncertain about a certain Italian word, Irina informed me it was eel - local to be specific, in a tomato sauce, a very traditional local dish. On the side a fragrant grilled square of yellow polenta. Irina recommended a beautiful pinot nero from the region. There were a couple people in the back room but I had the front room to myself - an opportunity to just relax, read, nibble, imbibe. For dessert a flourless type choclate cake with a red wine sauce - once again, delicate even graceful. Followed with an espresso and grappa - the bill came to like 90E, maybe even a little less. I will defintely come back here again and recommend this highly.

Vecio Fritolin
http://www.veciofritolin.it/
Santa Croce 2262, Calle della Regina

I could never afford to eat at the places you have been describing but that doesn't mean I haven't enjoyed reading the descriptions.

I do find it funny that you are spending more on food each day than you did on your room!

But it sounds like you had a great time. And I've been looking at your reviews to try to pick One or Two great places to take my wife while we are there at Christmas.

Thanks,
JPM

JPM - a plate of cicheti was not that expensive - I think the most was 15E and could easily be split by 2 people. And push come to shove - order just one or two - they're really inexpensive individually. I saw glasses of wine ranging from 2E to 9E (for a Barolo, still a bargain compared to NYC) - spritzes ranged from 4E to 7E - paninni (sp?) were 1.50E. I could have scaled back my dinners without any issues from the restaurants but...so many dishes, so many tasty things to taste and savor - now that I'm back home I'm eating much less (I still think you get better value, and quality, in Europe compared to NYC)

After lunch I made my way to Fondamente Nove to go to Murano. Along the way I stumbled upon a stationary printer's store - the actual printing presses (no laser writer printers anywhere to be seen) were in his store. The cards and maps he printed had beautiful line weight and imagery. In some ways I'm a real luddite at heart - I love the old ways of creating things. The ferry ride to Murano went quickly. I meandered around the island for about an hour - picked up a couple small pieces of glass (and wanted to buy so many more, they're kinda addictive in a strange way) - stopped into a couple museum like stores and saw pieces designed by Carlos Scarpa. I didn't get to see any glass blowers unfortunately. On my way back to Orseolo I stopped in a cafe to have a coupe Campari spritzes and finish reading City of Falling Angels. I made a mental note to be sure to tour the Fenice tomorrow.

L'Incontro
Dorsoduro 3062, Rio Terra Canal

For dinner I had reservations at L'Incontro - a restaurant that specializes in Sardinian cuisine. I hopped on the #1 vaporetto to Ca' Rezzonica - it was a pretty straight forward shot to the restaurant - in fact I arrived about 15 minutes early. As I walked around I found MondoNovo (the guy who made the masks for the boring orgy in Eyes Wide Shut). Just around the corner, on campo Santa Margherita, numerous bars were beginning to fill up. I was still feeling pretty full from lunch - so I ate lightly (surprise). A plate of really thin crisp broken bread drizzled with fresh olive oil and sprinkled with fresh herbs was brought to the table. I ordered a half carafe of house red, the antipasti plate of Sardinian salamis, proscuitto and sausage and for my primi, pasta with pesto and pine nuts - a fairly straightforward italian meal and a nice change from all the seafood I had all week. What made the evening charming was watching the owner's young son reading a book to his grandfather, sitting next to the kitchen - there was something so heart warming about witnessing such a simple act. The meats were flavorful - the pesto intense - and the red wine robust. The bill came to a little less than 20E. The one thing that was a bit strange was for about half the meal I felt as if the building was rocking, not intensely but just enough to be unnerving - and I experienced the same sensations the next night after riding the vaporetto to dinner. Not sure if anyone else has experienced this while in Venice.

The weather had begun to turn misty by the time I made my way to the train station. The bars in San Palo and Santa Croce were filling up with college students. I caught the #1 back to San Marco - as I entered the piazza, in the cafe next to the museo archeologico, the band was playing and I thought, a member of the band was singing. Whoever was singing had a wonderful full voice - everyone nearby was standing still, listening, transfixed. I then realized that it wasn't a member of the band singing - it was someone at a table, with friends, who was singing - he probably sang for another 3 minutes - ending with a big finish. Everyone went wild - I have no idea who he was - but it was such a unique moment to stumble into - it was something everyone there shared, witnessed together - I love Italy.