“Venice in the Fog is Mysterious, Eerie, & Romantic.”
Boasting names of the “City of Water,” “City of Bridges,” and “City of Canals,” Venice, Italy is renowned for the splendor of her settings, architecture and artwork. A very popular tourist destination, Venice is frequently ranked the most beautiful city in the world. With so much hype, we are anxious to visit Venice with its winding canals, bridges, noted architecture and to experience the romance of this picturesque city. Boarding the train in Siena, Italy, our expectations are high for enchanting Venice.
As the train approaches Venice the skies slowly change from bright blue to a thick ghostly fog. Departing into the fog, we wind through a bustling crowd, trying to locate Vaporetto 1 (Venice’s water-bus). We spot the bridge for the Vaporetto. Dragging my suitcase, a man smiles, and takes my suitcase over the bridge. Holding out his hand, he says, “5 Euro.” I’m dazed! I tell Richard, the man wants money. As Richard pulls out the money, two policemen grab the man and tell us to go. Squeezing on to the jammed water bus, the Bus Assistant berates boarding passengers. Seeing the bus signage doesn’t match the hotel’s directions, I ask the Bus Assistant for clarification. He is rude and nasty. A friendly passenger points out the proper exit. A disappointing reception to the most beautiful city in the world.
It is dark and foggy, as we exit the Vaporetto onto dimly lit streets. Not a sole anywhere. Eerie. Down a narrow alley and over a bridge, we arrive at Hotel Al Ponte. The hotel clerk is warm and welcoming. With a November visit, the hotel isn’t busy and we get to choose our room. A spacious first floor room is terrific with a large bathroom and walk-in shower. With directions, a map, and a recommendation from the hotel clerk, we set off for dinner at Osteria Mocengio. A friendly cozy eatery, we enjoy a tranquil Tuscan dinner of a fresh salad, tasty pasta dishes and a bottle of wine. Afterwards, we stroll through the misty streets and roam the nearby piazzas. It is romantic as the moon dimly shines through the heavy mist.
It’s a foggy, damp morning as we wind down alleys, streets, and over bridges arriving at the famous Rialto Bridge that crosses the Grand Canal. Walking over this beautiful and scenic bridge, we peer across the Grand Canal. Not much is visible today. The Rialto is a central area of Venice, especially known for its prominent markets. For many centuries it has been the financial and commercial heart of the city. At Mercato del Pesce, the Venice fish market, shoppers are selecting from a wide variety of fish. An array of fresh fish are stunningly displayed. Selling fish on the banks of the main waterway in Venice is a several century old tradition.
Over-tourism is a major problem for Venice, visiting in the off-season popular attractions are not crowded. Saint Mark’s Basilica, the cathedral church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Venice, has no line. In 828, Venetian merchants stole the relics of Saint Mark the Evangelist from Alexandria, Egypt. First housed in the Doge’s Palace, a church was built to house the valuable relics. Then the church burned in 976, with the present basilica completed in 1071. Inside the striking Italo-Byzantine architecture is astounding. The décor is elegant tile and mosaics that gleam with gilding. Its distinguishing Byzantine character appears on the mosaics that illustrate St. Mark’s tales, plus scenes of the Old and New Testament. With gray skies and minimal lighting, it is very dark inside making it difficult appreciate some of its glory.
For a small fee we see the Treasure Relics. The relics are parts of bodies of saints and renowned religious people. Additionally, religious items from bowls to chalices to vessels are elegant in their design, gilding, and have insets of rubies, sapphires, pearls, and more. Paying another fee, we proceed behind the altar to see the magnificent Golden Pala. Made from hundreds of pieces of enamel struck into gold leaf, it is absolutely splendid in its elegance and detail. The Pala is adorned with sapphires, garnets, pearls, emeralds, rubies and many more precious stones. Outside the domes of St. Mark’s are lost in the fog.
Piazza San Marco, St. Mark’s Square, is the primary public square of Venice with the Basilica as its focal point. Strolling the Square on the west façade we see the great arches and marble decorations of the Basilica, the Romanesque carvings around the central doorway. Above all this is the four horses which preside over the whole piazza. Here also is the Campanile of St Mark’s Basiclia, a free standing tower-like structure, originally built in 1156 and rebuilt in 1912 following its collapse. Passing an outdoor eatery, musicians are playing violins with delightful music that is uplifting. Around the square are numerous museums, upscale shops and restaurants.
It’s a carefree exploration of Venice as we roam the city and happen onto unique sights. Churches are the primary stops. Each church is distinct in its history, as well as, having special artistic and architectural features. An elaborate Baroque façade covered in carvings is found at the Church of San Moisè, dedicated to Moses. Inside is the dominating altarpiece, Sinai with Moses receiving the Tablets. The church of Santa Maria della Pietà, Saint Mary of the Visitation, is a prominent church in Venice. Most impressive is the ceiling and the altarpiece showing Mary visiting Elizabeth in “The Visitation”. Venice is great for shopping. We admire the Venetians artistic talents, as we select special gifts of Murano glass ornaments and jewelry.
Italy evokes images of meals of pasta and wine. On our second day we take the Venice Bites Food Tour. Adam and Maya, our guides, primary goal is to teach us “how to eat like a Venetian.” Starting at Bar Foscarini, it’s a delightful Venetian-style breakfast comprised of a delicate pastry and an espresso with grappa. Called a Caffe Corretto, it definitely gets the blood pumping. We then walk to Cantine Del Vino, where the owner has consistently won awards for cicchetti, a small delicate, tasty sandwich. Cicchetti are served in traditional “bàcari,” where Venetians go for snacks before lunch. The salmon with mascarpone cheese, a pear with cheese, and the traditional cicchetti made from dried cod reconstituted to a creamy texture are very tasty along with a glass of wine. Adam shares insights into the unique weather issues of Venice from the heavy fog to the high water that floods the city.
Passing by the Gondola Repair shop we learn that Gondola’s are re-sanded and varnished every 40 days. Amazing, the apprenticeship for a Gondola Repairman is 20 years. Next is Snack Bar Toletta, the Birthplace of tramezzini, sandwiches that are made from huge slices of white bread (no crust). These sandwiches are always covered with white tea cloth to assure they stay fresh, never plastic or wax paper. An inexpensive sandwich, the tramezzini cheese with olive mixture and another one featuring ham and cheese with an arugula tomato mayo are awesome. Another glass of wine accompanies the tramezzini. Bars and Café’s are the favorites places for sandwiches for Venetians for snacks for mid-morning snacks in Venice. Lunchtime for Venetians is 1:00 PM. Along a canal small produce barge is docked. It’s a floating market! The barge is filled with fresh vegetables and seafood. All items are labeled of their place of origin. The Venetian’s must have originated “locally sourced” food. Our treat is Clementine, a small sweet tangerine.
Per Adam, Gelato, Venetian Ice Cream, is best when one can actually watch it being made. Additionally, the colors of Gelato must be found in nature. You can tell whether Gelato is fresh by its density and how easily swirls. If it is light and fluffy then it is a mousse, not Gelato. Our sweet treat choices are chocolate chip in cup and a caramel Gelato on a cone at Gelateria Artigianale Il Doge. As we walk past wellheads, Adam shares that the wellheads take in rainwater that seeps through sand to filter it. Water is a precious commodity in Venice. The motto is: Save Water! Drink wine! A quick stop is a cheese shop, La Bottega del Gusto for sampling of a fresh smoked cheese.
Now for the main meal at La Patagina aka Osterio. Venetians’ main meal is in the evening after 9:00PM with at least a first and second course. The complimentary bread is to clean sauce off the plate as it rude to not clean the plate. Tantalizing first and second course samplings are Crab Gnocchi and Sea Bass Ravioli. Yes, more wine! Moving on, we step into Pastry Shopone that has been in Venice since 1742. A newspaper reporter from New York wrote about decadent Pastry Shopone’s Casanova Balls. A recipe they created of balls of chocolate with white chocolate shavings. We each choose a pastry to take with us. A new trend is Venetian Street Food, basically food-on-the-go. At Aqua & Mais, we grab a “to go” in a hand-held box to munch on as we continue the tour.
Our final stop is at Naranzaria on the Grand Canal, where we are served a unique Venetian drink, a Venetian Spritz. It’s the drink of choice for Venetians when imbibing in the canal-lined city. The Venice Spritz is made with Venice Select (only select is Venice made and bought only in Venice). With its brilliant red color, it is served over ice. Sitting by the Grand Canal, as the sun attempts to peep through the fog, we delight in our Venetian Spritz and our pastries from Pastry Shopone. A fantastic finale to our Venice visit. Cheers to ghostly and romantic Venice.
Yes, Venice stays in the fog for our entire visit. Despite the foggy days, we find Venice has so much to offer and we only get a sampling. There are no scenic views of clear blue skies often seen in photographs. Yet, roaming the streets and alleys we still found picturesque canals, elegant churches, the fabulous Basilica, and more. It is still a most enjoyable visit. Our dining experiences added much to the charm of the city, with the fantastic food, wine and welcome. The Venice Food Bits Tour with the gracious hosts of Adam and Maya really provided insight into Venice, its food and its charm. Even in a ghostly fog, Venice is mysterious and romantic.
Follow our road trip and adventures as we travel to through Italy from Rome to Florence to Tuscany to Siena to Venice.
If you go:
Hotel Al Ponte Mocenigo, 2063 S. Croce, Santa Croce, Venice, 30135, Italy
The hotel was very nice with spacious rooms, welcoming staff, and excellent morning breakfast. Good location and good ratings. A very nice boutique hotel. We selected the hotel based on TripAdvisor reviews.
Travel Tips:
• Be prepared for unexpected weather – fog or floods. Having spent two weeks in Italy with beautiful weather before arriving in Venice, we were not prepared for 3 days of fog. Overall we made the most of our visit despite the weather. It did limit us in going to some of the islands and doing a gondola ride. We were definitely glad we didn’t visit during one of the “high water” floods.
• Foggy conditions did delay our flight out of Venice. The day we left only boats with radar were allowed on the Grand Canal – which was a good indication the flight would probably not leave on time. We missed our connecting flight from Rome to Budapest.
• The Venice Bites Food Tour really educated us on Venetian (and Italian dining). We wish we had it initially arriving in the country. Now we know to look for the Bars and Café’s for sandwich type foods and better understand restaurants for main meals.
• Vaporetto – While a good means of transportation it is a bit confusing to visitors who are not familiar with the system and the city. There was another group on board that the Bus Assistant was telling “too bad” the rest of their group was not quick enough to get on the waterbus. It left such a poor impression on visitors to this beautiful city.
• Take Alilaguna is the best and easiest way to transfer from Venice to the airport. On the recommendation of the hotel staff, we opted to take the Alilaguna to the airport. It was on time. The day we traveled, Venice was fogged in and only boats with radar were on the Grand Canal. Be ready to “jump” on board. Sitting below, the boat motored to other locations. Docking is not smooth as it bounces and bumps into docks as passenger quickly leap on with their luggage. After exiting the boat, there are excellent signs for going to the airport terminal.
• At St. Mark’s Square there were people offering free boat rides to the Islands (Murano Island). They said the merchants were paying for the transportation. Initially, we thought this was a “scam” and didn’t take advantage of it. In hindsight, we should have taken the free boat ride. It is off-season and foggy so most likely the merchants were wanting to get tourists to their islands to shop.