3 Things in Venice
I have travelled to Venice a couple of times but it wasn’t until I visited during the winter that I actually fell in love with this beautiful city. During summer it can be crowded, smelly from the canals and the streets too tiny to navigate with all of the other people but during the winter months there are less people (but be aware of busier times during Christmas and New Years though), fresh air and something quite romantic about this place… It is definitely a place that took me a while to fall in love with but now I have to say that Venice has charmed me. And after you fall in love with something, their flaws don’t seem to matter as much, right? So now I love the warmer months in this place as well. It’s just magical.
That Morning Light…
People talk about that magical light in Venice and magical it is. During the winter months the city is often covered in fog during the mornings and evenings which makes this city look even more romantic and mysterious. When the sun comes up it creates light like I’ve never seen it before. It’s most definitely worth getting your hair ruined for (the humidity is around 90%, haha) and it’s also worth putting on some good walking shoes for this. It’s so pretty and it’s the perfect time to take a walk through this beautiful city.
What to Eat
I didn’t read up on the food culture in Venice before going – I just assumed that it would be quite similar to the rest of Italy – which I admit, sounds quite ignorant since Italy differs greatly depending on the region. Of course you can find pasta, pizza and other traditional dishes but in Venice you’ll also find something called “cicchetti” almost everywhere you look. It’s small pieces of bread with different toppings in the from of anything such as fish and seafood to meat and veggies. Most wine bars serve these little tasty treats standing, along with several wine options. As anything else, you’ll find good and bad versions of this of course but a favourite place that I keep returning to for just this (and natural wines) is called Vino Vero.
Italian coffee is also known to be very good but after having a few misses I decided to do some research and found a little coffeeshop that did the trick! Head over to Torrefazione Cannaregio if you’re in need of a delicious cup of coffee.
Calmer streets
I think the main reason to my newfound love for Venice are the calmer neighbourhoods and streets. It wasn’t until I discovered parts of this city, completely serene and “private” I really fell in love with the place… Venice is a busy city and it’s a shame to only see the extremely touristy parts of this town because it really is very pretty and charming once you get away from the major sights. It doesn’t mean that you can’t visit these places of course – you should! But you also shouldn’t miss venturing off the beaten track and wander these beautiful streets until you get far away from the crowds. Just one turn and you can discover something completely different.