Venice - Day 4 - Finding St. Mark's Square

On Day 4 we made plans to mark off the remainder of "Things we Must See" on my list.  But first, we explored our little village that morning of Campalto.  This is a very small town and we tried to find a little restaurant to have brunch at.  With our limited Italian language and a gluten allergy, we were not successful.  With knowing this, I still felt like we picked a good area to stay in.  It was local and not touristy at all.  We felt like we immersed ourselves in the area.  Some of the things we quickly learned were that when you go to the local produce market - that you don't pick up anything and take it to the counter.  The owners will bag everything for you and take it to the counter - don't touch the produce!  There is a local grocery store within a stone's throw from your apartment and you don't have to go the Lidl further down the road. Everyone is nice here and sometimes if you are lucky, you will find a random stranger that can speak English and wants to help you at the grocery store.  Although the streets paths could be confusing and it felt like you were walking in circles, it was a wonderful place to explore.  One of my all time favorite things about Europe is the smell all the trees and bushes that have fresh blossoms and the walks become an adventure of what is new around the corner.

After our morning adventures, we headed to the Venice on our bus and took the water bus to St. Mark's Cathedral area.   I need to give kudos to my husband here.  I sometimes joke that I think my husband could get lost in our own hometown.  However, when we are away he is the travel master.  He makes sure we purchasing the most economical travel, rather it be by bus, train, taxi, or tram.  He then gets us to point A to point B with maps.  I trust him fully on these types of trips and I don't know where I would be without him.

So with my handy husband leading the way - we set off to find the square.  We are easily distracted by cute boutiques everywhere and stop to shop, but did not purchase anything - we may have purchased Gelato.  In fact, I am almost certain we did.  



When we reached our destination it was breath taking.  The Piazza San Marco is surrounded by restaurants and at the end is the beautiful St. Mark's Basilica.  We decided to not go on a tour of this, as it was nearing closing time and it required a long line wait as well as checking your backpacks and purchasing a skirt to go around your shorts.   We admired it from outside and enjoyed the stroll around the Piazza to see Clock Tower of Torre dell'Orologio and Doge's Palace.  Just down the street a bit from these the Bridge of Sighs.  Take the time to wait here and snap a picture.. it is marvelous to view.  It is said that this enclosed bridge came by its' name as it is the bridge that led prisoners to their jail cells and because of the small windows in it, convicts could have one last glimpse of Venice before being incarcerated.

After all the walking and exploration we took the girls home and returned to Venice for Date Night. We enjoyed an evening violin performance and dinner at a restaurant where I had the most delectable spaghetti I have ever had in my life!!!  (Sorry mom).

Italy - Days 3

On Day 3 we decided to go to the beach for the day.  We had heard that Lido beach would be a great place to go. We boarded our little water bus/Vaporetto and headed that way.  It is a long ride to Lido, but worth the visit, if you like beaches.  

To find the beach, you get off the water bus you head up the Gran Viale Santa Maria Elisabetta, which ends at the Piazzale Bucintoro.  This is where the free public beach is and it is marked by a large steel structure across the street.  It should be noted that you will be approached by people trying to sell things on the beach.  It is illegal for them to do this, but it happens.  Don't forget to get another Gelato, like we did, for your hot walk to the beach.  

The girls and Jeff played in the water and created their first mermaid in the sand.  While in the water they could feel little stings on their ankles and felt for certain that there may be little jelly fish in the water stinging them but weren't certain.   This definitely didn't stop them from getting in the water, however as it was yet another really hot day in Italy and the water was refreshing.   While walking along the shore they did find a jelly fish that had been washed ashore but did not feel like this was the same type that may have been stinging them. 

On the way back we stopped at one of the local restaurants for supper.  Because we sat down you have to pay a Caperto charge to sit at the table and eat with waiter service, but it was nice to sit and relax.  The food was once again amazing!  We, of course, had to have more Gelato on the way back to the water bus.

Things we learned:

1. Take water to drink with you and buy more - it is important to stay hydrated here.  
2. If you buy food at the window, don't sit at tables, these tables are for waiter service only and you are charged a Caperto fee to sit there.  
3. Have Spritz - they are lovely!!!  Really lovely. 
4. Eat pizza - and then eat more pizza.
5. Don't try the green slushies - they are disgusting - I love mint, but it was like having a mouthwash slushie - gross.
6. Go Lido and relax a day if your itinerary allows it.  
7. Gelato is like alcohol for 12 and 15-year-olds. 

Italy - Venice - Momma Mia!!!

We arrived in Venice late at night and had to take a cab to our AirBnB.  This became quite the experience, as the cab driver could not find our apartment until we called the representative of the home to help guide us.  Once arriving at our little place and turning on the much-needed air conditioning we all went to bed for some rest.  The next day we took it easy and explored our little town and allowed Ellie some time to catch up on her history class work.  Our apartment only had limited wifi, so there was really no time for social media or blogging for me.  We found our local Lidl grocery store and purchased some supplies (and good wine) to help make it through the next few days.  We scored on some yummy gluten free products there - including pasta, cakes, and muffins. We also found some Drumsticks/Nutty Buddies - which Alex has never eaten and I haven't eaten in over ten years!  So yum.

After our day at home, we headed to Venice.  I knew it would be an amazing place to explore, but I never knew it would be so beautiful.  We started by taking our first Vaporetto and headed towards the Rialto Market.  These Water Buses/Vaporettos - are hot by the way, because Venice is hot.  If you take on, please try to remain standing near the entrance and don't be silly like me and try and sit in the bottom area.  You will suffocate!  The first thing we saw when getting off the boat was the Rialto Bridge.  It is spectacular and the selfies and picture time began from there.  I had Ellie as my trusty photographer on the Canon Rebel and Alex and Jeff as my back up on their phones, therefore, I don't think I took not even one picture - I just enjoyed the moment!!

From there we made our way to market. Although we were later in the day than planned we were still able to see some the beautiful pyramids of colorful seasonal produce that all the locals like to shop for before it was all packed away.  There was one area where the fish market had taken place earlier in the day which was littered with pigeons everywhere pecking away at the scraps left behind.

From there we got lost in Venice.  Actually, we weren't all that lost, but it was wonderful to just walk around and look at all the shops while looking for some lunch.  I think I most enjoyed the girls talking about what they were seeing and enjoying it as much as I thought they would in my own mind.  They would laugh and giggle as they walked down the streets and I am certain my face hurt from smiling at times.  They were amazed by all the water streets and the Gondolas just randomly floating by with passengers.

Alexandria and I enjoyed our found a restaurant for gluten free pizza and sat and ate while Jeff and Ellie explored for their own food.  The pizza was awesome and when we met back up with Jeff and Ellie, Jeff proclaimed that he had "the best ham and cheese sandwich ever".  Ellie was devouring her slice of cheese pizza of course.  From there we back tracked to a shop where Jeff and Ellie had their first Gelatos, and Alex and I had some.  Ellie, of course, bought herself another one, as she thought this was the best Gelato ever.  I am not sure she ever had Gelato before then, however, but she was certain it was the best.

From there we walked and explored and tried to shop at those shops that were open, but as it was around 3 pm, most shops were closing until their dinner reopening times.

Things we learned from our first day:

1. Get the Rialto Market Early and buy some kind of fruit/produce.
2. Buy ACTV Travelcard for the time period that you are there - it gives you unlimited bus and water bus rides!!
3. Don't book tours for your first day - get lost and enjoy the moment.  This can be a very relaxing area to visit if you just let.  

Here are some pictures - photo credits to Jeff and Ellie --

I have lots of Posting to Catch Up On

After five flights in two weeks, we have arrived in Rotterdam this morning.  This is where we will stay for two weeks until we fly home to Canada.  When we began this journey I thought I would be able to write every day and post what we had done.  What I didn't know was how much Ellie would need my computer for History class and how limited our Wifi would be.  Which brings me back to the title of this - I have lots of Posting to Catch Up On.  Bear with me as I try to capture what we did in beginning in chronological order after we left Amsterdam.  It will take me a few days -but I want to share the experiences and pictures that we took along the way.  What an amazing trip!

Amsterdam - Take Two

As everyone may suspect we started our day at Bean and Bagels again.  We left Ellie to sleep in the hotel and took Alex with us for breakfast.  Ellie is taking a history class online during our summer vacation, which has required her to stay up late at night when she should be catching up on her sleep because of the jet lag.  So we thought a good morning rest would be helpful for her (and us).  We picked up a sweet bagel for her and took it to her.

After breakfast we returned to the hotel to pack up, wake up and feed Ellie.  After checking our luggage with the front desk, with our new found learnings about the public transportation, we jumped on the Metro and headed to town.  

As this was our last day in Amsterdam before heading to Italy, we jumped on the Hop on Hop off bus outside of the Metro and took it to the Artis Zoo.  This zoo is located int he centre of Amsterdam. It is the oldest zoo in the Netherlands and one of the oldest zoos in mainland Europe.  As it is so close to the city we were expecting quite a small zoo.  Boy, we were wrong -- It had an aquarium, planetarium, an arboretum, and 27 monumental buildings.  It was simply amazing.  

This zoo was built in 1882 on land leased from the city on condition that only a museum ever be built on it.  The zoo is absolutely beautiful - with gorgeous greenery and flowers everywhere.  When I say the landscaping is beautiful, it isn't in the normal sort of way when you are at zoos and other tourist attractions, it was almost natural.  

All the pictures taken at the zoo were taken by Ellie.  As both the girls love to take photos so much now, I often just sit and experience the sites we go to now and let them take all of our pictures.  I am sure we only saw 50% of the zoo, as it went on and on, but we had other things in the city that we wanted to do, so we left early.

The library - in the Rijk's Museum -
Not sure how we didn't loose Ellie here

The Rijksmuseum

 After the zoo, we took our Hop on Hop off back to Museum area and went to the Rijksmuseum.    This museum is a national museum dedicated to arts and history in Amsterdam.  It was founded in 1800 in The Hague but was moved to Amsterdam in 1808.  It is the also the largest art museum in the country with over 1 million objects from 1200-2000 among their total collections.  The one object we went to see was the Rembrandt's The Night Watch.    The museum was very crowded and was very much like a maze.  We lost our children twice in here, luckily we found them.  We had downloaded an app to help as our guide but did not find it useful as it would take 30 to 45 minutes per object at times.  If we had to do this over again, I would find a private tour to take us through the museum and describe the amazing collections.  We needed to know more of the history and what we were looking at.  Although collections were captivating, it was a bit overwhelming.

Rembrant's The Night Watch

We finished our visit by climbing the iconic "Iamsterdam" sign - where was impossible to get three individuals to look at me at the same time while people were not cross in front of me.  

Things we learned from this day

1. Do the zoo - it is worth the visit
2. Get a guided tour of the Rijks   Museum. 
3. Take a snap shot at the Amsterdam sign for sure
4. There are a lot of bikes in Amsterdam!

Our First FullDay of Adventure

 Jeff and I started our day on running 4 km through town and a park.   We found a beautiful park along our run called Bearixpark.  It is a local park that is nice, clean and very quiet.  They say the older part of the park is the nicest, as it is kept its original "romantic character".  This park was created in 1936 and was redesigned during WWII, under German occupation, the park was restyled for a modern style of functionalism. Now it is a local park that I found very quiet, although it is very much surrounded by a large city.  The picture to  left is a sculpture we found along the way.  I have found that it is called Fists, but I can't find anything else out about it.  It was surrounded by rose gardens and I would love to know more about it.  

Below this sculpture is an area where you can work out.  There was an iron elliptical, a place to do pull ups and set ups, and a balancing exercise equipment.  Such a cool thing for a city have available to promote healthy lifestyles.  

We left there and went to have breakfast with the girls.  After checking for a gluten free breakfast restaurant near our hotel we settled for Beans and Bagels.  It was simply amazing!!! So fresh, offered gluten free, and had amazing coffee and tea.  

Ellie and Alex both had a sweet bagel, which is butter and chocolate sprinkles.  They also had hot chocolate.  For the hot chocolate they brought out hot cream and pieces of real chocolate that you stir the chocolate pieces into the cream.  Ellie had dark chocolate and Alex had milk chocolate- both were really yummy and something we may need to try at home again!  There was yummy cappuccino and fresh squeezed orange juice.  Prices were not high and we all enjoyed everything thoroughly.  



 

After we finished breakfast we headed to town, which was quite the adventure.  By the way if you ever find yourself in Amsterdam buy the GVB pass.  Don't bother doing the Hop on Hop off.   The public transportation here is amazing!! Our first trip into central Amsterdam was a mess, but a great learning experience.  After much walking, two trams and a bit more walking, we finally made it to town.  Little did we know all we needed to do was take the Metro from our hotel.  The Metro is a light rail system in Amsterdam, it has four routes and is the fastest way to make it into the city from where we were staying.    

Once in town we went to the Van Gough Museum.  This was so amazing.  We had headsets to listen to a tour as we walked along for each painting.  The paintings were amazing and the story of Van Gough's short life was so sad.  So many of his paintings I had never seen.  The museum also includes paintings from other artists as well, which were just as amazing as some of Van Gough's.  You weren't allowed to take pictures once you entered the museum, but we were able to capture this shot before going inside.  

Another challenge we had today was negotiating traffic and not normal traffic, but traffic that involved, trams, buses, cars, and more bikes than any other type of transportation!!  On our Hop on Hop Canal tour we passed a parking garage not for cars, but for bikes.   

If I can offer any advice from today's visit for anyone wishing to visit Amsterdam it would be the following:

1.  Plan a visit that lasts longer than two days.

2.  Buy GVB Pass and not a Hop on Hop off Bus tour.

3.  Ride through the canals.

4.  Book your tickets for the Anne Frank Museum when it goes on sale 2 months before your visit or be prepared to wait hours -- I mean hours!!!

5.  See Van Gough's museum - but definitely get the audio tour.  It is worth the extra 5 Euros.  

6.  Pizza is delicious here.

7.  If you are ever near a Beans and Bagels - eat there!!

We ended our day a bit early,  as mentioned before, we had Jet Lag!!  It sucks!

Here we are Amsterdam

We landed in Amsterdam today around 1PM their time, 7 AM our time.  The girls experienced their first European train ride to the city from the airport.  We were happy to find our hotel only a stone's throw from the train station.  Upon arriving we were all game for staying awake and working through our jet lag. However, by the time the girls had showered, Jeff wasn't feeling well and he laid down to sleep while the girls and I went for a walk.  

Our first impression of Amsterdam was holy smokes there sure are a lot of bikes.  The girls and I were fascinated by the organized traffic.  

We had decided to go to Bagel and Beans as they were supposed to have gluten free bagels.  Unfortunately after a long walk, we didn't make it there because of some app miscommunication.   So we decided to walk back and stop for pizza.  First the pizza place was closed :(   Then we decided we have some yummy ice cream from the shop that we had passed, it was closed.  Finally we found a cafe that would have been perfect, they even had gluten free sandwiches, but their kitchen had just closed 15 minutes before we got there.  The Dease girls totally struck out!!  

So sadly we started walking back to our hotel when we happened upon grocery a store.  I LOVE FOREIGN GROCERY STORES!!!  We explored the isles and had a few laughs at what was available and then settled upon our purchases.  I was so excited to find some gluten free Stroopwafel cookies, which holland is famous for.  We purchased those, ice cream and a baguette for Ellie with butter.  

We devoured our YUMMY ice cream and walked back to the hotel.  We sampled our Stroopwafels along the way as well, these were amazing!!!  Ellie devoured her her baguette and swore that the butter was absolutely amazing.  Gotta love the little things. 

Not a very exciting day here, as we were plagued with tiredness, but tomorrow will be filled with adventures!!

However at the end of the day for a lady that is trying to live a healthy lifestyle - I am happy to report that although most of my day was spent sitting and traveling, I still reached my 10,000 step mark!!!  Woot woot

And we are off on our big adventure!!!  The waiting has begun.  This is the first of six flights in the next month.  We will arrive in Amsterdam on Monday 1:15 PM local time.  First on the agenda, check in to the hotel and try and keep my husband and children awake as long as possible so that we overcome jet leg quickly.  Wish me luck and we will see you from the Netherlands!

At 5:38 PM -- We are nearly there!!!  Just a few more last minute tasks and then we will leave for Toronto!!!  This is starting to feel real.

Today - I said goodbye to my good friend Mary before I left, she will be leaving for the UK for two years before I return from our travels.  It was so good to see her, but I must admit I teared up as she left.  I have become pretty close to this special lady the last few years.  But two years isn't long and she will be back before I know it.   So Cheers to you Mary -- Have a safe flight my friend, and I hope this last month goes by smoothly for you.  I hope that everything gets packed and sorted away and that you get the help that you need to get it done.  Hugs and more hugs !!