Traveler Beware - 3 Reasons To Avoid London Heathrow Airport

I just got back from a month in Italy leading two more Glam Italia Tours. They were amazing! It is so incredibly gratifying and exciting to see the look on ladies' faces as they discover Italy for the first time, and to be part of these fantastic memories that they will have forever.

From the Glam Italia Tour 2016

But let's talk about Heathrow.
Since I left London a lifetime ago I have steadfastly avoided using Heathrow airport. (Much as I will do anything to avoid Chicago O'Hare, where you are basically guaranteed your flight will be delayed)
Back in the day London Heathrow was always an absolute zoo, and with so many other airport options available I've always taken a more palatable option. On this most recent trip I broke my own travel rule and allowed myself to be routed through Heathrow. Never again!

Three Reasons To Avoid London Heathrow Airport

1. They Were Ridiculously Short Staffed.

I flew to London from Rome, arriving late in the evening. Terminal 5, the British Airways terminal had a total of 3 people working passport control. 
Three! If ours was the only plane arriving, that would have been bad enough, but there were other planes arriving too, each dumping hundreds of passengers, so the wait was excessive. Personally I got through in about an hour an 15 minutes, but other passengers were in line over 2 hours. This could be disastrous for anyone connecting to another flight. 
I had to catch a bus (in the pouring rain) to Terminal 4 and just made the last bus of the night by the skin of my teeth.

2. Of the 3 passport control workers, 2 were sick. 

They had the nastiest, meatiest, lung curdling coughs you have ever heard in your life, and rather than cough into tissues or into the crook of their elbows, they hacked up their lungs into their open hands. And then without so much as batting an eyelid used the same hands to pick up each passenger's passport. 
I would have been grossed out if they were using disinfecting wipes or hand sanitizer after rustling up fluids from the bottom of their lungs, but watching them attach their cooties to each person's passport was just revolting. I wonder how many hundreds of people they exposed to their germs? 

3. Incredibly Small Allowance At Security

At the security x-ray leaving Heathrow they gave out zip lock bags slightly larger than an American Zip Lock sandwich sized bag, for all your liquids and creams. Each passenger was allowed one bag only and it had to zip closed.
I fly internationally multiple times per year, round and round the world. I take the exact same travel beauty products on every flight, packed in the exact same see through travel cosmetic bags. All the airports that I fly in and out of have the same rules, except for Heathrow. 
The security people at Heathrow Terminal 5 threw so many expensive products in the trash - it was unbelievable! I am all for keeping travelers safe, and I do appreciate that they don't consider our shoes to be a threat and as such let us keep them on, but seriously I do not see the merit in confiscating travel sized skin care products (all of my beautiful Tatcha products!), a MAC Paint Pot, Chanel lipstick, mascara (just how much damage can a girl cause with a tube of DiorShow Blackout???) cream blush, a half tube of Makeup Forever Lift Concealer, a travel sized (1.6 oz) Oribe Cote d'Azur Hair Refresher, travel sized toothpaste (although one glance at their manky grills and you can see that British teeth and toothpaste don't necessarily go together). I can't remember what else they took, but it really was ridiculous. 

The way I see it, if there really truly is a safety threat in a carry on bag that contains more than a sandwich sized plastic bag of beauty products, why not just tell your unsuspecting fliers at check in when we still have the option of throwing them in our suitcases?
The poor lady who went through security ahead of me was in tears as her beauty products were thrown in the trash.

I do appreciate that the Brits are the best at counter terrorism and that they confiscated my eye cream as a means of keeping the plane in the air. I want all planes to stay in the air and therefore happily comply with every rule, but in the future I will avoid Heathrow like the plague that it's passport control workers want to spread, and maybe get to keep my travel sized toothpaste while I'm at it.

15 Things You MUST Do In Venice

15 Things You Must Do In Venice

To visit Venice for just one day is a crime.

To visit Italy and not see Venice is a bigger crime. But sometimes all you have is a day, so you need to know how to use that day wisely and not miss out on the best of Venice by just hanging out where the tourists are. Here are 15 things that you absolutely must do when you are in Venice.

Walk (And Walk, And Walk)

Everybody walks in Venice. Walking is an integral part of the social structure of this most unique city in the world. Sit on a bench or a wall anywhere in Venice and watch life happen all around you as the Venetians walk on by, stopping to chat to friends and neighbors.

Your entire experience of Venice is begins and ends with walking. Even if it's the only thing you do here, just walk and walk and walk.

"The only way to get around Venice, whether you are a countess or a shopkeeper is to walk" ~ John Berendt

Get Lost In Venice

Venice is actually really small, and is also the safest city in Europe, so don’t be scared – get lost! Put your map away and just roam the back streets (where the Venetians live). The bulk of the tourists will all be standing in line outside the basilica and the Campanile, or buying 15 euro caffe in the Piazza San Marco, so you can finally breathe as you wander and explore little canals that lead to nowhere, footbridges and magical little streets with crumbling plaster and rusting metal, secret little community squares, private gardens, hidden little coffee shops. It’s wonderful!

Make it your goal to get hopelessly, madly, completely, lost.

Hit Piazza San Marco Early

Technically, if you are going to Venice you really do have to go to St Mark’s Square. The problem is that that is all most people go see.

By the time the cruise ships have disgorged their visitors for the day, and the day trippers have arrived, St Marks square / Piazza san Marco turns into a human crush surrounded by vendors selling Made In China cheap Venice knock offs. It gets awful.

So the key is to get there before the crowds descend on the piazza. It is definitely beautiful and magnificent, especially during the off-season!

Take A Tour Of The Doge’s Palace

Either have a local tour guide take you through, or rent an audio tour. You miss far too much and far too many interesting things if you try to freestyle your way through this palace. Walk across the enclosed Bridge Of Sighs, and look out at the last view prisoners had as they were ushered from the court in the Doge’s Palace to the prison on the other side. The prison is well worth walking through as well

Discover Boutique Hotels In Venice

Walk The Dorsoduro

The Dorsoduro is my favorite of the siesteri. I can walk it for hours and never get bored.

Dorsoduro Venice, June 2016

You will find fewer tourists there and endless magnificent things to see. Some of the big attractions include Salute, the Guggenheim Museum (Peggy Guggenheim lived there and is buried in the garden with her dogs) and incredible palazzi including the stupendous Ca’ Rezzonico.

Read moreabout the Dorsoduro here

Visit Ca’Rezzonico

Venice is full of grand old palaces, but one of my absolute favorites to visit is Ca’ Rezzonico. To understand Venice you really need to understand the level of opulence, decadence and the staggering displays of wealth that make up it’s history.

Read moreabout Ca’ Rezzonico here

Go Deep And Go High

Two keys to understanding and experiencing Venice are to get up high to see the view and then to go deep. Wherever the tourists are, walk in the opposite direction! Wandering through the little streets and alleyways away from the kodak-moment-crowd is the way to see the best of Venice.

Go Bacari Hopping

If you are spending evenings in Venice, and I hope you are, the way to experience the nightlife, or after work life, is to go bacari hopping. Bacari are little bars where you grab a glass of wine, or an ombre (little glass of wine) and some finger foods akin to tapas. You chat for a while with friends, then move on to another bar.

It’s a super social, fun way to spend your early evening.

Read more here

Eat The Local Cuisine

I wrote a blogpost on what to eat in Venice, read it here.

The key to eating in Venice is to only eat local cuisine. Don’t be ordering pizzas and panini, as big wood burning ovens are prohibited in Venice. The local foods are wonderful, especially if you are a seafood lover. Or a pastries and cookies lover.

Take A Ride On The Vaporetto

view from the vaporetto

Riding around on the vaporetto is a must when you’re in Venice. 

(The vaporetto is basically a water bus)

It can be congested on the routes taking tourists to St Marks, but everywhere else it is a fabulous way to see the city on the water, from the water

Drink A Spritz

The spritz is the local drink in Venice. Sit at an outdoor wine bar at the end of the day and watch the world go by, or chat with the locals while sipping on this light and fizzy concoction.

Visit Santa Maria Dal Salute

I am so in love with this church.

Santa Maria Dal Salute

It stands proudly on the Grand Canal in the Dorsoduro, and is one of the most recognized and most loved views of Venice. The dome of Santa Maria della Salute is the symbol of the magical Venice skyline, seen by millions of tourists each year - on their way to Piazza San Marco.

Walk all around the outside of the church, the architecture is magnificent! Beware of falling angels – there used to be a sign posted outside the church warning that the angels up on high, (which still appear to be teetering, but are in fact tethered to the dome) may fall.

Where To Stay In Venice

Visit The Little Church Santa Maria Dei Miracoli

This magnificent little marble church was built between 1481 and 1489 in the siestere of Cannaregio.

In 1987 the organization Save Venice began what they thought would be a 2 year, 1 million dollar restoration, which turned into 10 years and 4 million dollars. The marble cladding of the church contained 14% salts, and was on the verge of bursting. The restoration involved removing the marble and cleaning it in stainless steel tanks in a solution of distilled water.

The interior art, which is spectacular, was blackened, and had to be cleaned and restored.

When the lines at the Basilica are 3 hours long you can normally walk right on in to Santa Maria dei Miracoli, and often be the only people there.

Read more about the falling angels and the Santa Maria dei Miracoli in John Berendt’s fabulous book The City of Falling Angels

Berendt wrote Midnight In The Garden Of Good And Evil. And then moved to Venice.

Plan For The Blue Hour

Hopefully you will still be in Venice for the Blue Hour – that magical hour at the end of the day (well, more like 30 minutes actually) just after sunset, when natural light and artificial light mix and with a high sense of drama, turn the world blue. There is no better place in the world to photograph the blue hour.

Okay, so maybe there is. But Venice is breathtaking. Check out Jeff Bell’s fantastic blogpost on the Blue Hour In Venice to get inspired!

Make sure you know where you want to be at sunset to get your perfect shot.

 

The Blue Hour in Venice - image via Planet Bell

Walk The City In The Wee Hours

If you are lucky enough to be in Venice overnight go walking in the wee hours. Everyone will be tucked in bed and you will have the city to yourself.

It’s moody and mystical, the mist rolls in and makes it ghostly, when the moon .is out the lighting is ethereal. Walking Venice in the wee hours is one of life’s truly sensational experiences.

Read more about visiting Venice here

Read about visiting the lagoon islands here

What To Eat In Venice

What To Eat In Venice

Food in Venice often gets a really bad rap, which is such a shame because the local cuisine is fantastic.

Unlike stateside, in Italy there isn't just one type of Italian food - the food of Italy is regional, so you need to know ahead of time about the local delicacies from the region you are traveling to.

Wood burning ovens are largely prohibited in Venice, so pizzas and breads are not that great. Eat your pizza in Naples, in Venice satiate your hunger with the fruits of the Adriatic.

Venice is a city of seafood. In spite of the lagoon getting churned up by unending cruise ship traffic, it still is full of fish, as well as all the seafood gleaned from the surrounding area in the Adriatic.
A walk through the Rialto Market (in San Polo - you can't miss it!) will show you a dazzling variety of seafood, some you've probably never seen or tasted before. Local restauranteurs shop here, so you are previewing what you will be eating later in the day. You will also find an unbelievable array of spices in the mercado ,having made their way here centuries ago dating back to the spice trade. 

** Spices from asia and northern africa accessed the rest of the world via the world trade center, Venice.**

Make sure you try fritto misto, a mixture of deep fried squid, octopus and prawns. Unlike the heavy, oily deep fried seafood you're used to, Venetian chefs are superbly light handed, creating a divine misto that doesn't weigh you down.

Venetians are also celebrated for their cakes and pastries. Step up to the bar in a coffee shop, order a caffe (espresso to non italians) and enjoy a baicoli or a busolai, little local light biscuit/cookies.

One of the most fun ways to enjoy eating in Venice is to go bacari hopping.
A bacaro is a bar. Stop in for the local drink, prosecco, and pair it with a tapas like snack known as ciccheti. 

These are little finger foods, perfect with a light drink. 
Try sarde in saor, grilled octopus, baccala Montevarchi, shrimp prepared in many different ways - it's a great way to get a taste of Venice. 
If you are like me, a total lightweight when it comes to drinking, you can order un'ombra (a shadow) or smaller taste of wine.

 By stopping here and there for ciccheti you wind up eating far less than if you are sitting down in a restaurant for a full meal. Plus it's much more fun, especially in the early evenings when all the locals are out and about, stopping to socialize on their way home. 

How To Enjoy The Best Of Venice ~ learn what most tourists don't see or experience

Another thing you will see is people sipping on sunset colored drinks, normally red or orange. These are the famous Venetian spritz. White wine with a splash of campari (the red) or my favorite, with Aperol (the orange). The loveliest way to end the day and welcome the early evening is to sit outside a bacaro with a spritz and some snacks and watch the world go by. Avoid Piazza San Marco (as it will cost the same as your car payment!) instead head into the other neighborhoods, such as Cannaregio, and join the locals. The people watching is much more fun here! Read more about it in my post on Ca' D'Oro (linked here)

Read more about traveling in Venice here

Check out my favorite neighborhood in Venice, the magnificent Dorsoduro

10 Things NOT To Do In Italy

Being that I am in Italy at the moment leading the Glam Italia II private tour, I thought this blogpost from Fodor's was particularly pertinent!

You can find more fabulous travel tips and ideas on Fodors.com

The more time you spend in Italy, the more you'll notice that Italians love telling you what to do...whether you ask them for advice or not. Try this wine. Try it again. Pass that semi truck—you can do it! Wear different shoes. Change your hair; you're not eighty. Loosen up. Mangia, mangia! For a change of pace, here's a list of things NOT to do in Italy—a country as beloved for its passionate people as its natural beauty and delicious cuisine.

DON'T....

HEAD TO VATICAN CITY IN A TUBE TOP

We know the desire to charm the Italians with your spaghetti strap sundress might be overwhelming, but visitors in skimpy clothing are forbidden to enter holy sights. If you can't bring yourself to wear a top that covers your shoulders, tuck a scarf or cardigan into your bag, and use it to make yourself presentable when you're on holy ground.

PARK INSIDE THE YELLOW LINES

Or the pink ones, if you're eating for one. Or the blue ones, if you want to save a few euro. Few things are as gutting as heading back to the parking lot and finding a parking ticket on your rental car, or worse, a stark gap where your car used to be. In an Italian parking lot, the white-lined parking spaces are free, the blue-lined are paid, the yellow-lined spots are for disabled motorists, and the pink spots are for expectant mothers. As for potential parking spots that have no lines at all, be sure to look for Zona di Rimozione (Tow Zone) or Divieto di Sosta (No Parking) signs. Or just do as the Italians: cross your fingers and park on the sidewalk. Sideways.

EXPECT THINGS TO HAPPEN ACCORDING TO SCHEDULE

One of the first things any visitor to Italy will learn is that there's time...and then there's Italian time. Italian time is elastic (don't be surprised when your 4 p.m. Colosseum tour starts at 4:30) and so are business hours. Many businesses—even, bafflingly, restaurants—shut down for lunch and will also be closed two days a week, days which vary from business to business. Double-checking business hours is crucial unless you enjoy making empty treks. Public transportation is also often "out of order" or delayed, so give yourself ample padding between travel connections.

GET FLEECED BY A GONDOLIER

Taking a gondola cruise in Venice might seem like the most romantic thing on earth until you get the bill. Surprise: a gondola ride can cost upwards of $65 per person (!), and even more if you have a shady gondolier. If a $65-$130 boat ride isn't in your budget, but you still have your heart set on floating along Venice's canals, consider hopping aboard a traghetto—one of the water taxis used by Venetian locals when they want to cross the Grand Canal. The ride will be much shorter, but the traghetto boats are exactly the same as the tourist gondolas and tickets will cost around $5.

TAKE THAT GOOGLE MAPS SHORTCUT

Should you be renting a car to explore the country, you'll probably be using a GPS or Google Maps. You might be tempted to save on autostrade tolls by taking one of the outlined shortcuts. But the farther south in Italy you go, the worse-kept the roads tend to be. Razor-narrow passages, huge potholes and an absence of streetlights can make navigation difficult for a traveler unfamiliar with Italian motorways; the SS7 (Via Appia)—a mostly-unlit winding coastside path running from Rome to Brindisi—is particularly perilous. You might have to pay a bit extra to take the autostrade, but at least they're well-kept.

GET YOURSELF PSYCHED FOR AUTHENTIC SPAGHETTI ALLA BOLOGNESE IN NAPLES

In Italian restaurants outside of Italy, all of the boot's many regional cuisines are slapped with the giant umbrella title—ITALIAN FOOD—so you'd be forgiven for not knowing that pesto was invented in Genoa and Limoncello is from Sorrento. But you wouldn't head to Los Angeles hoping for the best barbecue of your life, would you? Do yourself a favor and stick to local foods on your Italian trip. A (very) quick cheat sheet: Genoa for pesto; Naples for pizza; Bologna for bolognese sauce and filled pastas like ravioli, tortellini and lasagne; Milan for risotto alla milanese and ossobucco alla milanese; Rome for spaghetti alla carbonara, spaghetti all'amatriciana and lamb. Gnocchi, bresaola, polenta dishes, and the ultra-popular Italian dessert tiramisù are found all over the country, but are native to the northern Italian regions like Lombardy and Veneto. Prosciutto—or Parma ham—is most commonly associated with central and northern Italy.

TIP EVERYTHING THAT MOVES...NO MATTER WHAT THEY TELL YOU

Tipping is not obligatory or common in Italy. However, tourist-savvy service people may have heard that Americans are genetically programmed to tip everything from waiters to performing rabbits, so the cheekier ones might try to work you for some spare change. Unless they gave you the best service in the history of the planet, resist. They're getting a living wage.

ASK YOUR WAITER FOR PARMESAN CHEESE TO PUT ON YOUR SEAFOOD PASTA

Unless you want to see a grown adult cry, that is. One of the holiest commandments of traditional Italian culinary etiquette is that cheese and seafood never, ever mix. Only very recently have certain cheese/seafood pairings cropped up—i.e., ricotta with sea bass, gorgonzola with clams—but this is considered very avant garde (the elder generation won't touch such dishes). Regardless of your age or level of sophistication, mixing parmesan cheese with seafood remains a cardinal sin, so don't even ask. And for the love of Saint Peter, don't let an Italian see you cutting your spaghetti with a fork and knife.

KILL YOURSELF TRYING TO FIT ROME INTO A CROWDED ITINERARY

Twenty regions, so much to see! Most visitors enter Italy throughRome, but if you plan to enter via Sicily or Milan and can't bear the thought of missing out on Roman ruins during your trip, take heart: the Romans were a busy bunch. Spectacular Roman ruins can be found throughout the peninsula, namely Volterra in Tuscany, Villa Jovis on the Isle of Capri, Pompeii and Oplontis in Campania, Piazza Armerina in Sicily, Verona in Veneto, and Mediolanum in Milan. Use the money you'll have saved on extra flights to fill up on wine.

PLAN ON CONDUCTING YOUR ENTIRE TRIP TO ITALY IN ENGLISH

Yes, the movies would have you believe that any time you travel, your host country will be chock-full of citizens who speak your language perfectly, albeit with a charming accent. But Italy consistently earns moderate to low proficiency rankings on English proficiency indexes—among the lowest-rated in Europe. You'll do all right at hotels, historical sites, and restaurants in heavily-touristed cities like Rome and Naples, but set foot outside of those perimeters and, well, in bocca al lupo.

P.S. That means "good luck" in Italian.

Photo Credits: Get Fleeced by a Gondolier: Thats where I live by Saurabh Thakur Attribution-NoDerivs License; Park Inside the Yellow lines: blue like the line by Emiliano Attribution License; Get Yourself Psyched for Authentic Spaghetti alla Bolognese in Naples: Trattoria Anna Maria by Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike License; Ask Your Waiter for Parmesan Cheese to Put On Your Seafood Pasta: Getty Images/Hemera; Take That Google Maps Shortcut: Appia Antica by ChrisSteph LewisBoegeman Attribution-NoDerivs License; Head to Vatican City in a Tube Top: Lisja | Dreamstime.com; Kill Yourself Trying to Fit Rome into a Crowded Itinerary: Shootalot | Dreamstime.com

Weddings In Venice

Last year when I was in Italy leading the Corinna B's World Glam Italia Tour we spent a day in Venice.

Venice never, ever disappoints

I always think you need at least a week in Venice, but there was only time for one day. I would like to stay there for a month but I can never find a spare month to run away in.

While we were there we spotted two weddings happening.
Venice would be a very romantic place to get married, don't you think?

 We loved the bride's dress.

The guests were very chic. I loved this lady's white dress. Perfect with the beige jacket and nude heels

We were wondering if the veil was old or new?
It was just beautiful.

I also loved the short celery trench coat on the guest/family member in the background. and those legs!

The most fun was watching these two little boys who could care less about the pomp and circumstance surrounding them.
They were doing some good running and jumping instead.

A few minutes later we sat on the steps of another church eating lunch, when along came another wedding. They just swung by for photos though.
They looked so sweet and lovely, just the two of them on their destination wedding in Venice.

I would love to go out there and do some weddings...

I loved these two. They escaped the rain, taking shelter under the walkway along the Doges palace. All glamorous in a long dress and a suit, and made use of their free time with a little canoodling.
Perfect.

6 Tips For Planning A Trip To Venice

Are you planning a trip to Venice?

Hopefully you have read my blogposts on traveling in Venice (click here) and have a better idea of some of the amazing things to do in this unique and spectacular city, as well as a few of the pitfalls to avoid.

I adore Venice. I went there for the first time in 1987, and fell in love with her. I've been back many times since. 
For those of you who haven't been, or who are thinking about going back on your own (as in not with a tour or on a cruise ship), I have a few pointers for you.

Here are 6 Tips For Planning A Trip To Venice

* Before planning your trip check out the monthly weather averages. Although some parts of Italy seem to have perpetual sunshine, Venice is not one of them. There are months where it rains hard, and when it floods, it really floods!

* Avoid traveling to Venice in July and August. It is so crowded at that time, the lines to get into the churches and palaces are huge and take forever! That means you stand around forever and don't get to see too much.
Also when the days get hot and the sun beats down on the lagoon it gets smelly!

Venice is moody and magical in the rain

* Venice gets rainy. Pack a travel umbrella and/or a rain poncho.
The minute the skies open umbrellas go up in price. Last year I left my travel umbrella back in Florence and had to buy one in Venice when the rain started. Everywhere charged 10 euros for a junky little umbrella.
I can't ever be bothered dragging around rain coats on the off chance it will be wet, so either packing a travel rain poncho or a travel umbrella makes life so much easier.

* Wear shoes you can walk around in. Venice is a walking city and you don't want to miss out on the good stuff because you have the wrong footwear.
Also when it rains it can get slippery if you are just wearing sandals.

* Try and stay a few days in Venice. There is so much to see and do, and 80% of the 13 million+ travelers who go there each year are in Venice for 8 hours or less, and miss most of it.

* Travel within Venice is by boat, so you need to have easily maneuverable luggage. You also need to condense your luggage. The fewer bags the better.

Check out my other travel posts about Venice here
Read about The Lagoon Islands here
Read aboout the Dorsoduro here
Read about Ca' d' Oro here

If you have enjoyed this blogpost, please share it on your social media! I would love to hear about your Venice travels in the comment section.

How To Enjoy The Best Of Venice

Have you ever dreamed of going to Venice? Is the city of canals and singing gondoliers on your travel list? Or maybe you have a trip booked and are heading there this year?

One of my dearest friends is getting ready to take her first trip to Venice. I wanted to make sure she didn't miss anything so I started making her a list of things to see and do in this most magnificent city. The list grew and grew, and then more people wanted to see it, so in the end I turned it into a blogpost so everyone can share the love I feel for this glorious city on the water.
Buon viaggio Dani!

Venice is so moody in the rain

Venice is like eating an entire box of chocolate liqueurs 

in one go.

                                                                           Truman Capote

Venice, September 2014

Nothing but nothing prepares you for that first overwhelming glimpse of Venice. 
To quote Marlena de Blasi ~ you just don't know where to put your eyes.

exploring the canals in Venice, 2012.

The visual impact of this waterbound city is staggering. No matter how many pictures you have seen, or how well you think you know her, that first moment takes your breath away. 
Every. Single. Time.

Everywhere you put your eyes you find magic. I love Venice.

Shortly thereafter the sounds, smells and tastes weave their way into your consciousness, and once again she has you under her moody, sultry spell. 

She is complex, exceedingly beautiful, mysterious, and perhaps the most unique city on earth.

Venice is also the perfect place to travel alone. It is one of the safest cities to walk around at night, in fact violent crime is virtually unknown here.

you feel safe walking around Venice, day or night.

But Venice can also be the ultimate tourist trap if you don't know what you're doing.
With fleets of cruise ships not only mauling the lagoon and blighting the horizon, but disgorging thousands of tourists for their kodak half day Venetian experience, you can easily find yourself in a mall-crush, overpriced, kitchy, waterlogged tourist hell.

Between 13 and 14 million people visit Venice each year, of which 80% are in the city for 8 hours or less, and 90% of whom head directly to Piazza San Marco. The average cruise ship tour is 3 hours long and includes a 30 minute gondola ride along with photo ops outside of the main attractions at Piazza San Marco, imiting the tourists' experience of Venice to a postcard image.

As such the area in and around San Marco is full of vendors selling junky souvenirs made in China, and overpriced food.
To sit at a cafe in the piazza and drink a coffee you will pay around 15 to 20 euros - 12 euros to be seated and up to 8 euros for a coffee.

Step away from the madding crowds and you can have the streets to yourself...

5 minutes walk from St Marks Square Venice becomes your own. She is beautiful in the rain.
Corinna B's World Glam Italia Tour 2014

And yet if you venture 5 minutes in any direction from the Piazza san Marco you will find a whole new world. One where you can grab coffee for 1 euro, one populated by very few tourists. This is the magic Venice that you need to explore and become well aquainted with.

But you cannot go to Venice and not see Piazza San Marco. Plan to get it out of the way quickly, and then move on. There is so much more to see and do in this spectacular city.

Of pigeons and weddings... Piazza San Marco 2014, Corinna B's World Glam Italia Tour

I would die if a pigeon landed on me!
#notafan.
Others love it though

Get to Piazza San Marco early. 
You have to experience Piazza San Marco, the Basilica San Marco and the Palazzo Ducale (Doges Palace). The problem is if you are there with the teeming masses you won't really get to experience it either. ***
The key is to get there early. Or late. I always think before 9am (be there at 8am if you can!) and after 5 when the tourists aren't around in such force. 
Walking through the Piazza San Marco when there's no one round is just pure magic. I love it when the restaurants that line the piazza are just setting up for the day's business, or when the blue hour hits and the crowds are thinning and you can meander along and soak it all in.

While at Piazza San Marco you need to visit the Basilica San Marco. This is the spiritual heart of Venice as well as being one of the world's finest medieval buildings.
The present Basilica (the 3rd to be built on this site) was built between 1063 and 1094.
The dimly lit interior can be completely daunting. Built in the shape of the Greek cross, it's five sections are topped with 11th century domes. The walls and the domes are covered in mosaics. 4000sq m/ 430, 500 sq ft of mosaic work, completed over a span of 600 years. The golds alone will stop you in your tracks. 
Do your best to get there before the crowds.

Mosaics inside the Basilica San Marco, Venice
Corinna B's World Glam Italia Tour 2014

The mosaics inside the Basilica San Marco will take your breath away.
Image from the Corinna B's World Glam Italia Tour 2014

The Campanile sits opposite the Basilica. On a clear day you can see for forever from the top of the Campanile, and get a fantastic feel for Venice, but on a hazy day your view is restricted, and perhaps not worth the climb.
Either way, if you are planning a trip to the top make sure you are there before 9am to avoid the tourist madness (and endlessly long lines).

I saw these lovers getting shelter from the rain outside the Doges palace, and decided lovers, long dresses and rain are perfect in Venice

"Perhaps no one ever gets to know Venice as much as they remember her, recall her from an episode in some other dream.
Venice is all our fantasies."
~ Di Blasi

Take an audio tour of the Doge's Palace/Palazzo Ducale, one of the most astoundingly oppulent palaces in all of Europe. For centuries Venice was the heart of world trade, and the wealthiest city in the world. As such the home of it's leader (The Doge) and it's government had to have an awe inspiring impact on all who came here.
You get to see more of this palace than most palaces in Europe. Walk up the golden staircase to the Doge's apartments, meander along the unbelievably ornate hallways each of which is more lavish the the last, and try to catch your breath as you gaze up at Tintoretto's The Triumph Of Venice on the ceiling of the Sala del Senato. 

The Triumph Of Venice, Senate Room of the Doge's Palace, venice

Beyond this you will see the armory, the court rooms and across the Bridge Of Sighs (Ponte dei Sodpiri) to the prison and torture chambers.
Note: there is an amazing 75 minute secret itinerary tour of the palace which gives you insight into the inner workings of this secretive government, which is well worth taking. the tour english takes place at 10.30 in the morning, and you need to book in advance

Okay, now that thats done, lets go exploring.

The following comprise a list of great things to do and see, in no specific order.

Make sure you check out all the links I have put into this giant post. There are entire posts on each of my favorite places in Venice embedded in this main story. There is some fabulous information, and so many things you absolutely do not want to miss!

View from a bridge, Venice 2012

Get Your Bearings:
First let's understand Venice. Venice is a series of 117 islands linked by a network of canals and bridges, broken up into 6 neighborhoods or sestieri.Cannaregio, Castello, San Marco, Santa Croce and San Polo, Dorsoduro and Guidecca, and the Lagoon Islands.
Buy a map or bring a guide book to help you navigate your way through the siestri so that you don't miss any of the magic.
The artery from the Rialto in San Polo to Piazza San Marco is by far the busiest, and in my opinion, the part that you spend the least time.
At the bottom of this post I have links to my blogposts on my favorite sestiero, 
The Dorsoduro, trips to The Lagoon Islands, The wonderful palaces of Ca D'Oro and Ca Rezzonico.

Everywhere you look there is something magical! Get away from the main tourist areas and go explore Venice.

Get Lost In Venice
Everybody does. And getting lost in Venice as you meander along the smaller canals and cross endless little bridges is just one of the loveliest experiences you can have. Whether she is bathing you in sunshine or dousing you in rain she is spectacular at every turn, and those moments of being lost within her leave you feeling like you've found your own private, very magical Venice.

I get lost in Venice all the time. And that's when I find the very best things.
Somewhere in Venice, 2013

The city is quite small, so you can't really get that lost. I have found that my greatest discoveries in all of Italy, as well as in Venice, have happened when I have somehow become lost.

What To Eat
Venice is a city of seafood. Inspite of the lagoon getting churned up by unending cruise ship traffic, it still is full of fish, as well as all the seafood gleaned from the surrounding area in the Adriatic.
A walk through the Rialto Market (in San Polo - you can't miss it!) will show you a dazzling variety of seafood, some you've probably never seen or tasted before. Local restauranteurs shop here, so you are previewing what you will be eating later in the day. You will also find an unbelievable array of spices in the mercado ,having made their way here centuries ago dating back to the spice trade. ** Spices from asia and northern africa accessed the rest of the world via the world trade center, Venice.**
Make sure you try fritto misto, a mixture of deep fried squid, octopus and prawns. Unlike the heavy, oily deep fried seafood you're used to, Venetian chefs are superbly light handed, creating a divine misto that doesn't weigh you down.

Venetians are also celebrated for their cakes and pastries. Step up to the bar in a coffee shop, order a caffe (espresso to non italians) and enjoy a baicoli or a busolai, little local light biscuit/cookies.

Venetian pastries and cookies

One of the most fun ways to enjoy eating in Venice is to go bacari hopping.
A bacaro is a bar. Stop in for the local drink, prosecco, and pair it with a tapas like snack known as cicheti. These are little finger foods, perfect with a light drink. If you are like me, a total lightweight when it comes to drinking, you can order un'ombra (a shadow) or smaller taste of wine. I find that by stopping here and there for cicheti I wind up eating far less than if I'm stopping for full meals. Plus it's much more fun, especially in the early evenings when all the locals are out and about, stopping to socialize on their way home. 

Another thing you will see is people sipping on sunset colored drinks, normally red or orange. These are the famous Venetian spritz. White wine with a splash of campari (the red) or my favorite, with Aperol (the orange). The loveliest way to end the day and welcome the early evening is to sit outside a bacaro with a spritz and some snacks and watch the world go by. Avoid Piazza San Marco (as it will cost the same as your car payment!) instead head into the other neighborhoods, such as Cannaregio, and join the locals. The people watching is much more fun here! Read more about it in my post on Ca' D'Oro (linked here)

Spritz Aperol and people watching in Cannaregio at the end of the day

Nightlife
Surprisingly Venice is quiet at night. The bulk of the tourists are only here during the day for a few hours so the streets empty out quickly. Locals head home and all is quiet. 
If you are looking for some evening fun head to Campo Santa Margherita in the lovely Dorsoduro. This town square is full of bars and restaurants, and is also populated by students from the nearby university. This is where everyone goes, and it is fun! Read more about Campo Santa Margherita and the beautiful Dorsoduro in this separate blogpost (linked here). 
The Dorsoduro is my favorite part of Venice and I have some great information on it for you.
The other great area for nightlife in Venice is the Rialto. The daytime market clears out and the fun bar scene takes it's place.

Santa Maria della Salute seen from the vaporetto in 2012.
 I can look at her 100 times in a day, and she will still take my breath away every time.

Buy a day pass or multi day pass for the Vaporetto. These ferry-like water buses are going to be your main mode of transport. Be wary of water taxis - they are super expensive.

Things you see from the vaporetto ~ Venice 2012

Make Your Own Vaporetto Tour Of The Grand Canal
I love to take a little vaporetto tour along the Grand Canal later in the day, starting at the train station and working backwards towards San Marco. I start at the train station because everyone else is heading in the opposite direction, going home from work, heading back to the cruise ships or heading out of town on the train after a day visit. They get to be in the human crush, I on the other hand, get a non obstructed view either from the front of the boat or in a window seat. With a guide book in hand, or Rick Steves' fantastic podcast (I really recommend this) learn the stories behind the palaces that line the Grand Canal.

view from the vaporetto on the grand canal in Venice, 2012

I have frequently had the wonderful luck of finding myself seated next to a retired local who has given me a running commentary on what we are seeing, and has told me glorious stories of the history behind various palazzi along the way. Stories I have never seen in guide books. Which of course just adds another layer of magic to the experience!

Ca' D'Oro

Magnificent Ca D'Oro in Venice

Venice is full of incredible palazzi (palaces). They line up along the Grand Canal in all their glory. Actually they are everywhere, but there is something so magnificent about seeing them along the banks of the Grand Canal. I sincerely recommend reading up on some of them before you arrive, and taking the time to go visit them.
One of my personal favorites is the Ca' D'Oro in Cannaregio. I go visit Ca' D'Oro (the golden house) every time I am in Venice, and because I have so much to tell you about it, I have written it's own blogpost linked here. Make sure you take the time to read this separate post as it is full of great information, and tells you a little about Cannaregio too!


The Blue Hour

If I could give you Venice for a single hour, it would be this hour

~ De Blasi

While on your little home made private tour of the Grand Canal keep an eye out for where you would like to be for the blue hour. The blue hour is this magic time just after sunset when natural light and artificial light mix together creating a dramatic effect that turns the world blue. Venice is one of the most amazing places in the world to photograph the blue hour - the network of canals and the spectacularly beautiful buildings make it ridiculously photogenic. Blue hour only really lasts about 20-30 minutes so you want to plan out where you would like to shoot it, and allow yourself time to get there.
Check out photographer Jeff Bell's blogpost on the blue hour in Venice (click here) his images will inspire you! This is one of Jeff's blue hour photos below:

Blue hour in Venice captured by photographer Jeff Bell.
Check out his blogpost linked above.

Walk At Night
I listened to a podcast recently where the gentleman talked about getting up and walking around Venice at 3am. At that time the streets are empty, the fog is rolling in, bathing her in mystery, and you can stroll unimpeded, feel the city, photograph everything with no one in your way. I'm not sure that I would necessarily get up at 3, but I do adore Venice by night. Remember there is almost no violent crime, so you feel safe as well as somewhat self indulgent, walking around having this incredible place all to yourself. Sometimes during the day the crush of the tourist crowd blocks your ability to feel Venice and her history. By night when she is all yours you can literally feel the past seeping from her walls. If you have studied up on some of the history behind the various palazzi you can almost hear the lavish 18th century parties going on inside. Or maybe thats just the prosecco talking... 

My love of Venice comprises far too much information to put in a single blogpost, so I expanded different parts of this blogpost into their own little stories.
Read more about the lovely Dorsoduro here
Read more about the Lagoon Islands here
Read more about Ca D'Oro here

If you are like me and have a love affair with Venice, (or think you might have one if you go there), you must read 1000 Days In Venice by Marlena Di Blasi. 

If you have enjoyed this post and it's sub-posts, please share it on your social media, and with any friends who may be interested in traveling to Venice.
You can follow me on Instagram here @Corinnamakeup
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Most of these photos are my own, from my various trips to Venice over the years. Please do not use them without my written permission.

Ciao! xo