San Fermo Maggiore is an interesting church. There is the part you see when you walk in, built in the 13th century, covered in frescoes and ornate like...
The Piazza dei Signori was one of my favorites, despite the hordes of invading young people. The piazza must get it’s name from the statues of men...
The Italian train system is difficult to fathom. I don’t pretend to know much more about it now than I did three months ago, except that: there are...
There’s such a thing as an audio tour that’s just too-damn comprehensive. The audio tour at La Fenice was a good example of this. “Each...
Back when Venice ran things in the region, it was ruled by an aristocratic republic. 480 members of key families served on the Major Council and elected...
We spent a lot of time on vaporetti on the canal. It is a great thing to do, especially when your feet start to hurt and you paid for that vaporetto...
There are several islands in the lagoon surrounding Venice. You’ve probably heard of Murano, where the Venetians moved their glass factories in...
Taking 3 buses to get across town is a schlep. Taking 3 boats to get to a different island is a journey. As with all public transportation, you lumber...
Frari (from the word Frati, meaning brothers) was the major landmark in our neighborhood. We were continually orienting ourselves by the enormous Gothic...