Venice with Kids

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March 21, 2017 By Jennifer 16 Comments

We finally went to Venice in November. It was every bit as magical as we’d expected.

You can’t get lost in Venice. There’s no crime. There are no worries. None of us fell into a canal.

It’s a great place to wander around with little or no itinerary.

Get gelato and explore the little canal sidewalks and bridges.

Find a cafe on busy canal and get a drink to watch the people. Be sure to read the posted menus so you’re not surprised by the cost! Most restaurants have a surcharge. Know how much you’re supposed to pay for that cocktail or coffee.

Venice survives almost on tourism alone. While most of the wait staff are very nice, we did have some who were bland and even unfriendly.

Day 1

We flew on RyanAir from Frankfurt Hahn to Venice Treviso. We bought RT tickets at the airport for the ATVO bus into Venice. It was about an hour on the bus. It dropped us off right at Piazzale Roma.

We walked to our apartment since we were so excited and it’s not really on the vaporetto route. Of course, the main walking route is littered with touristy kiosks and shops.
Our apartment was huge: Appartamenti del Dose in Cannaregio. (Cannaregio is the northernmost of the six historic sestieri of Venice.) We were able to checkin early which was great to drop off the luggage and freshen up.

Then we set off!

I used Rick Steve’s Venice guide.

We were starving, but not wanting to waste time, so we grabbed some pizza by the slice at Arte Della Pizza and it was really quite good.

We began with our Grand Canal cruise. We walked back to Ferrovia and boarded the slow boat #1 vaporetto. It took us all the way to San Marco. It’s about €7 for a ticket and well worth it for the 45-minute ride. It wasn’t very crowded and we were able to get seats all together in the front of the water bus. The weather was outstanding, partly sunny and almost warm.

I read the trivia and history to the kids and it was a great tour!

We arrived in San Marco Square.

It is a must-do to “ride” the lions for a picture.

We decided to go ahead and tour the basilica since there was no line at all. The church is free, but if there’s a line, you can pay €2 for a reservation to skip the line.

Three lovely sights inside: Treasury for €3, Golden Altarpiece for €2, and the San Marco Museum for €5. There are children’s discounts. There’s a free restroom and drink vending machines inside the museum.

The church is stunning with gorgeous mosaics.

The Treasury has some lovely artifacts and bone relics that fascinated the kids, so it was worth the admission fee for us. the 600-year-old crosier is still used by the priest on holy days!

The Golden Altarpiece is a not-to-miss sight. It was absolutely breathtaking. I could hardly tear myself away.

The museum was nice. It’s worth it to get to go up on the outside balcony with the horses and get a nice view of the square. From the indoor balcony (where the women viewed mass) offers a great view of inside the basilica.

Then we got gelato and looked the Bridge of Sighs.

We walked back to the apartment in a roundabout way, taking the side tour St. Mark’s to Rialto walk from the Rick Steves book.

We saw the Scala Contarini del Bovolo just as it was getting dark and closing. It’s pretty pricey to just go up a spiral staircase, but it’s pretty to see through the gate.

We dropped the kids off and found a grocery store around the corner to stock up on food and things. We popped some pizzas in the oven for the kids.

Aaron and I went around the corner to eat dinner together at L’Orto dei Mori. It was highly recommended and we had amazing wine, rushed service (because we didn’t have a reservation), and the food was rather plain and boring.

It was a great first day.

Day 2

We did a Secret Itineraries Tour of the Doge’s Palace.

Our guide was awesome and very patient with the kids. We got to see all the places not open to the public and the stories were so fun and exciting! We also got to really explore the dungeons and look from the inside out on the Bridge of Sighs.

Then we were turned loose into the public rooms and I read from the Rick Steves book all about those.

We ate lunch at the cafe in the Correr Museum. It was a great view and yummy simple pasta and sandwich dishes for an ok price. The Aperol spritz is delicious, but the Campari spritz is bitter and tastes like cough syrup!

We didn’t think the museum was really worth the price. Our teen recently read Sisi about Elizabeth, Princess of Austria, and was fascinated with her apartments, but the rest was just ok. There were a few notable paintings on the Pinoteca floor.

There are €16 combo tickets for the Doge Palace and Correr Museum that offer a good deal if you don’t want any special tours.

The girls and I picked out handmade masks at Papier-Mâché.

We explored the Libreria Acqua Alta and got some fun pics in the back.

We walked some more and saw some pretty sites.

We again popped some pizza in the oven for the kids at our apartment.

We had a delightful and utterly romantic dinner at Ristorante Trovatore. We had a pretty outdoor courtyard all to ourselves.

Day 3

We walked on the other side of the Canal and read about the history of the Venetian markets. I used the Rialto to Frari Church Walk in Rick Steves’ book.

View from the Rialto Bridge:

We toured the market and discussed the canal rising. There was a lot of construction, so we couldn’t see everything on the walking tour.

The kids and I went inside the Church of San Polo. Many churches in Venice have a small surcharge of a few € for adults, but kids under 12 are free! The art in this church is magnificent. It’s one of the oldest churches in Venice, dating to the 900’s.

We adore Tintoretto’s Last Supper and Tiepolo’s Virgin Appearing to St. John of Nepomuk. Domenico’s Stations of the Cross in the chapel are stunning. Veronese’s Betrothal of the Virgin with Angels is ethereal.

We ate lunch at Antica Birraria la Corte. Everyone was happy – pizza, pasta, seafood, local unique appetizers, great wine, and even an incredible burger. Seriously, it was an amazing burger.

We were on a mission to find a fox mask for Alex. We went to 3-4 shops under Rick Steves’ recommendations and finally found a lovely one at a great price. We found his fox mask and a mask for our teen daughter at Tragicomica.

We got gelato.

It started raining pretty hard in the afternoon, so we pulled up our raincoat hoods and walked closer to the shops, under their awnings, and dodged people’s umbrellas.

We toured the Frari Church. It was great with a lot of Titian paintings and his magnificent tomb is there.

The Canova Monument holds his heart inside the pyramid. We’re into art.

But we didn’t bother paying to go into Scuola San Rocco. €10 per person is a lot to pay to view a small ceiling and I love Tintoretto, but we had to pass. We could view it through the open doors for a minute.

We got more gelato. It was cheaper on this side of the canal.

Every.single.day.gelato.

We got the kids some pretty takeout sandwiches and pizza from Antico Forno to warm in the oven.

Aaron and I ended up at Osteria Barababao for a light dinner of salami and drinks. I finally got my Bellini! and we learned that a martini in Venice is not the cocktail, but the sweet liqueur by that brand name.

Day 4

We took the vaporetto to the islands of Murano and Burano.

We bought 12-hour vaporetto day passes for €18 at Fondamente Nove.

We disembarked at the Colonna stop on Murano.

We didn’t go into the Glass Museum. It’s €8/person.

I didn’t like any of the glass shops recommended. Much of it looked the same to me and we didn’t like any of the modern looking glass items.

We got some lovely pastries at a bakery to enjoy while we explored.

We stepped into Santa Maria e San Donato Church and enjoyed part of mass. It was a welcome break from walking and lovely inside.

There was a factory outlet store on the way to the vaporetto stop that had some just fine items we liked at a much less price.

The kids each got necklaces. I got Venetian pearls and a pretty vase. Alex got some glass penguins.

Near the lighthouse is the stop to leave Murano for Burano.

We explored the darling canals with pastel-colored homes.

We ate lunch at Pizzeria Bar Sport. Lots of different spaghetti and pizza to make everyone happy. Great soave wine in little or regular bottles.

We explored the little church of San Martino Vescovo with its leaning tower.

We picked out a lovely tablecloth with matching napkins at Merletti d’Arte dalla Lidia. They have their own museum in back of their shop and the ladies were so helpful and kind and showed us so many items we were dizzy. There was even a delightful little grandma who spoke absolutely perfect English who demonstrated her lace-making talent for us on a pillow sham she was working on. The matching duvet cover was stunning.

The Lace Museum (€5 per person) was fun and we got to watch several ladies making lace by the window upstairs. The kids had fun looking into the glass-covered drawers at all the lacy fabrics.

We got gelato on the way back to the vaporetto stop.

We took the #12 boat direct back to Fondamente Nove. It was a long day.

The kids had pizza at the apartment.

Aaron and I had dinner just around the corner at Restaurant Diana. The service was really atrocious, but the food was pretty amazing and great prices.

Day 5

Katie went with Dad to see the Jewish monuments and ghetto memorials.

The Jewish ghetto district had many Stolperstein on the pavement.

We passed by the place where Marco Polo once lived. Probably. Maybe.

We saw the Scuola Dalmata di San Giorgio with lovely art featuring St. George by Carpaccio. It was pricey, but the kids all agreed it was worth it and even pretty upstairs with the fancy altar.

We saw the Scala Contarini del Bovolo again. It’s very pricey to just go up a spiral staircase for a view, but it’s pretty to see through the gate.

Then we played at the public park and relaxed and strolled around.

We had the most delightful late lunch/early dinner at Vittoria Sas di Alessandro, overlooking the lagoon. We ordered pizza, several different pasti, salad, and Amarone wine that was to die for.

We bought some wine and cicchetti from the shop on the corner Vino Vero.

We love Venice and made some great memories and ate some delicious food. We love Italy!

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Florence with Kids

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October 25, 2016 By Jennifer 5 Comments

Florence, Italy, is one of our favorite places.

They say you either love Rome or Florence.

We love Florence.

We only spent 4 days in June. It wasn’t near long enough. Nothing would ever be long enough to experience all of Florence.

We flew from Frankfurt Hahn to Pisa, then took the train into Florence. There’s a little shuttle bus from the airport to the train station.

We bought Firenze Cards to save time and money on all the museums.

We took a city bus to our apartment. It’s probably our least favorite booking we’ve ever stayed in.

Then, we waited outside the door of the building for about an hour for the agent to arrive and let us in.

Then, we headed to dinner around the corner.

Day 1 (evening)

We ate dinner at Perseus Restaurant.

Florentine steak.

There was enough for our entire family to share.

Tori loved the tiramisu.

I got the porcini mushroom pasta. Divine.

Tori got some lovely ravioli.

The table wine was great and we had a few glasses. They estimate and charge accordingly.

Our precious waiter took amazing care of us.

He brought us bread and fagioli all’uccelletto, or cannellini beans made in the manner of little birds.

According to Florentine gastronome Giuliano Bugialli, the curious name of this dish comes from the manner in which little songbirds were traditionally cooked.

He absolutely adored Alex and pet him every chance he got.

We walked across the street to explore the Piazza della Libertà.

Day 2

We went to the Galleria dell’Accademia to see The David.

Also, Michelangelo’s Slaves line the hallway leading to the David.

We walked down Via dei Calzaiuoli from the Piazza del Duomo all the way to the River Arno.

We passed the Orsanmichele church, but didn’t go inside. Niches hold statues of the saints from Donatello.

We strolled through the Piazza della Signoria. There are lots of statues – modern, replicas of ancient, and some actual originals.

We went to the Uffizi Museum.

I don’t recommend doing both museums in one day. Whew!

There’s a darling little rooftop cafe. We got some drinks to rest a bit.

Around the corner was the Dante House and museum.

We were pretty exhausted, but it only took a few minutes to explore. Our Firenze card covered it, so…

We learned a lot about Florentine politics and Dante’s life. There were lovely illuminated copies of The Divine Comedy.

Day 3

We spent the morning in the Piazza del Duomo.

First stop was the Museo dell’Opera del Duomo.

Alex was enthralled by this crucifix and just stood there for the longest time, gazing up at it.

The Penitent Magdalene is a wooden sculpture of Mary Magdalene by Donatello, created around 1453-1455. The sculpture was probably commissioned for the Baptistery of Florence.

The Deposition by Michelangelo, completed between 1547 and 1555, depicts four figures: the dead body of Jesus Christ, newly taken down from the Cross, Nicodemus (or possibly Joseph of Arimathea), Mary Magdalene, and the Virgin Mary.

Giotto’s Campanile or Bell Tower stands beside the Duomo. The line was super long to walk up, so we skipped that.

We also didn’t wait in the line to go up into the Duomo. The actual church is rather bare, except for the lovely ceiling.

Architect Filippo Brunelleschi is entombed in the Duomo crypt, near the bookstore.

The Baptistery has a lovely ceiling also.

We had a fun cafeteria lunch at Leonardo right off the square. The kids had fun choosing what they wanted.

We toured Santa Croce Basilica in the afternoon.

It was raining and made for a fun walk from the Duomo.

Michelangelo, who died in Rome in 1564, was buried here beneath a monument with allegorical figures of Sculpture, Architecture and Painting, designed by Giorgio Vasari. Michelangelo’s tomb served as the model for others, such as the tomb of Galileo, who died in 1642 (his monument was made by Giovanni Battista Foggini). Funerary monuments continued to be added to the interior, including ones to Niccolò Machiavelli, Vittorio Alfieri, Gioachino Rossini and the cenotaph to Dante Alighieri (1829).

The chapels are amazingly gorgeous.

The great Giotto frescoed the chapels of the banking families Bardi and Peruzzi (1320-25), respectively, with scenes from the life of St. Francis and from the lives of St. John the Baptist and St. John the Evangelist.

Don’t miss the leather school in the back of the church and tour all the beautiful chapels!

Michelangelo’s house is now a museum. Casa Buonarroti is just around the corner! We weren’t able to make it and it was pouring rain.

Day 4

We went to the Galileo Museum.

We arrived just as they opened. Super fun for kids and adults!

There’s a neato sundial right outside the museum.

There are two of Galileo’s fingers, removed from his corpse by admirers in the 18th century, on display!

They took the most sacred parts of Galileo’s body—the fingers the scientist used to hold his pen and adjust his telescope—as holy relics, and stored them in a glass container.

We walked around the Oltr’arno.

I was so excited to see this masterwork of Masaccio, Expulsion of Adam and Eve from Paradise.

We ate a lovely lunch riverside at Golden View.

We took the city bus to San Miniato.

The evensong service in the crypt is not to be missed. It was breathtaking.

Our grand finale was viewing Florence from Piazzale Michelangelo.

Florence is definitely a city we’d love to return to and explore even more.

Linking up: Lamberts Lately, Marilyns Treats, A Fresh Start, Inspiration for Moms, Written Reality, Strangers and Pilgrims on Earth, Modest Mom, Moms the Word, What Joy is Mine, The Chick Chick, Logbook, The Practical Mom, Life of Faith, Bloghetti, Lou Lou Girls, MaryAndering Creatively, Teaching What is Good, Peaches and Salt, Tell Me a Story, A Bountiful Love, Classical Homemaking, Creative K Kids, Al Things Beautiful, Organized 31, Life with Lorelai, Happy and Blessed Home, A Kreative Whim, Being a Wordsmith, Crafty Moms Share, Saving 4 Six, The Natural Homeschool, I CHoose Joy, Embracing Destiny, Create with Joy, Frog’s Lilypad,

Rome with Kids

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July 28, 2016 By Jennifer 2 Comments

We went to Rome for Christmas.

This was our family gift. We didn’t have presents under the tree. Experiences over stuff.

Then my son asked afterwards if we can stay home next year and do presents. Sigh.

We flew on Alitalia from Frankfurt to Rome Ciampino. I know Ryanair often has really cheap tickets, but I couldn’t find any when I was planning our trip, and honestly, it was so nice to fly and check bags and get free snacks.

A driver was waiting for us. It was so much easier than worrying about how to get to our apartment. Worth every penny. We asked for a return to the airport since we left early.

We stayed at Peter’s Nest in Vatican + St. Peter, about a block over from the entrance to the Vatican Museum.

We got fresh cornetti every morning from our hostess and she kept us stocked in fresh milk and juice too! A little Carrefour Express grocery store was right beside our building, so if I had known that, I wouldn’t have paid for the pastry delivery, but it was still nice.

The courtyard to the apartment building had a lovely floral fountain.

Day 1

After we got settled and freshened up, we walked over to St. Peter’s Square.

We loved seeing the huge lifesize nativity scene.

Then, we went through security to go into St. Peter’s Basilica.

And I got to see Michelangelo’s Pietà.

We walked down to Ponte Vittorio Emanuele II to see Castel Sant’Angelo.

We love the statues lining the bridge.

I highly recommend L’Isola della Pizza for incredible food. Glad we got there early for dinner – it was soon packed with locals!

The waiters brought out a medley of appetizers and salads and the kids all ordered pizza.

I love all the salads and breads and proscuitto. They brought arancini (fried rice balls) for the kids but Aaron and I loved it too! The fried artichokes were amazing.

It was too much food, but so amazingly delicious.

Day 2

We were at the Vatican Museum before they opened and we were ushered right on in.

I’m so glad I ordered basic tickets online. I had also ordered 4 audio guides for the kids and 2 adult audio guides for Aaron and me. The kids got great little scavenger hunt maps. We loved the guides!

We began in the Pinacoteca – the Picture Gallery.

It was completely empty.

We were following our audio guides and the kids’ scavenger hunts.

If I had known, we’d have scooted on down to view the Antiquities and Sistine Chapel and left the Picture Gallery for last.

We got to stare at Raphael’s tapestries and study paintings undisturbed.

I especially liked Leonardo’s St. Jerome in the Wilderness.

Then we went to the Egyptian and Etruscan Museums.

This was especially exciting for the kids since we didn’t get to experience anything or travel for those units.

Alex and Katie really loved seeing the mummy.

Love the colors here!

They save the best for last: The Sistine Chapel.

No pictures and they have guards to hush people.

But by that time, we were hot and almost exhausted. We stayed a while, getting a crick in our necks and trying to sneak pictures with our phones.

We got takeout pizza at Forno Feliziani for lunch.

The best gelato is at Old Bridge. We got some every single day. Super great prices and large portions.

We went to the Colosseum in the afternoon.

I ordered our tickets online and they were good on any day.

I don’t know that I’d recommend doing quite so much in one day, but we thought we could handle it. We realized our tickets included the Roman Forum and the tickets are only good for two days and we didn’t think we’d have time to go back down there the next day.

We got to look down upon Circus Maximus.

The Forum must’ve been very crowded. There was so much in such a small space!

It about did me in. We barely got through it before the loudspeaker announcement that they were closing. We rushed up the stairs.

I was about ready to collapse, so I begged to take a taxi back since we had no idea where the nearest subway was and I couldn’t walk anymore. The 6-seater taxi van from Piazza Venezia to St. Peter’s Square was only €8,00!

We got takeout pizza at Forno Feliziani (yes, again) for the kids for dinner. I love that place.

Aaron and I went to The Angry Pig for gorgeous sandwiches. Our contact recommended it and the eggplant pork tenderloin sandwich was divine.

Day 3

This was Christmas Eve.

We walked to the Galleria Borghese.

Again, I bought tickets online. I super recommend that.

On the way, we stopped by Santa Maria del Popolo.

We got kicked out because they were about to start Mass. But I got a picture of the Chigi Chapel first.

The Borghese Gardens are peaceful and lovely, even in winter.

We checked our backpack, used the toilets, got the audio guides and waited for our entrance time. The tour main entrance is outside and up the steps.

There wasn’t really any instructions for that, but I followed the crowds who seemed to know.

I was really there just to see the Bernini sculptures.

The Rape of Proserpina is amazing with its emotions and realism.

The detail of the finger impressions:

Apollo and Daphne

Bernini’s David in mid-action (and a self-portait)

We walked to the Spanish Steps. They were closed for repair.

But we love this fun fountain by Bernini – The Ugly Boat.

We walked to the Trevi Fountain. Super crowded and noisy. We threw our coins in and went to find lunch.

Nowhere on my list was open for lunch. We finally walked back to this place that smelled good when we walked by.

We got gnocci, salad, pizza, pasta (carbonara and Bolognese), fried cod, and broiled fish.

It was delicious.

Locanda Giulietta e Romeo on Via del Lavatore:

We walked to the Pantheon. Right at dusk. Super crowded. Lighting is terrible for photos.

We walked through Piazza Navona on the way back. We really weren’t that impressed.

More Bernini fountains though!

We rushed back to the Carrefour Express next to our apartment building to buy some food to prepare for Christmas Day. We knew everything would be closed for the holiday.

Then we got overly expensive takeout from the only open cafe a couple blocks over. It was just ok.

Day 4

Christmas Day.

We went to St. Peter’s Square to wait for the Pope’s Christmas address.

It didn’t seem so crowded, so I wanted to wander around inside the Basilica to look at the chapels again.

We got to witness the Pope’s Christmas morning mass.

Above the Chair are two angels bearing the tiara and keys and then a gorgeous window of Bohemian glass, divided into twelve sections as a tribute to the Twelve Apostles, and in the center, a brilliant dove.

On the left, Sts. Ambrose and Anthanasius and on the right, Sts. John Chrysostom and Augustine.

St. Peter’s Chair and Canopy were both designed by Bernini.

I asked a guard if we could view the The Altar of the Crucifixion of St. Peter. He led us around the velvet ropes to a little side chapel.

Ancient tradition claims that St. Peter suffered martyrdom precisely where this altar stands. Part of the basilica is actually built on the site of Nero’s Circus.

Then we heard the Pope’s Christmas address.

We went back to the apartment for lunch.

We walked through the Jewish district and found Bernini’s Turtle Fountain. Tori loves turtles.

We kept noticing these little plaques in the street. Later, we learned about Stoplerstein.

We walked along the river, crossed over at the island, and just leisurely walked back.

Surprisingly, several restaurants were open, but we made the pasta and sauteed chicken we’d bought for dinner and it was great.

Day 5

St. Stephen’s Day. Most shops and restaurants are closed.

We visited some churches in the morning.

All the walking had been killing me, so we took the subway and it was great. Only €4,50 for our whole family one way.

Our first stop was the Basilica di San Giovanni in Laterano.

Across the street is the Triclinium of Leo III, the apse mosaic of the former papal dining hall of remains of the old Lateran Palace.

The mosaics depicts Christ with the Apostles in the center, Christ with Constantine and Pope Sylvester I on the left, and St Peter, Pope Leo III, and Charlemagne on the right. Pope Leo III has a square nimbus, showing that he was alive when it was made. The mosaic has been dated to the year 800, when Charlemagne was crowned in Rome.

The Scala Santa are inside that building, but can only be viewed on guided tours.

We ate lunch at Hosteria La Vacca M’briaca.

We looked a couple more churches.

Aaron wanted to see the Basilica di San Pietro in Vincoli.