VIVA ITALIA! THE ITALIAN GRAND TOUR, PART THREE

I am back in action today with the next stop on our Italian Grand Tour: Venice! It's a city of romance, of crumbling buildings and rising waters, of Renaissance masterpieces and seafood specialities. We had a lovely time getting lost in Venice's labyrinthine walkways and sneaking peaks of its chaotic canals. While not our favorite place in Italy (I know, heresy!) it was spectacular to immerse ourselves in a place so steeped with history that every scratch on that wall seems like a relic from a lost era. Museums, churches, and a bit of shopping—we did it all. I am including a bunch of photos below that speak for themselves. If you have any questions about our itinerary leave it in the comments! 

Of course the city looks just as beautiful in color as it does in black and white . . . 

All in all a lovely way to spend a couple days! Here are a few of my favorite experiences/insider tips if you are headed there soon.

favorite church (exterior): Santa Maria della Salute, set on a plaza facing the grand canal!

favorite church (interior): Saint Mark's mosaics are not to be missed.

best way to get in a gondola: take a traghetto, a commuter gondola that ferries you from one side of the grand canal to the other for only 2 euro; there are six or seven crossing points open at any time, so to maximize the ride take one of the routes that cut diagonally across the canal.

best museum (for historic art): A tie between the Venice Guggenheim (now a must see stop for modern art lovers or people wanting a great canal-side resting spot) and the spectacularly chic space of the new Punta della Dogana museum of contemporary art (bonus! it's next to Santa Maria della Salute!).

best museum (for contemporary art): The Gallerie dell'Accademia is in a totally dilapidated building, but has some breathtaking altarpieces and Renaissance paintings (see photo of coffered room above).

best evening activity: Besides getting lost in a new neighborhood, I highly recommend heading to Piazza San Marco and listening to the black tie bands play in front of the swanky bars. It's sounds cheesy but there is something magical about hearing a jazz piano solo while staring at the twinkly lights of a world famous palace and church. (Don't believe me? Check out this video.)

best place for a romantic dinner: A tiny place with super friendly staff that's been winning acclaim for twenty years now, Osterie delle Testiere is wonderful. Get seafood and dessert. You won't regret it.

That's all! Next stop Cinque Terre, to be posted later this week.

VIVA ITALIA! THE ITALIAN GRAND TOUR, PART TWO

I am back in action today, recapping our Italian adventure bit by bit for you. After visiting Lake Como, we headed out to the Dolomites, a gorgeous craggy mountain range in northeastern Italy. We spent one glorious day hiking there in a spectacular place called Alpe di Siusi. Alpe di Suisi (also known as Seiser Alm in German—they speak Italian and German there since it used to be part of Austria) is a gorgeous verdant valley ringed by sharp grey Dolomite peaks. There are dozens of fabulous trails to explore, connected by cool ski lifts and mountain top eateries.

Not surprisingly I took billions of pictures on our five hour hike and, for your viewing pleasure, I have included my favorites (with limited commentary, the scenes speak for themselves!) below. Enjoy!

Cows roomed all over the valley, their bells clanging melodically. Occasionally, some of the larger milking cows would take a break in the middle of the trail and you would have to side step them. Different from New York City, huh?

The night before our hike there were wild rain and hail storms in the tiny town we were staying in; up in the mountains that rain translated to a gorgeous dusting of snow. Set against the brilliant green hills, the combination was breathtaking!

We stumbled across this gate—with colorful ropes blowing in the breeze—about halfway through our hike. I know it's probably a way to keep the animals from crossing the gate, but I couldn't help thinking it looked like a perfect mini art installation. It was so simple, but aren't the simplest things in life sometimes the most beautiful?

Before descending back down to our car at the base of the valley, we took one last look around at this panoramic scene. I have to admit, it was hard to tear ourselves away—who could leave that view—but having these photos helped. Plus there were still many more Italian adventures to be had! More on those in the coming days. . . 

VIVA ITALIA! THE ITALIAN GRAND TOUR, PART ONE

As you know, the hubby and I just got back from a glorious two week vacation in Northern Italy. It was the hubby's first time there so, of course, I had to give him the grand tour. We stopped in seven different places in 14 days; it was awesome!Since I took so many lovely photos and had such a good time, I thought I might share a bit of our itinerary with you in an ongoing series here on the blog. Hope you like it! We flew into Milan and hopped in a rental car headed straight for Lake Como. We stayed in the adorable town of Varenna, right in the middle of the lake surrounded by mountains and within spitting distance of Bellagio and Menaggio across the water. Basically, this place is paradise! 

We stayed in this incredible hotel built into the side of the mountain that was only accessible by—wait for it—funicular! 

The views, not surprisingly, were out of this world! The video above was shot from the balcony of our hotel room . . . so yeah . . . we lucked out. :)

We spent a lot of time checking out the other towns on the lake, zooming around in an awesome rental boat. There were so many gorgeous mansions, brightly colored harbors and jagged green mountains to see and bobbing by them on the water felt like a particularly special viewpoint.

The combination of sun, billowy clouds, sparkling water and silhouetted mountains made for a potent photographic cocktail and I couldn't stop snapping pictures of it all (I mean, could you resist this view?).

There was, most certainly, lots of lots of tasty meals (it is Italy!). Most were spent in lakeside cafes, sipping mineral water and lounging under sun-dappled umbrellas. See what I mean about paradise? 

I have to say that Varenna was the perfect kick off to our Italian grand tour. Only the first adventure of many, though, and I can't wait to share all the rest with you in the coming weeks. Stayed tuned!