Gondolas, palaces and 'O Sole Mio"—ahhh, the usual romantic image of Venice. Granted, the city known as "La Serenissima," is quite lovely and enchanting, but also full of money potholes and tourist stereotypes.
Because we like you, and because we've had our fair share of Venice visits and wish all the same enjoyment for yours, we're helping you out with our list of What Not To Do In Venice: The Top 5 Tourist Mistakes.
Check them out, after the jump.]]>
If you know anything about Venice, you know that it is a city built on water, so it's quite fitting that the perfect location for plane spotting is onboard a boat. But not just any boat, we're talking about the water taxis between Venice's Marco Polo Airport and Venice proper. The airport sits on marsh land right on the coast, while the tourist-filled portion is out in the middle of the lagoon.
Going between the airport and the city of Venice therefore means taking either a private boat or the Alilaguna Waterbus right underneath the paths of arriving and departing flights. While you rock on the waves of other speeding water taxis passing by, you can look up at airplanes from carriers like Alitalia and other major carriers. Smaller LCC airlines like Jaunted personal favorite Germanwings sadly won't be found here, but at Treviso Airport. ]]>
The big news at the 66th Annual Venice Film Festival—aside from George Clooney introducing his latest girlfriend to the world—has to do, as always, with movie debuts that tend to get film buffs riled up in their plush, reclining chairs. This year's festival drew names including Oliver Stone, Matt Damon, Michael Moore, and—oh, god—Paris Hilton to the celebration of international film.
Stone had one of the more memorable red carpet moments of the festival when he walked buddy-buddy style with Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez to the premiere of South of the Border, his film about the leader and stereotypes associated with him. As The Telegraph UK reports, the two were surrounded by a swarm of 50 bodyguards. Necessary, sure, but also in keeping with Stone's penchant for controversy. ]]>
Often overshadowed by its cousins in Toronto and Cannes, the Venice Film Festival isn't so much forgotten as snuck into most A-listers' schedules in a rush of press trips. But attendees at this year's Venetian outing got a treat yesterday: George Clooney, performing live! One night only!
Also, one song only: After technical problems hit a screening of his new movie "Men Who Stare At Goats," the world's favorite bachelor (despite bringing along his new girlfriend) serenaded the crowd with "O Sole Mio"—tune of stereotyped gondoliers everywhere. Who knew he could sing, besides everyone who saw "O Brother Where Art Thou"? ]]>
Today in Venice, the city is full of prosecco glasses clinking and red carpets rolling out as the Venice International Film Festival begins—the world's oldest film festival—and this year brings another impressive roster of films battling for the Golden Lion prize.
Actually, come to think of it, SkyEurope had routes to Venice's Treviso airport; we sure hope no one is stranded elsewhere trying to get to Venice for the films, because they'll sure be missing out on some good stuff. For instance, Michael Moore is using the fest to premiere his newest: "Capitalism: A Love Story," about the US economic meltdown. ]]>
While the summer is at its peak and you're no doubt tired of chugging bottled water under the sun at tourist sites, we're going to hit some of the world's best watering holes and down their famous summer cocktails. Bottoms up!
As dusk hits the lagoon of La Serenissima, tourists retire to their hotels for naps or plain cooling down from hot days under the Adriatic sun, spent museum-hopping and souvenir shopping. This is the cocktail hour in Venice, when it feels as though the locals emerge after lying in wait for the tourists to tire. To celebrate the beginning of another evening of socializing and good food, the cocktail hour usually focuses around Venice's signature local drink: the Spritz.
Based on either Campari or Aperol—with Campari the typically male version and Aperol (order "Spritz al Aperol") for women—a Spritz is a happy little red-ochre potion which can be found year-round in Venetian bars. Nonetheless, summer turns us away from our usual Prosecco and towards the fresher comforts of a Spritz at the Ciak 1 bar in the San Polo district. ]]>
It's a familiar site on the water street of Venice, the striped shirts and flat hats of the gondoliers swaying as they expertly steer their black boats underneath bridge after bridge, but now there'll be some long blonde hair joining the club.
After 900 years of the profession of Venetian gondolier belonging totally to men, La Serenissima has her first woman plying the waters: Giorgia Boscolo, a 23-year-old wife and mother of two, who also happens to be the daughter of a gondolier. She passed the gondolier test back in 2007, but had to endure an apprenticeship up until recently when she took the oar of her own boat.
In order to become a gondolier, no matter your sex, you must "learn how to steer the banana-shaped boats from the back and the front ... take English courses, study sailing law and demonstrate perfect knowledge of Venice's canals and landmarks." This isn't like scuba diving, which you can get certified in during a week-long vacation. What we now want to know is if she'll be operating some kind of reservations service, now that she's the freshest addition to Venice's canals in centuries.
Related Stories:
· Venice Hails First Woman Gondolier [Life In Italy]
· Tutti in godola, vi porta Giorgia [la Repubblica]
· Venice Travel Coverage [Jaunted]
[Photo: La Repubblica]]]>