Have you been to Venice? Was your visit in summer? Actually, no matter what season you found yourself among the romantic canals of Venice, you may remember whether you did or did not smell something afoul in the city. Stemming from our earlier post on what not to do in Venice—taking a gondola being one "don't"—we want to know if think Venice smells.

We lived in Italy for a while, and sometimes we'd head to Venice for the day, for the weekend, or for the week depending on how much good white wine and risotto al nero di seppia we craved. In the winter, we found the air to smell cold and salty, like any other seaside town that brought in boats of fresh seafood. But the in the summer, thanks to the rotting first floors of most residences coupled with the perfume of a sweaty population barely masked by the scent of restaurants cooking up prix fixe meals, our nose caught a whiff of something other. It's not enough to assault your senses, but it's there.

So tell us: have you smelled Venice? What did it smell like, if anything? Should people bring their gas masks or should Glade invent a Venice-scented room freshener? Let us know in the comments below!

Related Stories:
· What Not To Do In Venice: The Top 5 Tourist Mistakes [Jaunted]
· Venice Travel [Jaunted]

[Photo: mattedgar]]]> JetSetCD 2009-11-18T15:04:29-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/11/18/112434/62

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.]]> JetSetCD 2009-11-18T13:19:29-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/10/8/165642/030

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. ]]> JetSetCD 2009-10-08T17:45:28-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/9/3/14822/13695
Italy's ancient sites are beautiful but not always handicapped-accessible.

If you're heading to Italy soon, we're totally jealous. We can't get enough of its wonderful cities: Bologna, Venice, Rome, Florence—we just want to move there already. Before you go, here are some tips we've gleaned during our own Italy travels:

· Beware of petty crimes. According to the U.S. Department of State, crimes such as pick-pocketing, theft from parked cars and purse snatching are serious problems, especially in large cities. Be on guard at crowded places like Milan's Central Station and the Trevi Fountain. And thieves in Italy often work in groups or pairs to divert your attention.

· Italy isn't handicapped-accessible. Italy's beauty lies in its ancient buildings, but most aren't equipped with wheelchair ramps and elevators. Buses aren't generally wheelchair-accessible, either. ]]> Jennifer Kester 2009-09-03T13:14:45-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/9/1/104927/1335

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. ]]> JetSetCD 2009-09-01T11:17:38-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/7/17/01916/1503

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. ]]> JetSetCD 2009-07-17T15:29:19-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/6/26/11258/9275

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]]]> JetSetCD 2009-06-26T12:07:17-05:00 Search Jaunted string http://www.jaunted.com/search/