By Gabrielle.
Hello, Friends! Just checking in for a bit from our hotel. Yesterday was sunny (but cold!) and we packed in as much sightseeing as we could, because we knew today’s forecast was rain, rain, rain.
Today, we were less ambitious. We pulled on our wellies, bought 3 cheapie umbrellas, and visited the Peggy Guggenheim Collection. Then spent the afternoon keeping warm and dry in our hotel — we had a junk food picnic and watched a movie while June napped. : ) Tomorrow, we’re hoping to visit some of the Lagoon islands.
Mostly, we keep marveling at how often we gasp when we turn a corner. Venice is spectacular in any kind of weather.
How is January treating you so far?
P.S. — I’m taking lots of photos on instagram (like the shot above) if you’d like to follow along.
Silly me. I clicked through thinking the article was about a skiing gondola. :)
Wow..what a surprise..I am an Italian girl that follow your blog and I was in Venice the past days..I hope you and your family are having a beautiful vacation!
If tomorrow you have planned to go to the islands remind to go to murano for the glass work (and watch some artist at work) and to torcello for the trim!
:)
I didn’t make it to Torcello, but I loved Murano!
Honestly would have to see it to believe it.
Gasping seem appropriate.
Who thought up that crazy place?
Putting it on our list.
Happy New Year.
So true.
Love this ride. Makes me yearn for travel.
If you get a chance, check out Murano. It’s a set of beautiful little islands and the blown glass is just gorgeous! Some of the shops have demonstrations that the kids would love.
I loved Venice, but my visit was a whirlwind–just a half day. I would love to go back and spend more time there, and I would especially love to take a glass-making class there. Enjoy the rest of your visit!
A glass-making class sounds amazing! And a great excuse for a trip.
I am inspired by your family’s braving the cold for an adventure! We are currently living in China and it is cold, cold, cold right now too. We have a month off for winter break and Chinese New Year and I find myself wanting to put off some travels because it is too cold. Your trip to Venice reminded me that you take advantage of the time you have no matter the circumstances. We’ll definitely be planning some trips . . . cold weather or not! :)
I’m like you, Christina! My instincts are to stay in. I had to psyche up for the cold weather touring, but of course, felt like it was totally worth it in the end. : )
If you can get a hold of it, reach the Thief Lord by Cornelia Funke with your older kids before you leave. It takes place in Venice and is amazing!
Sorry, I meant read the Thief Lord! :)
I’ve always wanted to ride a gondola in Venice. Sigh.
Hi,
Love the travel adventures….we are an Australian family living in Boston and plan to take our three kids to Europe this year. Would love to know where you are staying and would you recommend it?
Thanks and enjoy the trip,
Nicky
PS Lion Boy is another series set (in part) in Venice. Just finishing the trilogy with my 13 year old at the moment x
Hi Nicola! We stayed at Residenza Cannaregio. The rooms are simple, but we loved them, because the family-style rooms are two level and we didn’t feel crowded, even when we hung out on a rainy afternoon. And the breakfast was good too!
http://www.eurostarsresidenzacannaregio.com/EN/hotel.html?gclid=CLvhwKWF1rQCFebLtAodYikAYw
Thanks…glad you had a good trip!
Lucky you! The Peggy Guggenheim is my favorite museum in the whole wide world!
Nicky, we stayed in a lovely family flat rented by the Red House Company. They have flats and houses throughout Venice and were fantastic. I highly recommend them. We stayed at Ca’ Navagero Apt 2 and loved it. More reasonable for a large family than hotel rooms. We originally found them through homeaway.com but you can book directly with them as well. http://www.venietiam.com/Houses.aspx
Gia
Thanks Gia…with three kids we often need more than one room so an apartment is perfect.
Cheers! Nicky
Thank you for posting such beautiful pictures… I was living in Venice for seven years and it was one of the most magical moments in my life :-) If you need some tips let me know ;) Greetings to Venice and keep enjoying!
They say you always remember the first time you see Venice. What a magical place, especially this time of year when the streets are empty (relatively speaking) and kind of spooky too. Enjoy getting lost, there is always something to be found.
Hi Gabrielle!
I love this post, like all of your others. You are such an inspiration to a little old aspiring blogger like myself. Thanks you!
Kate
Thank you for the kind words, Kate! Happy New Year to you.
Good article! We are linking to this particularly great post on our website. Keep up the great writing.|