Food | The Travel Lady In Her Shoes

The Best Bits of Eats in Brugge, Belgium

Our Morning Stroll Along the Canals, Brugge, Belgium

One of the best experiences when traveling is finding the neighborhood eateries off the beaten path. We like to eat in the neighborhoods we lodge in. It is the best way to meet the locals and enjoy the sit-down-and-focus-on-your-new-friend experience. In our neighborhood, near the B&B Gastenhuis Sint-Andriescruyse, we found two pubs/cafes that we enjoyed very much for their ambiance, simple meals and world-class beers.

First let’s take our morning stroll in the neighborhood!

Our Daily Walk Along the Canal, Brugge, Belgium

The Cafe Terrastje was just the cozy-pub-spot where you could enjoy a meal or drink inside or outside at the terrace overlooking the canal. Isn’t this the quaintest of buildings? Who could resist coming in here?

Cafe Terrastje, Brugge, Belgium

Herberg Vlissinghe was another pub close by and the oldest pub in town, dating 1515. It has the best old-time tavern feel and the garden for outside dining comes with a boules court. Both of these small pubs served the best simple, but delicious meals.

Herberg Vlissinghe, Brugge, Belgium

Let’s get back to our walk through Brugge. I just love strolling among the quiet streets and homes! There are always spots of color and flowers tucked in everywhere! So many different textures and styles to admire!

Strolling Through Brugge, Belgium

I loved this little green door! It must be a girl’s house!

Strolling Through Brugge, Belgium

As we reached the town center it’s time for a bathroom break. These were the beautifully sculptured, flowering bushes, that were designed to create one long rolling WAVE! Absolutely delightful and right in front of the public restrooms!

The Rolling Wave Flowering Bush, Brugge, Belgium

The Green Lanterns, Artwork in Brugge, Belgium

The Mermaid, Brugge, Belgium

The Sidewalk Cafe, Brugge, Belgium

Strolling in Brugge, Belgium

Strolling Through Brugge, Belgium

Time for a chocolate break! Dumon Chocolate was our daily pick for treats! Madame Dumon and her children greet you in her tiny, always packed, chocolate shop. They make their chocolates daily and describe their chocolates in person, no labels here! We always left with a little box of assorted out-of-this-world flavors!

Dumons Chocolate Shop, Brugge, Belgium

Our favorite restaurant in Old Town was without question, The Flemish Pot. The ambiance of red-cloth table covers and potted flowers everywhere just made you relax and set the mood to truly enjoy your meal. We enjoyed the local recipe for the beef stew pot!

The Flemish Pot, Brugge, Belgium

I could live in that tiny room at the top!

Another Look at the Flemish Pot, Brugge, Belgium

Artwork Everywhere, Brugge, Belgium

A riot of color and texture everywhere!

Close Up of Shop Window, Brugge, Belgium

Quiet Morning Street, Brugge, Belgium

Near City Hall, Brugge, Belgium

Strolling Through Brugge, Belgium

One of the Churches in Brugge, Belgium

Strolling Through Brugge, Belgium

Well we’ve made the rounds for today! Back to the neighborhood pubs! Enjoy your day in Brugge!

Town Square, Brugge, Belgium

Photography 101: Day 16, Treasure

To me a real treasure is finding a great cup of coffee on my travels! This was Budapest’s contribution! Enjoy!

Coffee!

Photography 101: Day 12, Architecture

I LOVE ARCHITECTURE! I am always amazed by texture, shapes, curves, color, and style. These are my pictures for today, all taken in Bruges, Belgium, a great city for architecture!

Part of our assignment was to convert a picture to black and white to bring out the features of the architecture.

Stonework in Black and White, Bruges, Belgium

I always look for unusual ironwork and lighting fixtures when I travel. It can be very intricate, as shown here.

Fancy Ironwork , Bruges, Belgium

This picture reveals great architecture in the buildings, stonework and ironwork. I was lucky to get all three in one shot! First the picture in color, and following, the same picture in black and white.

Buildings, Stonework, and Lighting, in Bruges Belgium

Black and White, Buildings, Stonework, and Lighting, in Bruges Belgium

I particularly like to photograph unusual buildings arranged at odd angles. This was the beautiful restaurant called the Vlaamsche Pot. The architecture drew me to it, but in addition, the food was fabulous! Notice the lighting sconce? The pops of color? Throw in foliage and bicycles! Perfect!

Vlaamsche Pot Restaurant, Bruges, Belgium

The Blue Mosque and Neighborhood, Istanbul, Turkey

The Blue Mosque, Istanbul, Turkey

Just like Rome, Istanbul’s Old Town is built on seven hills. The district called Sultanahmet, on top of the first hill, is the historic city center. This site gave the Greeks control of three surrounding bodies of water; the Bosphorus Strait, the Golden Horn and the Sea of Marmara. Leaving Hagia Sophia at one end of Sultanahmet Park, we walk past the beautiful fountain where the arcs of water mimic the domes of Hagia Sophia.

Hagia Sophia, Istanbul, Turkey

Sultanahmet Park, Istanbul, Turkey

Sultanahmet Park, Istanbul, Turkey

Here the gardeners are busy planting new flowers in swirls of decorative display.

Sultanahmet Park, Istanbul, Turkey

The Blue Mosque, Istanbul, Turkey

At the opposite end of the park is the Sultan Ahmed Mosque, known as the Blue Mosque, noted for the interior of blue paint and 20,000 rich, blue, handmade, ceramic tiles in fifty different tulip designs. The tiles at the lower level are traditional in design while the tiles at gallery level are flamboyant with exquisite flowers, fruit and cypresses. The upper floors are dominated by blue paint and more than 200 stained glass windows with intricate designs. In addition to the natural light there are massive chandeliers. Ostrich eggs were placed on the chandeliers to repel spiders and prevent cobwebs inside the mosque.

The Courtyard of the Blue Mosque, Istanbul, Turkey

Inside the Blue Mosque, Istanbul, Turkey

A Chandelier Inside the Blue Mosque, Istanbul, Turkey

The Sultan’s Tale goes like this.

The Blue Mosque was built in six years from 1609-1616 by the architect, Mehmet Aga, who also built the giant black cube at the center of the mosque in Mecca, the holiest shrine of Islam. Sultan Ahmet I (1590-1617) ascended the thrown at the age of 14 and his greatest achievement was the construction of the Blue Mosque. To prevent future conflicts it was customary for a new sultan to kill his closest brother. Ahmet went against tradition and spared his brother Mustafa’s life. After Ahmet’s death from typhoid at the age of 28, in 1617, his 11 year old son Murat IV, became sultan and had his younger brother, Prince Beyazit strangled, which ended the new tradition and reverted to the old. Murat’s mother, Kösem, was one of the most influential women of her time. Following Ahmet’s death, for nearly a decade Kösem ruled the empire without intrusion because Murat IV, now the the sultan, ruled at such a young age. When Murat died, Kösem placed her grandson, Mehmet, as the next sultan. Mehmet’s mother, tired of Kösem’s domination, had Kösem strangled in her sleep by the eunuchs. And so the story goes.

Outside the Blue Mosque are six minarets. Only one is needed. The imam (prayer leader) or muezzin (a man noted for his talent in voicing the call to prayer) would climb to the top of the minaret five times a day to announce the call. Sultan Ahmet requested six minarets, to flaunt his wealth, but since there were six in Mecca, he had a seventh built in Mecca, as not to upstage the holy shrine.

A Minaret of the Blue Mosque, Istanbul, Turkey

Right outside the Blue Mosque is the Hippodrome, the spot for chariot races and a place where people gathered for social and religious disputes, political clashes and violent uprisings. Today there are market stalls here and at night families gather to eat and party.

The Hippodrome, Istanbul, Turkey

The Hippodrome Market Stalls, Istanbul, Turkey

Eating at Sutanahmet Park, Istanbul, Turkey

The Egyptian Obelisk was carved 1500 years before the birth of Christ to honor the Egyptian Pharaoh Thutmose III, and to commemorate his military achievements. The obelisk was brought here from the Upper Nile and is only the upper one third of the original massive stone block. The base of the block was cut of local marble and the four sides tell the story of Theodosius the Great, and his family, as they sat here watching the chariot races at the Hippodrome.

The Egyptian Obelisk, Istanbul, Turkey

The Column of Constantine was constructed in Istanbul. It was originally sheeted with bronze panels, but in the Fourth Crusade, (early 13th century) the city was looted and the panels stripped to make weaponry.

The Column of Constantine, Istanbul, Turkey

The Column of the Serpent was a victory monument dedicated to the 31 Greek city-states to commemorate their victory over the Persians at Plataea. (479 BC) Originally, this column showed three serpents twisted together, their heads supporting a golden trophy. The golden trophy is long gone and only the jaw of one snake still exists and it is in the Istanbul Archeological Museum. The Hippodrome also was the place of the famous four cast-bronze horses from ancient Greece. During the 4th Crusade they were plundered and taken to Venice, where they now reside at St Mark’s Basilica. (See a photo of them in my Venice posts)

The Column of the Serpent, Istanbul, Turkey

The German Fountain was a gift from the German government to commemorate Kaiser Wilhelm II’s visit to Istanbul in 1898. It was constructed in Germany and transfered in pieces to Istanbul in 1901 and re-assembled on this location.

The German Fountain, Istanbul, Turkey

The Divan Yolu was the main thoroughfare in Byzantine times. The road started right here where the Golden Milestone still stands in a pit. 1500 years ago this was considered the point of the center of the world and it showed the distances to key locations within the empire.

The Tram Station at Divan Yolu, Istanbul, Turkey

The Golden Milestone, Istanbul, Turkey

Below ground, the Underground Cistern, was a vast reservoir that held water reserves for ever growing Istanbul. The cistern covers an area of two football fields and could hold 27 million gallons of fresh water. 336 columns support the brick ceiling, most of them coming from earlier Roman ruins. Clay pipes and aqueducts carried the water twelve miles to this cistern. Today the cistern is open to the public. The cistern is a shallow pond with a walkway around it. At the exit of the cistern a stage is in the water and serves as an exhibition hall for art festivals and concerts!

Underground Cistern, Istanbul, Turkey

The Ancient Columns in the Underground Cistern, Istanbul, Turkey

Underground Cistern, Istanbul, Turkey

I hope you enjoyed the day at the Blue Mosque!

My Best Travel Tip for Istanbul, Turkey

Pierre Loti

On arrival at Hotel Sultania, we were offered a choice of tours to review. We usually prefer to explore on our own, but one tour looked so interesting and the price VERY reasonable, so we decided to do it. I am glad we did, it was one of the best tours we have ever been on! It was the Bosphorus and Golden Horn Boat Tour. But, it was so much more than that!

The 4 hour guided tour, for 20 euros each, included two hours on a boat touring the Bosphorus, to see the palaces along the shore, and the two hour, “Golden Horn Tour”, which included the historical heart of the city and the the Byzantium, Constantinople and Istanbul harbors. In addition, there was a stop at Pierre Loti. The tour also includes picking you up and dropping you off at your hotel at the end of the tour. This is really good because I have been on tours where the tour ended and we had no idea where we were, and had to take a cab back to our hotel. A real bummer! This tour was excellent!

Since Hotel Sultania is located on a pedestrian-only street we walked one street over with the guide, who came to get us, and realized the bus was waiting for us on the corner. Since it was Ramadan, our guide announced, we would be doing the tour backwards, going to Pierre Loti first. I didn’t know what Pierre Loti was, I thought possibly it was the name of the boat docking area, so I just settled in talking to two Australian women and enjoying the scenery along the way when……….

Following a 15 minute ride we stopped and got off the bus at a funicular on the side of a steep hill overlooking the water. The guide paid our funicular fee and we started up the hill in small glass lifts that offered a beautiful view of the Sea of Marmara on one side and a cemetery on the other. I thought, “Where in the world are we going?”

The View from Pierre Loti, Istanbul, Turkey

Up the Hill to the Shops at Pierre Loti, Istanbul, Turkey

The Restaurant at Pierre Lodi, Istanbul, Turkey

The Pierre Loti Restaurant, Istanbul, Turkey

The Steps up to the Shops at Pierre Loti, Istanbul, Turkey

At the top was a cluster of shops and tables of the Pierre Loti Restaurant (sadly not serving meals because of Ramadan), but the waiters offered soft drinks to us as we admired one of the most beautiful views in Istanbul! We sat at red-checked draped tables under the trees and enjoyed the views with several guests. This is a very popular spot in the city for tourists and the locals.

A View from Pierre Loti, Istanbul, Turkey

Another View from Pierre Loti, Istanbul, Turkey

Views from Pierre Loti, Istanbul, Turkey

As we looked out over the Bosphorus, we observed through the view finder on our cameras, a boat making it’s way to the boat dock well below and away from our magnificent perch on the hill.

The Tour Boat at the Dock, Istanbul, Turkey

The Tour Boat in the Distance at the Dock, Istanbul, Turkey

Up Close and Personal, The Tour Boat

I seem to remember making a comment that would come back to haunt me, “Well at least we don’t have to walk all the way to the boat.” Soon our guide called us together and told the first story. He would reveal the story of Pierre Loti. Oh, I love stories! I was captivated!

Pierre Loti, a pseudonym for Julien Viand, was a French novelist and naval officer, who wrote books about exotic spots he visited during his naval career and throughout his lifetime. His noted first works were tales of his love affairs; love, death and despair. Other books were travel guides presenting beautiful tales of Islamic life in countries before the exploitation of tourists.

In 1879, he wrote his first book, Aziyadé. It was a story of a love affair between a 27 year-old man with a “Circassian”, harem girl of 18. Many believe this was semi-autobiographical, based on a diary Loti kept during the fall and winter of 1876. Here is the Turkish interpretation of the story as told by our guide.

While Loti was serving in the military in Istanbul, he met and fell in love with a beautiful Circassian woman. They would meet secretly on this hill high above the city. Her family would not approve of her marrying a non-muslim and they were both in turmoil over this. Aziyadé suggested they run away together and go to France, where he could marry her. The only problem; he had not been quite honest with her, because he was already married and his wife was in France! After a few months and several meetings in their secret meeting place he did leave, without her. When she believed he was never coming back she married the person her family had chosen for her.

He did come back several years later and was distraught that she had married! Really, men! Their liaison started up once again, up on the hill. Eventually, her husband suspected something was up and when he found out about her affair with Loti, he killed her. Short and not sweet. Pierre Loti wore a gold ring with her name, etched on the inside, for the rest of his life. The hill is now a popular overlook of the city, with a restaurant and more shops up the hill, but we are headed down the cobbled path along the edges of the Eyüp Mosque and Cemetery.

The Eyüp Cemetery, Istanbul, Turkey

Fauna at Eyüp Mosque and Cemetery, Istanbul, Turkey

Flora at Eyüp Mosque and Cemetery, Istanbul, Turkey

The Eyüp Cemetery, Istanbul, Turkey

Yes, I said that right, we’re walking to the boat! The next story better be another good one! It’s about the cemetery and who are buried there! We’ re off!

Follow me, won’t you, as we explore on the rest of the tour? Enjoy!

For the Bosphorus Tours; Short and Full see:

Blue Brothers Travel Agency

For reservation please contact your travel agency or hotel concierge.

Alemdar Mah. Alaykosku Cad No 17 D Cagaloglu, Istanbul, Turkey

Tel: 90 (0212) 528 73 74

Istanbul: A City of Contrasts

Hotel Sultania

There are so many planes landing in Istanbul, resulting in not enough gates for them to pull up to. This is the hub between Europe and the Middle East. The workers roll metal stairs to the plane’s exits and down you step; just like in the old movies! A bus awaits to whisk you off to the terminal. Getting a cab to the hotel I was pleasantly surprised to see gardens and gardens of ornately designed floral sculptures; bright contrasting swirls of color in bright poppy reds, pure white, and glossy greens. They were the “Whirling Dervishes” of the landscape and I wondered about the work that went into maintaining them. I couldn’t take pictures that would be any good, through the cab’s window, but vowed I would take pictures of them before I left Istanbul! Istanbul is a contrast and mix of old world and modern, european and middle eastern. I was fascinated with the sights along the way!

Hagia Sophia, Istanbul, Turkey

A Glimpse of the Old and New, Istanbul, Turkey

Entering Old Town the cab drivers wait two seconds before they start blowing their horns for the traffic to move! We would later learn that when the traffic is excessive, cabbies refuse to pick up passengers in this area, because they are stuck and not able to move at all. As we got to the vicinity of our hotel we stopped on a narrow, crowded street that our hotel was not located on, and told this was our stop. I was doubtful, until a bellman, opened our cab door, quickly took our luggage and said, “follow me.” We walked down a cobbled street, turned left, where old men sat in an alcove smoking and talking, and scurried after our bellman to the Hotel Sultania; located at the corner of two intersecting lanes that were pedestrian only.

Hotel Sultania, Istanbul, Turkey

The Tiny Corner Intersection of Hotel Sultania, Istanbul, Turkey

The Cross Street of Hotel Sultania, Istanbul, Turkey

A Look at Hotel Sultania, Istanbul, Turkey

A Look at Old Town, Istanbul, Turkey

Here we are in walking distance to Hagia Sophia; a church and mosque museum, the Blue Mosque, and the Topkapi Palace: all in the Sultanahmet Area. The streets are a mixture of old world and new, with elegant restaurants, hotels and shopping, scattered among alcoves of old brick ovens manned by bakers providing a bubbly flatbread and shops of carpet/rug lined sitting areas, where the guests smoke hookahs. Men outside the restaurants and establishments, ~~encourage~~, ~~intimidate~~, aggressively pursue you to try their wares. It is so alive! Oh, this is going to be fun!!

Entering the Hotel Sultania, we were warmly greeted at the concierge desk and and made aware of the popular attractions and local events that will be occurring during Ramadan.

Hotel Sultania, Istanbul, Turkey

We were told some places may be closed during the day, but at night the city comes to life, especially at Gülhane Park, where there will be partying after dark. We were shown the indoor/ outdoor breakfast room at one end of the lobby and a rooftop restaurant, one of the best in the city, not to be missed. Then taking another elevator, we were lead to our room. Oh my! I have been in several hotels in Europe, but this was one of the most opulent, depicting a room fit for one of the Sultan’s wives.

The Olga Hatun Room, Hotel Sultania, Istanbul, Turkey

Our room was named after Olga Hatun, seventeen year old wife to Sultan Bayezid, also known as Thunderbolt. The room was huge with a terrace overlooking the old city and the Bosphorus Strait. HOWEVER, best of all was the extra large, marbled bathroom and a shower that would easily fit four people!

Hotel Sultania, Istanbul, Turkey

A Tin of Turkish Delight Candy and a Parchment Note about Olga Hatun, Hotel Sultania, Istanbul, Turkey

All the Amenities, Hotel Sultania, Istanbul, Turkey ( The Mirror is a Flat Screen TV, Don’t Ask Me How This is Done!)

Marble Everywhere!, Hotel Sultania, Istanbul, Turkey

A Square Toilet? Hotel Sultainia, Istanbul, Turkey

Unbelievable! After settling in we couldn’t wait to explore our new surroundings!

The New Hatay Restaurant, Istanbul, Turkey

The New Hatay Restaurant is an outdoor restaurant right outside our hotel. The hosts, stand outside the restaurant, and pull everyone aside, who will listen, to encourage you to look at their menu and food. I was enthralled with the bread! Men brought the combination puffy/flat bread from a brick oven nearby that had a line of patrons waiting for the fresh, scorched bread. Then there was the food, so colorful, so exotic looking! And they served wine! Need I say more? We had to try this place first ! A good way to end our first day! Enjoy!

The Bread! Hatay Restaurant, Istanbul, Turkey

The Food! Hatay Restaurant, Istanbul, Turkey

The Color! Hatay Restaurant, Istanbul, Turkey

More Color! Hatay Restaurant, Istanbul, Turkey

Fresh Fish! Hatay Restaurant, Istanbul, Turkey

Dawn at the Rialto Bridge Market, Venice, Italy

Rialto Mercato di Frutta et Verdera

Early Morning in the Streets of Venice. Italy

Walking to the Rialto Bridge, Venice, Italy

The Pink Lights! Venice, Italy

Early Morning, Venice, Italy

We are walking through the deserted streets to get an early view of the Rialto Bridge without a ton of tourists in the way and to go to the Rialto Market. For over 700 years the Rialto Market has been the place for fresh, seasonal, local food. The Rialto area of Venice was one of the first areas to be developed. Trading of all kinds took place here along the water’s edge, where Venetians and merchants bought and sold exotic imported goods, just unloaded from the ships. In the 16th century, following a massive fire, a complex of squares and porticoes was constructed at the west end of the Rialto Bridge, with areas dedicated to different products. This area is still noted in the names of local lanes and squares. Erberia, (fruit and vegetable market) Nananzeria, (oranges) Speziali, (spices) and Pescaria, (fish) are just a few. Also, there are now food stores around the market selling gourmet foodstuffs, oils, wine, pasta, and regional specialties. The locals still get up early and shop at the market! Follow suite or you will be in the frenzy of tourists! Enjoy!

The Rialto Bridge, Venice, Italy

Walk Over Rialto Bridge to the Market, Venice, Italy

Rialto Market, Early Morning, Venice, Italy

Rialto Market, Venice, Italy

Getting Ready to Open at the Rialto Market, Venice, Italy

Fish!

Tomatoes and Spices!

The Spices at Rialto Market

The Meat Market at the Rialto Market, Venice, Italy

One of the Specialty Markets at the Rialto Market, Venice, Italy

Venice, A New Day!

A New Day in Venice, Italy

9am. Up early, eat breakfast, out the door we go. We couldn’t wait to explore Venice! Oh, woe is me! We are bumper to bumper, head to head, squeezed together! The cruise ships are in and hordes of people are in groups of twenty to thirty! At the top of the bridge way, the group stops and takes pictures and the group behind them, waiting on the stairs, practically rear ends them! We need to re-think our picture taking times! I can’t see anything, but the back of someone’s head! Back to the hotel to re-group.

The Masses are Arriving!

New day! 6am. We are up and out. The streets are empty! Yeah! We can take lovely pictures. What is that man doing? It’s a UPS man delivering goods. What a job that is! Pulling and pushing the dollies up all those stairs and bridges! What’s that in the boats? Fluffy white bundles of laundry, pick up and delivery of sheets and more sheets! What a job that would be! The men row up to little doors along the water. The doors open and out comes the bundled dirty laundry and in goes the fresh! The vegetable man is in another boat, delivering fruits and vegetables in the same fashion. Wow, it pays to be up early and see all the action! 9 am, done with pictures for this morning. Back to the hotel to eat breakfast. Good morning, good morning, lovely day! We’ll rest up after breakfast and head out again after 1pm when the cruisers are done. Perfect day!

Delivery Day!

Another Dock, Another Delivery!

Vegetables and Fruits!

Ah, Quiet Walkways!

Quiet Here Too!

Peaceful Here!

All Tucked in Here!

Shh!

Parked and Waiting!

What’s down this way? Oh, it dead ends at the water! Re-tracing our steps. Have we been in this area before? There certainly are a lot of little walkways! We need to drop breadcrumbs, we never go the same way twice! Look up! Oh, I see it! The Rialto Bridge is this way!

Always Look Up!

Look Up Again!

Rialto Bridge, Early Early Morning! Venice, Italy

St Marks Square that way. As long as we can find these markings we will be able to find our way back, I think! Look at all these shops!

Fancy Pants!

Need a Mask?

Gloves Anyone?

How About a Hat?

Tea and Milk!

Candy!

One sells just gloves! One sells just hats! Wow, that certainly is skimpy underwear! A little bar here. A juice shop there. Oh, another little church. Oh, look at this small shrine!

A Shrine in Venice, Italy

Oh! What a Lovely Balcony!

1pm. Where are we? Are we on this map? I need to sit down. I guess it’s time for some vino! How about here?

Very Quiet Here!

This Looks Like a Perfect Spot!

Or This Place!

Or Here!

How About This One?

Let’s just try them all! Another perfect day in Venice!

Ok This One!

6pm. Repeat the above! Oh, I need to sit down! Time for vino! How about this restaurant?

This One Looks Great!

Maybe This One? We Haven’t Been Here Yet!

Our Favorite!

Our Favorite! Rosa Rossa! Enjoy!

We’re Not Going to Starve in Italy!!

Venice: A Palette of Light

The Grand Canal, Venice, Italy

The Vaporetto on the Grand Canal, Venice, Italy

Traffic Jam on the Grand Canal, Venice, Italy

Just Cruizin’ the Grand Canal, Venice, Italy

Grand Canal, Venice, Italy

For Stage 2 of the AIT Tour, (Austria, Italy, Turkey) there couldn’t be an easier way, for us, to get to Venice, Italy from Vienna, Austria. Thanks to the Austrian Rail System, a train takes you from Vienna’s Meidling Station to the Villach, Austria train station, where a very cushy, comfortable bus awaits to take you to Venice. There was even a concierge car on the train to help you arrange hotels, cars, sights, whatever the case may be! Arriving in Mestra I was concerned with the industrial look of the area around the Mestra Train Station, where we were supposed to get off the bus. However, the bus driver told us to stay on and he took us all the way to the docks; to the vaporetto that would take us on to Venice. So on the first day we had traveled by train, bus, and boat! We got off the vaporetto and walked to the right entering St Mark’s Square to the left.

One of Many Vaporetto Stops on the Grand Canal, Venice, Italy

It was early evening and the square was filling with guests, listening to the fine music coming from the restaurants in St Mark’s piazza.

Music in the Night, Venice, Italy

St Mark’s Square, Venice, Italy

We walked on to our hotel to the tune of the clickety-clack coming from our suitcases on cobble stones. Now, I have to tell you I was shocked to discover that there was water in between the buildings with lots of stairs, small bridges, narrow sidewalks and more stairs over strips of water that slapped against the buildings. For some reason I had it in my head that the water would just be on the Grand Canal. Oh no, there is water everywhere here. The large buildings do not sit on land; they sit on water and a lot of the first floors of the buildings are under water. Will they sink eventually? Just how long can the support beams from the water’s floor hold up the buildings? Just a thought, but I couldn’t get over it!

The Small Waterways Between the Buildings, Venice, Italy

The Waterways of Venice, Italy

The Bridge of Sighs, Venice, Italy

The Waterways of Venice, Italy

Small Waterways, Venice, Italy

We came to a wrought iron gate and pushed it open entering a small courtyard and there in the corner was our boutique hotel, the Locanda Orseolo. The small lobby was elegant and inviting. There was the breakfast room to the right, which overlooked the water. We could watch the gondolas float by! After talking to our hosts, who made us so welcome, we were off to our room on the 4th floor. That would be 8 flights of stairs! Stairs, landing, turn, stairs, Floor 1. Stairs, landing, turn, stairs, Floor 2. You get the picture. No elevators in these old buildings! And I was limping before I even got here! Barbara, one of the hostesses, took one look at me and offered to change our room the next day to the first floor! I was so thankful!

LuiGIGI and Barbara, our Hosts at Locanda Orseolo, Venice, Italy

The Courtyard to Locanda Orseolo, Venice, Italy

Locanda Orseolo, Venice, Italy

Room 1, Locanda Orseolo, Venice, Italy

Locanda Orseolo, Venice, Italy

Room 2, Locanda Orseolo, Venice, Italy

So we have fantastic pictures of lively murals on the walls of two rooms here at Locanda Orseolo! All the staff were very friendly; suggesting restaurants, concerts, shopping and sights to explore. Nothing was too much for them. The breakfast room was ideal, we could enjoy the other guests and watch the world go by outside the open window! The breakfast crepes and omelets were made to order and the buffet offered a large spread of meats, breads, cheeses, desserts and juices. Coffee was made to order. It’s another day in this beautiful city! Enjoy!

Raspberry/Banana Crepe at Locanda Orseolo, Venice, Italy

The Breakfast Window, at Locanda Orseolo, Venice, Italy

One Word for Vienna: Spotless

Volksgarten, Vienna, Austria

The Streets of Vienna, Austria

Walking around Vienna the first thing that I don’t see is trash, graffiti, cigarette stubs (although smoking in public places and restaurants is still allowed here), newspapers blowing around, signposts covered in a bazillion stickers, dog poop, or people begging on the streets. Vienna is spotless. The city is huge, there are tourists EVERYWHERE, and the city is spotless. Vienna does have large well maintained green areas, beautiful gardens and fountains, benches everywhere to rest, working elevators at public buildings, the metro, train station, and on the main thoroughfare sidewalks there are raised patches of rippled walkway to guide the seeing impaired. What is there not to like?

Pedestrian Strips, Vienna, Austria

The Streets of Vienna, Austria

Vienna is a city of elegance. In 1900 a local chemical maker needed a publicity stunt to prove that his chemicals really got things clean. He purchased two wine cellars under Graben, a ditch or moat originally used by the Romans at their military camp, now a pedestrian-only thoroughfare of great architecture, fine cafes, and fountains. Adolf Loos (1870-1933), a modernist style architect, believed less was more. He was convinced that unnecessary ornamentation was a waste of worker’s time and energy so he designed perfectly geometrical grid buildings with matching windows. Unheard of at the time! No statues, no plastered fake columns for him. Loos was commissioned to take the two wine cellars and turn them into fancy and classy public water closets. He did, complete with chandeliers and finely crafted mahogany walls, creating a very appealing place. They are so inviting, today they are sometimes used for poetry readings! Now we know why bathrooms are sometimes referred to as loos, who knew?

Loos Loo, Vienna, Austria

In the middle of the Graben is a 60 foot Holy Trinity Plague Column, (Pestsäule) a pillar of clouds sprouting angels and cherubs with the Father, Son and Holy Ghost at the top. in 1679 Vienna suffered from an epidemic of the bubonic plague, killing one third of the city. Leopold I (one quarter up the column), in public, begged God to save the city. His prayer was heard by Lady Faith, (the statue carrying the cross below Leopold) who with the help of the cherub tosses the old naked woman (the plague) into the wind and saves the city. Leopold erected the monument as a model for other cities ravaged by the same plague.

Holy Trinity Plague Column, Vienna, Austria

Graben, Vienna, Austria

Michaelerplatz is the square dominated by the Hofburg Palace. In the fountain the four heroic giants illustrate Hercules wrestling with his great challenges.

Michaelerplatz, Vienna, Austria

This is the complex where the Hofburg emperors lived except in the summer, when they lived in the Schönbrunn Palace a few miles away. I can’t wait to see the Imperial Apartments and the museum for the Empress Sisi, but during our walk, we stopped for an ice cream at the famous Demel, (Hofzuckerbäckerei Demel) a famous pastry shop and chocolaterie on the Michaelerplatz, where it has been located since 1857. Yummy!

Demel, Vienna, Austria

Demel, Michaelerplatz, Vienna, Austria

Having had a look at the fine architecture and the beautifully designed streets we have our itineraries marked for tomorrows museum tours. We will start the day early with Mass and a concert in Augustinian Church, and end the day, enjoying the activity in the Volksgarten Park and beautiful gardens of flowers. Meet you in the park tomorrow! Enjoy!

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