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A Typical Quiet Walk in Venice

“Join me now for a quiet walk in Venice’s Dorsoduro sestiere, with pleasant sights along he way”

It’s time to slow our lives down a bit and have a simple, quiet day in out-of-the-way locations of Venice. Tag along as I take a walk through quiet Dorsoduro, ending the day with a pleasant meal…and more.

For sure, there is a lot of hustle-and-bustle in Venice, especially in the districts of San Marco and San Polo, but you and I will be spending the day exploring Dorsoduro.

We plan to visit the Gallerie dell'Accademia (Venice’s art gallery), and have lunch somewhere along the way…though we know not where, as we start. There’s a mask shop I’ve heard about and into which I’d like to take a peek. And, if I have time, there’s Campo Santa Margherita, which is a great place to sit under a tree and do a bit of people watching. Not sure where we’ll go after that, but who cares, right?

So, let’s get going!

We Begin Our Walk

We need to get to Dorsoduro from the Hotel Flora, where we are staying in the sestiere of San Marco. We get to Dorsoduro by passing through Campo Santo Stefano, and then crossing over the Academia bridge. It’s taken us awhile to get away from the area of our hotel, as so many of our favorite shops are situated along Calle Larga XXII Marzo. Like La Ricerca, which we never pass up without going in to browse, purchase, and visit. His mother a master bookbinder 40 years ago, he keeps the tradition alive using a small group of gifted leather and bookbinding craftsmen to supply his small shop. Six years older in the right photo, but still the same great smile!

We pull ourselves away from the craft shops along the way until finally, we are in the quiet Dorsoduro.

As we cross the Accademia bridge, we note the ‘lover’s lock’ that Ellen and I placed there on a previous trip!

Actually, we don’t do that sort of thing. We put it in the same class as graffiti. For this photo, I borrowed the photo from Helen’s and Georg’s lock.

For your information, the Accademia bridge has been completely redesigned and reconstructed to prevent such appliques. Sorry Helen & Georg, no more displays of your true love.

Gallerie dell'Accademia

As the Gallerie dell'Accademia is right before us as we descend from the bridge, we may as well go in to see the magnificent art pieces that hang there.

A discussion of the Accademia will be held for another day, but I’ll just point out one art work that we’ll see on our visit today. It’s Giovanni Bellini’s “Madonna and Child between Saints Catherine and Magdalene”, shown here in a surreptitiously captured photo from a previous visit. There is such beautiful brushwork in this 23”x42” work of art.

We’ve spent a good bit of time in the Accademia, and we feel the pangs of hunger. It’s time to wander toward that lunch that I’d promised you.

We’ve heard good things about Ai Gondolieri, but that is not in the general direction that we had planned to wander…we want to get to the large Campo Santa Margherita to see what we can see. So, we’ll head west.

An Unusual Wine Shop

I’ll snap some photos of the sights whilst we stroll the calle of Venice. Like this wine shop where you bring in your own bottle and self-serve fill it with wine, right from the demijohn. I checked my pockets and didn’t have any bottles on me, so I’ll have to rely on whatever restaurant I find for us along the way.

Bridges Make For Hard Work In Venice

There are 409 bridges in Venice, and one rarely finds one that doesn’t have steps. And as there are no land-based vehicles in Venice, deliveries are made with hand trucks…like this one. This adds to the cost of goods. And it creates delivery men with great leg strength.

See the little wheels just to the front of his rubber tires? That’s the secret to working one’s way up and over the steps.

Stay Tuned for Next Week’s Article

Then here’s a rather non-descript door that I might be able to transform later for you. Maybe even next week. So, be sure to come back to see what I do with this blah snapshot.

A Quick Pharmacy Stop

Here we find a pharmacist, taking a telefonino break.

OK ladies, and you gentlemen interested in maintaining a youthful look, you might want to pick up some of that DÒLIVA advertised in the window of the farmacia. It suggests that you should ‘love your skin’, and promises it will contribute to the care of all 360° of your face. It’s amazing what olives can do for one’s complexion.

Floating Market

What’s this? A floating market..selling fresh produce from the mainland. And, not all is what we see in our own markets.

Ahoy, Matey!

As we take a sharp left to avoid falling into the Rio de San Trovaso canal and losing that bag of Doliva that you’re carrying, we see a father taking his two children on a water-bourn adventure. Are pirates in their future?

I doubt that we will see them in that little boat later on the busy Grand Canal.

Where The Gondole Go For Repair

Now we are along the canal known as Rio de San Trovaso. With a bit of guide-book research, we find that Rio de San Trovaso is the canal from which the gondole of Venice are maintained and repaired. Here is a photo of Campo San Trovaso, where the gondole are dragged up onto dry land (at least it’s dry at this moment, and a bit more on that later).

Seeing this rare site gives me the idea to write a blog article about the ubiquitous gondole soon…stay tuned for that.

And Now, Lunch…Finally!

Along this canal, we find a likely candidate for lunch. Taverna San Trovaso seems to be just what we are looking for…quiet and out of the way.

Here is the entrance to Taverna San Trovaso. Definitely unassuming…but the warm wood promises a warm-inside experience.

Here’s a photo from their website that well shows the inside first floor…which is less formal than the upstairs dinner spot.

Here’s what I’ve ordered for lunch.

First was crudo, stracchino. This translates to raw meat (raw, but well aged and cured prosciutto…you can read more about that in my previous article on Italian meats) and cheese. In this case, the cheese is stracchino (strak-KI-no). It’s a type of Italian cow's-milk cheese that’s eaten very young. It has a soft, creamy texture and normally a mild and delicate flavor. Here is my plate.

You can see that I’ve got a basket of bread and packaged grisini to go along with my crudo. And, I’m sure that you didn’t miss the small carafe of vino rosso. And those who know me well searched and found a can of Coca-Cola Light along the right edge of the photo.

As I’m into just a lite lunch today because I’m saving up my calories for a nice dinner at Antico Martini later tonight, I’ll just have a simple salad…this one with mozzarella, tomato and arugula, topped with a few savory olives. In Italy, mozzarella is made from the milk of water buffalo, and is referred to as ‘bufala’.

That about sums up my typical lunch for today. On other days, I might have worked in fresh seafood, because it is definitely fresh here in Venice.

And speaking of summing up, what has all this come to in Euros? Let’s check out the tab.

That’s a grand total of 30 Euro. I know you are about to say ‘Ouch!’, but remember that everything, and I mean EVERYTHING, brought in and consumed in Venice is brought in by boat. Your wallet? Don’t leave home without it.

And, did you notice the wine and the Coca-Cola for the same price? On a budget, might as well drink the wine.

That last charge of 2 Euro is the ‘cover charge’. This is your ‘sitting down to eat’ charge. Many times, if you eat at the bar (and don’t mess up a table cloth and use the normal wait staff), you will not have a coperto charge.

You are asking, ‘Was your server a woman?’. Yes!

This has been a rare experience in our trips to Italy. So, I’ve decided that documentation is in order!

High Water Mark

We are fortunate that it is not the season of aqua alta, or high water. That season is generally around November, when tides and winds blowing to the northwest up the Adriatic pile a good bit of unwanted water into the Venetian lagoon. Take another look at the entrance to Taverna San Trovaso above, and then look at the photo below (which I snapped from a photo on the wall of the restaurant).

There’s danger in aqua alta! There are many calle that end at a small canal, with no wall or railing to keep you from falling into the canal. When the water is at a normal level, you can see that the calle ends, and you can avoid an unplanned dip. But when the water is high, and has flooded the calle upon which you walk, beware, as there may be a canal, and not an intersection with another calle. Locals know their way around, we don’t.

Let’s continue on our stroll high-and-dry through the calle of the Dorsoduro district.

A Friendly Maker of Venetian Masks

Here’s a friendly craftsman. This gentleman is the maker of the famous Venetian masks that are seen during Venice’s Carnevale (the equivalent of the New Orleans’s Mardi Gras).

Here he’s sitting outside his shop on this sunny day, forming what will become a festive mask.

Shhhh!

It must be a slow day for the gondola trade. Just so you know, I didn’t disturb him as I tiptoed by.

However, it’s not a completely unproductive day for gondoliers, as we can see as this happy couple seem to be enjoying their afternoon ride.

It’s Time for Reflection

Now, we pause to reflect on our day thus far…

Venetians, Doing What Venetians Do

And then there are the Venetians, going about their daily Venetian routines.

Joining In On A Fashion Shoot

Ahh, here’s a fashion shoot. I think I’ll join in. She looks beautiful, doesn’t she.

Hmmm. I seem to remember joining in on a photo shoot yesterday with this same model…that shoot was at the Rialto bridge. Yes, I think it’s the same beautiful model…though with a different wedding dress.

Is Anyone Home?

And here are the door bells for the Polizzi, Gervasoni, and Agnoli families. I wonder what the architect was thinking about when he created this design? Hmmm, I wonder.

An Afternoon Gathering of Friends

In a quiet place, we see two friends having a nice afternoon chat, both with a cappuccino, if I remember correctly.

Souvenir Shopping

And now a shop window, where one can purchase a souvenir hat to commemorate one’s visit to Venice.

Interested in Alfresco Dining?

And here, a typical al fresco dining situation in Venice…outside, but still classy.

We Need To Get A Move On!

Uh oh, that table setting reminds me that I need to get back to the Hotel Flora to freshen up and get ready for that dinner at Antico Martini. I’d hoped to get to Campo Santa Margherita to get supplies for a picnic tomorrow on the super-quiet and out-of-the way island of Torcello. I’ll have to pick up picnic items early tomorrow at the Rialto Market.

Antico Martini is a restaurant that has been in continuous operation since the 1700s and has seen a lot of Venetian history. And, I must say that I also made Antico Martini history, as years ago, I was the first person to ever make a reservation there using the internet! This distinction garnered fresh flowers on the table, as well as prosecco on the house! Thank you, Emilio.

So, it’s back to the hotel. Walking briskly along the Grand Canal, it starts to sprinkle just a bit. And here, I learn what the Venetians do as they drive their boats in the rain. Just what the rest of use do as we raise our umbrellas as we walk.

Stepping Out For Dinner And More

I’ve gathered the group at the Hotel Flora and we are heading out to dinner.

And, here we are at our favorite Venetian restaurant, Antico Martini…always a pleasant and relaxing meal after a long day in Venice.

Are we in the right place? I believe we are.

Scott and I peruse the wine list at Antico Martini, which has many tasty offerings.

Do you recognize the winged lion of San Marco on the wine-menu cover?

It’s time for a toast to friends not present…which unfortunately, includes you..this time.

Our dinner fare is not as simple as that at Taverna San Trovaso, but I was able to have another bufala salad…this one a caprese.

Our After-Dinner Destination

After dinner, one does not go to the movies in Venice…one goes to Piazza San Marco…and should one choose, dancing.

Only when we hear the campanile’s Marangona bell toll midnight do we leave…and then reluctantly. And then, It’s back to the hotel for a restful night’s sleep in this quiet, idyllic hotel.

I’m glad you got to spend the day walking the quiet calle of Dorsoduro with me. But now, at the end of the day, it’s time to spend a bit of time with my bride.

I hope that you enjoyed our stroll through the calle of Venice’s quiet Dorsoduro sestiere. And, Dorsoduro is just one of six sestieri that make up the amazing floating city of Venice. Maybe tomorrow we’ll run into each other in Cannaregio’s Ghetto. Or, maybe we can relive Venice’s sailing days at Castello’s Arsenale. Wherever you may roam in Venice, I know that you, too, will create many memories along the way.

Ciao for now,

Steve

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Venetian Sestiere: Dorsodouro

Index of Articles

“While we use a period for our decimal place indicator, most Europeans use a comma. And to confuse things a bit more, where we use a comma to separate thousands from hundreds, Europeans use a period.”

This week, it's time to get back to Venice. Specifically, the sestiere of Dorsodouro (or Dorsoduro in some circles).

Don't remember what a sestiere is? Please, review my previous article of January 3, 2017, titled "Venice's Sestiere".

We like Dorsodouro for its quiet charm. And there is variety in that you have both large and small campi, small canals, and then the walkway along the large, sea-like Giudecca Canal.

This map shows you Dorsodouro's location within Venice...it's the lime-green-shaded area of the map.

And in this birds-eye view, you can see detail of the boundary of the Dorsodouro sestiere.

In the aerial view above, draw an imaginary vertical line down the center of Dorsodouro just to the left of Campo Santa Margherita. Then, focus your time to the right of that line...most all you would want to see in the sestiere of Dorsodouro is in the eastern limits.

Here are the main attractions of Dorsodouro

Iconic Santa Maria della Salute & the Punta della Dogana

Perhaps the most prominent feature of Dorsodouro is the church of Santa Maria della Salute. You've seen it before in my article of titled, "Transforming the Punta della Dogana". Here is a photo of the Punta and the Salute taken one evening as we dined at Terrazza Daniele.

Accademia Gallery

The second most prominent feature within Dorsodouro would be the Galleria dell'Accademia (Accademia Gallery), Venice's premier art gallery. It is located at the sourthern terminus of the Accademia Bridge.

This gallery, shown at left, houses magnificent pre-19th century Venetian art.

Here is the ceiling of the large room as you enter. This room's entire ceiling is covered with this pattern. That was a lot of work, and we are always amazed at the craftsmanship that went into Venetian buildings. So many happy little faces!

Our favorite Venetian painting at the Accademia is this masterpiece by Giovanni Bellini titled, "Sacred Conversation" (aka "Madonna and Child with Two Saints"). We don't visit Venice without stopping by to say, 'Hello'. Absolutely gorgeous!

Another fine work found here is the San Giobbe Altarpiece, by Bellini, shown below -- just a little worse for wear. The work depicts Mary sitting on a tall marble throne, holding the Christ Child. At her feet are three musician While at the side are, in symmetrical positions, six saints. They are, on the left, Sts. Francis, John the Baptist and Job; and on the right, Sts. Dominic, Sebastian and Louis of Toulouse.

On a religious-art note, Saint Sebastian is depicted often in Italian art and he is readily identified by arrows piercing his body.

Ca' Rezzonico and Its Museum of 18th-Century Venice

This magnificent palace, now the Museum of 18th century Venice, was designed by the greatest Baroque architect of the city, Baldassare Longhena for the aristocratic Bon family. Work began in 1649, but Longhena’s and the client's deaths, together with the financial problems of the Bon family, brought work to a halt, leaving the palace incomplete. In the meantime, the Giambattista Rezzonico family purchased the palace and had it completed. The Rezzonico's family fortunes peaked in 1758 when younger brother Carlo became Pope Clement VIII. After a few years, and with no heirs, the palace fell into disrepair and had several owners, including Robert Barrett Browning. In 1935, Ca' Rezzonico was sold to the town of Venice by the owner, who was a member of the Italian Parliament.

Today, Ca' Rezzonico is a must-see if one wants to understand what life was like in Venice in years gone by. Both the furnishings and the art reveal Venice's past in this beautiful building. Here are a couple of photos of the interior, taken from the Ca' Rezzonico website.

Below is one of the few photos that I took within the Ca' on a cold, dreary day in January, 2004.

For those who have visited Venice in the warmer months, you will note the dearth of boat traffic on the canal. As a matter of fact, when we left the Ca' and awaited a vaporetto, we saw absolutely no boat traffic in either direction on the Grand Canal -- a rare site, and one of the reasons we so enjoyed our winter visit. You can see my parody of Venetian boat traffic here.

Squero di San Trovaso

The Squero is fascinating in that it is the gondola repair facility of the Venetian lagoon. This is where the gondole are scraped and gussied up for your Romantic Gondola Ride.

[click on an image for a larger view]

Here is a digital painting that I created from one of my photos of the Squero di San Trovaso.

Lunch at Taverna San Trovaso

Hungry? Then let's take a break for lunch at Taverna San Trovaso. We've eaten here a couple of times.

In the left photo below, you see the Taverna during aqua alta (high water) event. While on the right, is the Taverna in its normal state when we were there during January, 2004. I'm not sure if the restaurant was open during aqua alta, but it would seem that having 12" of water in your restaurant would cause a problem, wouldn't it?

To the right is the bill for my solo meal at Taverna San Trovaso in October 12, 2012. The amounts are in Euros, or € for short. Let's break it down.

But first, let's talk about calendar dates in the European format. You can see '12/10/12' on the lunch check. in Europe, the format is DD/MM/YY, while in the US we use MM/DD/YY. So the date of the check is October 12, not December 10. Got it?

OK, then. Let's move on to decimal places. You can see on the check that my Coca Cola Light was '3,00'. In the US you would see 3.00. While we use a period for our decimal place indicator, most (but not all) Europeans use a comma. And to confuse things a bit more, where we use a comma to separate thousands from hundreds (eg 2,500), Europeans use a period (eg 2.500). So, 1,234.56 in the US would be written 1.234,56 in most European countries.

Huh. Go figure.

So, what did I eat? First, we see that I had 'crudo, stracchino', which translates as raw soft cheese, which you can see here -- and in reality it includes prosciutto. I've got to say that this looks like a good bit of prosciutto for 10€, doesn't it?

Next we find 'bufala', which translates to buffalo. Now, I'm not actually eating buffalo, but a salad of tomato, olive, argula and a mozzorella cheese made from buffalo milk. NOTE: this is not a buffalo milk as in bison milk, but buffalo milk as in water-buffalo milk. Got it?

Next we find 'Coca Cola Light' -- in our world we call this a diet coke. I neglected to get a photo of this favorite soda during this seating, but fear not, I found one in my archives that was taken in this very Taverna San Trovaso from a previous trip. Here you see my lovely wife, Ellen, pouring this nectar of the gods...at ungodly prices -- 3€, or about 4$ at the time.

Next up is '1/4 Cabernet', or 1/4 liter of house red wine. You can see the carafe in two of the photos above. That's about 8.5 ounces of wine for 3€. Reasonable by US standards...and the wine is very good. And at the exact same price as a can of diet coke, one might as well drink wine -- which is what the Italians do.

The last thing we see on the bill is 'Coperto'. This is the 2€ cover, or cover charge for service. One does not typically tip in Italy (and most of Europe), but there is often a cover charge like this one. Stand at a counter to eat your meal and you have no coperto. Sit in Piazza San Marco at Cafe Florian for a cup of espresso and expect a coperto of about 6€. In many restaurants, like this one, sitting to eat adds an additional 2€ -- but hey, there's no tipping.

So all said, my bill came to 30€. One might think this a bit high for a light lunch, but we are in Venice, you know...where everything is brought in by boat... everything.

One thing fairly unique about Taverna San Trovaso was my server, who was a woman. One does not see many female wait staff in Venice -- we've had only two in several trips. Here is my friendly waitress.

OK. Lunch is over. Let's move on to other parts of Dorsodouro.

Campo Santa Margherita

I like this large campo, or field, or plazza...you get the idea. It's the heart of Dorsodouro. It is a center of trade, with numerous shops and markets, like this shop where the famous Venetian masks are being made by hand.

It is a place to meet and talk with friends.

It's a place for families...including their pets.

And for those who attend the Università Ca' Foscari, which is in this very same Dorsodouro sestiere, it is a place for study...as you can see here as these two take notes during the lecture of Profesor Porumbel (to save you looking up a translation, 'porumbel' is Italian for 'pigeon'.

And, on wash days, it is a place to hang one's laundry.

The Floating Market

On the Rio San Barnaba canal, you can find this floating market. And that looks like none other than our own Debbie Kennedy looking at us from across the canal.

This market boat seems to be semi-permanently moored here, as you can see by the mossy guy ropes.

Here is some of the produce you will find at this floating market.

Dinner Time at Ai Gondolieri

OK, we've wandered around a good bit and it's time for dinner. I've got a good place picked out...and since you're getting a bit tired of seafood, this spot should work nicely.

Most Venetian restaurants specialize in seafood...it just happens to be abundant when you live in a lagoon on the Adriatic. However, there is a restaurant where one can get more meaty dishes, and that is Ai Gondolieri. You will find more veal, lamb and beef on the menu here than most any other restaurant in Venice.

It is unfortunate that when we visited Ai Gondolieri in the winter of 2004, I took very few photos with the point-and-shoot camera that I had at the time. But here is perhaps the one photo that I did have, which shows fresh flowers and an edible garnish that awaits when you are seated.