http://norman.walsh.name/2002/04/03/venice 5 6 2002-04-03 $Date$ Norman Walsh 2002 2003 Norman Walsh Venice, Italy

Tonight we had dinner at Quadri, on the second floor overlooking the Piazza San Marco. Elegant,stylish, delightful, and delicious. Deb had sea bass tartar on a bed of seaweed to start; I had asparagas tips with crab meat and a sauce consisting of, I would guess, pureed asparagras and butter. For first course, we had red chickory rissotto with scallop gratin (for two) and for a main course, roasted veal chop with aromatic spices (particularly rosemary, I think, also for two). Finally, we finished with a cheese course of five cheeses including ubraico and gorganzola.

A leisurely day in Venice begins with breakfast in the Piazza San Marco. It costs a small fortune for coffee and a croissant, but it's in one of the most fabulous squares inthe world so stop worrying about it and enjoy your cappuchino. Following breakfast, we strolled slowly along or near the Grand Canal through quaint, narrow calles (alleys) over narrow footbridges past quaint little shops on our way to Ca' Rezzonico, a fine museum of eighteenth century Venetian art. After the museum, we took the Venitian equivalent of a bus north from Ca' Rezzonico along the length of the Grand Canal, enjoying the bright sunshine and cool air. Despite the fact that most guidebooks warn visitors that the canals have a certain distinctive aroma, I've only occasionally noticed it and even then only on small, stagnant canals. Reversing direction at the end of the line, we caught another bus back to the Rialto Bridge and wandered through the shopping district for a while before stopping for a quick bite to eat in another of delightful Venetian square. Rejuvinated, we continued our shopping expedition back to the Piazza San Marco where one is required to feed the pigeons. After another short stroll to capture the Doges Palace and the Basilica in the afternoon sun, we wandered back to our hotel for a brief rest before dinner.

Today we departed early and made our way back to the train station (where our bus was waiting) by water taxi. Except for a brief stop in Padua, we spent most of the day travelling from Venice to Florence.