art Italy Titian Venice

Visiting Accademia and the unplanned tour of Venezia

Posted on by L H Watson
Reading time 8 minutes
We initially bought 24 hour vaporetto tickets. They have now expired, so we make our way back to the Rialto stop to buy another 24 hour ticket. We pass the fish market, now busy.
From there, we go to the Galleria dell’Accademia, [San Polo 3003 Dorsoduro 1055, Venice, open Tues – Sun 8.15-7.15 pm, Mon 8.15 – 2pm].
There are a number of important works, particularly by Venetian artists, the Coronation of the Virgin by Veneziano; The Camerlenghi Madonna by Giovanni Bellini, Procession of the Relinquary of the True Cross in Piazza San Marco by Gentile Bellini, The Dream of St Ursula Carpaccio and The Tempest by Giorgione, Presentation of the Virgin in the Temple by Titian, Portrait of a Melancholic Young Man by Lotto, Miracle of St Mark Freeing the Slave by Tintoretto, The Mystic Marriage of St Catherine by Veronese, Fire at San Marcuola by Guardi. I particularly like Titian’s Pietá, Antonello’s Annunciation and Veronese’s Feast in the House of Levy, a massive painting which was a last supper until he got called up by the Inquisition who questioned its orthodoxy, so he just changed the name.

After the Accademia, we wander along a canal and find ourselves looking at Canale della Giudecca. We decide to look for a place in the sun for a bite of lunch. We end up walking to an area which looks like its for loading cargo and not particularly pleasant for lunch so we keep walking. We realize after a while that we’re lost, again, and the street names are not on the map.

We come across a restaurant with tables on the sidewalk and we decide to park ourselves so we can eat and find out where we are. We are brought a Cinzano, the only time we have one in Italy. Of course, we order a bottle of wine, Chianti Riserva. I have spaghetti with mussels and fresh tomato. It is very good. Scott has a lasagna which is made primarily with bechamel sauce and cheese, very little meat and no or little tomato. Quite different from what we are used to. We look at the receipt to see the place was called Eda Ivano. It appears to be a pensione and cafe. The waiters had the Mexican soccer team insignas on their jackets. No idea why.

We figure out we are near the bus station and the waiter shows us where exactly we are on our maps. We walk from there towards the train station, cross the bridge across the Grand Canal and walk along Strada Nova, a walk full of tourists.

 

I need il bagno and just duck into a restaurant with sidewalk tables hoping no one will notice I wasn’t sitting at one of the tables. We get a gelato and continue walking until we are back to the Rialto bridge.
We head down a different street after we cross the Rialto and eventually make our way back to the hotel.

We sit in the courtyard, have a beer and examine our maps to figure out where we have been. One of the owners admits that he, too, still gets lost in Venice.

Canal outside the reception area of the hotel.

After, we filled the jacuzzi tub in our bathroom with hot water and bath salts, and give our feet a whirlpool treatment. They deserve it after doing a walk all the way around Venice.

For dinner, we had reservations at Vini da Gigio [Cannaregio 3628 a Strada Nova, Venezia, tel: 39 041 5285140] The first challenge was finding this place. The address is Strada Nova, the very tourist filled street which runs parallel to the Grand Canal leading away from the train station. We have learned by this point that the numbering system is not the Napoleonic one of odd numbers one side, even the other, nor are they always in consecutive order but we walked up and down the street three times without success. At that point, we figure we needed to start looking down side streets and indeed, that was how we found the restaurant. I guess because it faces Strada Nova, it has that as an address instead of the name of the side street where the other doors face the canal. Who knows?

The place consists of two rooms each with 6 or 7 tables. A family ahead of us without a reservation gets turned away. I tell them in Italian that we have a reservation. They continue to indulge me by speaking Italian for the rest of the evening. We are given a choice of tables so opt for the one near the kitchen which is open and behind a counter.

 

The place was recommended for its wine list and it is very extensive.

For antipasti, Scott loves the sarde al saor, a traditional Venetian dish of fresh sardines covered with sweet and sour onions. It comes with grilled polenta which is white and much lighter than the yellow polenta we’ve had before.

I have scallops which are seared and served with a drizzle of olive oil and something slightly acidic, balsamic vinegar, perhaps. They are so delicious. We have these with a Soave Classico.

We split a seafood risotto which is very creamy and full of pieces of fish and shellfish. For secondi, Scott has grilled scampi and I have osso bucco. The osso buco is different from any I’ve had before, very little tomato, more creamy. It comes with grilled polenta and roast potato. We have a Brunello. I cannot finish my dish, although we manage to finish the wines. Dolci are out of the question. The food here was superb and the cost moderate. There were a lot of items on the menu, many traditional Venetian dishes, I would have like to have tried. I would definitely come back.
Ca D’Oro near the vaporetto stop.
We take the vaporetto back to the hotel. Before we get on the bus, Scott sticks his hand into the canal. The water feels oily and Scott avoids touching anything until we’re back to our room and he can wash his hand. Yuck!

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