Know Before You Go! Part 5: Venice, Florence & Rome, Italy

Guest Writer number 3! Thanks Laura, my sister-in-law.

Laura has been to Italy, so she is actually knowledgeable on the subject.

Italy.

Venice.Florence.Rome

From Anthony Bourdain's Venice episode, he asks a local what the worst tourist is. He replies, there is no particular nationality. It is the kind of tourist, the tourist who rushes to see everything. You can't rush things in Venice.

This is a lesson I personally would really like to live by during this trip (& hope maybe everyone else will). -Maggie

Now for Laura's Italy Lesson:

Language Lesson:
Hello: Buongiorno (bwon-jor-no)

Goodbye: Arriverderci (A-reev-e-dare-chee)

Hey! and See ya Later: Ciao (Ch-ow)

Excuse me: Scusio (Skoo-see)

I would like: Vorrei... (vor-ray)

A beer: una birra (beer-a)

A glass of wine: una bicchiere di vino (bee-key-air-ay)

Where: Dove (do-vay)

Is the train station: è la stazione di treno

Is the bathroom: è il bagno

How much is this...: Quanto è questo/a….

Purse: borsa

Shirt: camicia

Hat: cappello

Necklace: collana

Ring: anello

How much are these: Quanti sono questi/e…

Shoes: pattini

Pants: Pantaloni

What is this? Che cosa è questo?

Don’t Order pepperoni on your pizza and expecting hot/spicy salami. Pepperoni in Italian are bell peppers, not pepperoni in the US which is hot salami. Order a Pizza Diavola.

Tipping: (From Ms. Adventures in Italy.)

In Italy, many restaurants include in your bill in the form of service and cover charges that can increase the cost of your meal by 20% or more.

Typically rounding up the bill a Euro or two is acceptable.

Transportation:

Most big cities in Italy (Rome, Milan, Naples, Florence) require you to buy your bus/tram tickets before boarding. And not just that, but most bus stops will not have a ticket machine next to the stop. Rather, you’ll need to find a newspaper stand (edicola) or a tobacco shop (tabaccaio) to purchase your tickets. If you’re planning on using public transportation on a Sunday, buy your tickets the day before – you’ll save a lot of time not looking for an open place to buy tickets.

(We walked nearly everywhere we went in Italy. We only took the train from city to city.)

Eating in Italy:

Most restaurants and bars have specific opening times, and they willclose in the afternoon – that you can count on. If you have a late breakfast, visit museums through lunch and hope to get a bite to eat at 2pm or 3pm, you’re going to find a very limited selection, and some of which was prepared before the lunch rush, including those sandwiches that have been sitting there since 10am. Try to eat when Italians eat – lunch hour is usually 1-2 (some start as early as 12.30 eating) and most will be done by 2.30. Dinner is a little different – the further south you go, the later they start eating. A good rule of thumb is a reservation for 8/8.30, but some groups will make reservations for 9.30/10 and will stay until the restaurant closes!

Just like Paris, Café's have three different of prices: one for standing, one for sitting indoor, and most expensively, sitting outside.

Some Food Words:

Cheese: Formaggio

Chicken: pollo

Steak: bistecca

Eggplant: melanzana

Tomato: pomodoro

Cream: panna

Milk: latte

Good to Know:

Don’t touch fruit & vegetables (or anything for that matter) in a market or supermarket. (I got snapped at in Venice for touching a necklace at the market)

Clothing/Weather:

Attractions/To Do:

Venice:

Piazza San Marco

L'Accademia - Da Vinci's

Vitruvian Man is here

Murano- 15 min vaporetto ride from Piazza San Marc0, Glass Factory, very industrial.

Burano- 40 min vaporett0 ride from Fondamente Nuova (a stop) brightly colored homes, restaurant Da Romana is famous for risotto made with fish stock and many famous people have come here, a French artist invested a lot in this area so there is a vibrant artistic community Gondola rides.

Florence:

Uffizi Galleria – many famous works of art, such as Botticelli’s The Birth of Venus.

L'Accademia- Michelangelo's David and his slave sculptures.

Ponte Vecchio- shops on the bridge.

Tuscany- wine tours.

Basilica di Santa Croce- Galileo and Macchiavelli's tombs are here.

Duomo- can go up in it.

FYI tidbit: Florence was the center of industry in Italy and much of Europe during the Renaissance, the Medici family was a huge family there and controlled most of Florence, and it is considered the art capital of Italy. VERY huge artistic, industrial, and financial epicenter of history.

Rome: Colosseum, Pantheon, Vatican City, Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain, Roman Forum (ruins), many other sights.