If you love Giuseppe Verdi’s La Traviata, here’s a chance to be a part of the opera at the Palazzo Barbarigo-Minotto in Venice, a splendid 15th century palace facing the Grand Canal.

At the “Musica a Palazzo: La Traviata”, the palace is not decorated like a theatre, but instead the performers and audience move from room to room for the different scenes – the first act starts in the central hall and the audience are seated where Violetta’s party guests sit.

There are no stage lights or special effects and instead the opera relies on the palace’s natural settings, with candle lights and table lamps creating the intimate atmosphere.  The performances also rely very much on interaction with the audience. Although a contemporary interpretation, the production is said to closely mirror Verdi’s own thoughts on dramatic opera.

When it comes to operas, I tend to like the traditional, but attending Verdi’s La Traviata in a Venetian palazzo must be quite an experience. After all, Giuseppe Verdi’s La Traviata has strong connections with Venice where it premiered on March 6, 1853 at the Gran Teatro La Fenice.

La Traviata is on at Palazzo Barbarigo-Minotto and you can book tickets online with our partner Classictic.

You can also book Classical Concerts and Operas throughout Europe here.

Travel Signposts Blog

Venice Carnevale 2010 kicks off on Saturday, February 6th and goes on right through to February 16th. Under the theme ‘Sensation: 6 Senses for 6 Siesteri’, there are daily events in San Marco, Cannaregio, Castello, San Polo, Santa Croce and Isole.

A few of the major Day One events include:

• Hot Chocolate in Costume
  Enjoy hot chocolate, cakes and sweets in the magnificent lounge of the Hotel Danieli, originally the 14th century palace of Doge Dandolo’s family. Dress is costume, but don’t worry if you don’t have any. During carnivale time, atelier C.C.I. will be located in the Hotel Danieli to assist you with their range of costumes, masks, hats, wigs and accessories from as early as the 16th century.
• Moon Masquerade at the Luna Hotel Baglioni
  An event by the Luna Hotel Baglioni. The evening starts with cocktails and canapés and while enjoying cocktails, guests will be treated to a performance of “Il Trovatore”. This is followed by a buffet dinner, music and dancing.
• Gala Dinner and Ball Carnival Dream at the Dandolo Palace (Hotel Monaco & Gran Canal)
• The Serenissima Gran Ball in the 14th century Palazzo Pesaro Papafava
• Carnival Opening Ceremony at 21:00 at the Piazza San Marco. This is a free event.
• Diner Dansante “Le Menuet” – another event by the Hotel Danieli.

Venice Carnevale

Origin of Carnevale

With all the partying, feasting and revelry around Venice, it’s easy to forget that carnevale has its main roots in the religious calendar and starts two Fridays before the eve of Ash Wednesday annually.  Some believe that ‘carne vale’ has its origins in Latin, meaning ‘farewell to meat’, while others believe it is the Italian phrase ‘carne levare’, meaning ‘to remove meat’. Whichever belief, the idea was that carnevale was a way of using up rich foods and meat just before Lent. During the forty days of fasting in Lent no rich foods, fats, dairy, meat or sugar should be consumed, and no parties or other celebrations could take place. So in preparation for the solemn Lent period, the whole community would get together, have a huge party and drink and be merry!

If you’re planning on experiencing Carnevale and haven’t yet booked your accommodation, don’t leave it to the last minute. Most of the popular grand canal hotels may already booked out but you’ll still be able to find rooms elsewhere.

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Venice Biennale is here again and anyone who’s been to Venice will know that hotels in Venice are quite expensive, especially if we want one that is close to San Marco.  So, whether you’re looking for a 5 star hotel in Venice, luxury hotels or a cheap hotel, it always pays to do your research as this can save you a lot of money when making your hotel reservation in Venice.

Venice Grand Canal

Now that summer is in full swing in the northern hemisphere and many travellers are planning that quick trip or a longer holiday, do yourself a favour and do a comparison pricing before you make your hotel reservation.  I was looking up hotels in Venice for a friend and did a quick check on the Venice Bauer Hotel and the price quoted per night for June ranged from a low Euro 212 to Euro 443 at the opposite end of the scale.  Price variation like this occurs because sometimes one hotel aggregator may  be stronger in one area than another, or they have rooms that they need fill quickly.

The Hotel Comparison Guide can be used to check on any hotels in Europe, not just Venice.

The Biennale International Art Exhibition is from 7 June -22 November and if you’re a movie buff, the very popular annual International Film Festival runs from 2-12 September 2009.   The Biennale Foundation are reintroducing the Biennale Card which at Euro 50 provides the following benefits:

- your own Personal Biennale Silver Card
- 2 free tickets for the International Art Exhibition
- discount on tickets for the dance, music and theatre performances
- discount on tickets for the evening screenings at the Film Festival
- admission to the Foundation’s mailing list

Not a bad deal for Euros 50.  If you’re planning on attending the Film Festival, it’s advisable to book your hotel room early.

For more Useful Facts for your Venice Holiday CLICK HERE
See Travel Signposts VENICE PHOTOS HERE

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The City of Venice has recently introduced Venice Connected, an on-line facility where you can buy your airport transfer, transport, museum, car parking and even toilet services tickets on-line.  The Venice Connected ticket prices are based on your planned date of travel and vary depending on whether it’s Low/Medium season, Medium/High season or Peak period. Their colour-coded calendar will show you which season you’ve selected.  The price difference between Low and Full Price can vary by up to 33%. 

About Venice Connected

The system is very simple to use.  When you select your date and the particular service you require, you will be provided with a range of choices.  For transport tickets for example, you can select tickets starting from 12 hours to 7 days. 

The information symbol explains to you the conditions of use for the ticket.  To benefit from the on-line price savings, you’ll need to book at least 7 days in advance.  If you book 2 days in advance, you will be paying the Full Price, as if you were buying tickets on the spot. You can buy as many different tickets as you like as long as you know the dates you’re going to use them – tickets must be activated for the start date selected.

There’s been a little confusion as to Venice Connected and the VENICECard.  VENICECards are still being sold, but they are not available on-line.  Venice Connected is the on-line ticketing system that allows you to pick and choose whatever services you require and saves you having to stand in queues when you’re there.

For more information on Getting Around in Venice see our Venice Guide.

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Venice swings into Carnevale mode from this weekend.  In predominantly Roman Catholic countries, such as Italy, Portugal and Brazil, carnevale marks the final celebration before the commencement of fasting and the austerity of Lent.

The Carnevale of Venice was for a long time the most famous carnevale.  From Italy, carnevale traditions spread to Spain, Portugal, and France, and then on to the rest of the world.

Venice is an ideal setting for carnevale masquerades.  With its many bridges criss-crossing the Grand Canal, dark arcades and narrow alley-ways that sometimes open out into surprisingly beautiful courtyards, the atmostphere is set for mystery and anonymity.  That mysterious masked man dashing off around the corner – is he a nobleman racing off to an illicit rendezvous with his mistress or is he a crim who’s just on his way to commit a felony, or maybe he’s an undercover cop on his way to stakeout the Italian Job – we will certainly never know!

The first day of carnevale season can vary with local traditions, but it usually ends on Shrove Tuesday, the day before the start of Lent. Traditionally no parties may be held during Lent and many foods, such as meat, are forbidden.  To prepare for the period of abstinence, it is natural for people to want to indulge in a large celebration at the last possible opportunity before fasting begins.

Venice Carnevale

To those unfamiliar with its customs, Carnevale appears to be a rowdy, fun event with parades and masquerades, music, dancing and performances. Parts of the carnevale traditions, however, quite possibly date back to pre-Christian times.

For example, the ancient Roman festivals of the Saturnalia and Bacchanalia are probably the origin of the Italian Carnevale.  The Saturnalia could in turn be based on the Greek Dionysia and oriental festivals. Unlike medieval pageants and festivals such as Corpus Christi which were celebrations sanctioned by the church, carnevale was a representation of medieval folk culture. Many local carnevale customs are also based on local pre-Christian rituals, for example the elaborate rites involving masked figures in the Swabian-Alemannic carnival.

There are various theories as to how the word carnevale originated.  According to one theory, it comes from the Greek prefix carn “meat eater”, referring to a cart in a religious parade – such as a cart in the annual religious procession held in honor of the god Apollo.  Other sources suggest that the name comes from the Italian carne levare or similar, meaning “to remove meat”, since meat is prohibited during Lent. Yet another theory indicates that the word comes from the Late Latin expression carne vale, meaning “farewell to meat”, signifying that those were the last days when one could eat meat before the fasting of Lent.  From the above, there appears a common thread in regard to abstinence from meat which is observed by Christians during Lent.

Yet another translation depicts carne vale as “a farewell to the flesh”, a phrase definitely embraced by certain carnevale celebrations that encourage letting go of your everyday self and embracing the carefree nature of the festival…

Helen

More info:
Venice Guide
Carnival Masks

Travel Signposts Blog

On your next visit to St. Mark’s Square, if you see a sign that reads something like “È vietato per alimentare i pigeons”, or if you get tapped on the shoulder by a polizia turistica, be aware that the city of Venice has banned the feeding of pigeons. Municipal officials tried banning bird feeding some time back, but St. Mark’s Square escaped the ban due to the iconic status of the pigeons and the seed sellers. This time around, they have not been so lucky and in spite of petitions, it appears that the ban has gone ahead.

The ban has of course ruffled the feathers of the vendors. They make a living out of selling seeds to tourists who love having the pigeons to make their holiday snaps more interesting. The 19 vendors who are licensed to sell birdseed in the square are crying foul as this practically puts them out of a job. They claim that feeding pigeons in the Square is a century-old tradition and that children are crying because they can’t feed the birds.

Well, as you can see, we too took our share of pigeon snaps, but the city is right in taking steps to ensure that St. Mark’s does not turn out to be a pigeon infested Square and that these birds do not ultimately ruin the historic buildings in the Square, including the delicate mosaics on the façade of St. Mark’s Basilica. Most of us have seen the mess from pigeon droppings but apart from this, they apparently peck on marble and stucco to try and extract calcium carbonate for their eggs. Tourist numbers to Venice have now reached 20 million a year and if the city does not do something about the ever increasing number of tourists feeding birds and discouraging the birds from settling permanently on the square, then the future of St. Mark’s is very much at stake.

Then there’s the potential hazards the birds pose to human health. Tests by the Venetian health authorities on the birds have also concluded that many carry one pathogen or another and yet how often have we seen young children playing amongst them and then perhaps handling food without first washing their hands.

City officials are now negotiating with the vendors to offer them alternative jobs or provide a cash buyout for their licence. Frankly, these vendors don’t really care about children crying and if you didn’t buy their seeds they’re not interested at all in letting you take a snap of their stall either.

It’s always nice to see some birds in the city, but the pigeon population in St. Mark’s Square is almost at epidemic level.

Helen

Travel Signposts Blog

Venetian Carnival masks were originally made of papier-mâché, but these days you can find leather ones as well. The original masks were much simpler in design and decoration and they often had a symbolic and practical function. Nowadays, most masks are made with the application of gesso and gold leaf and are mostly all hand-painted and decorated with natural feathers and gems. You can buy mass-produced cheap masks in the tourist shops in Venice today and these have nothing to do with the original Venetian masks. If you want a good souvenir, go for one of the genuine ones and there are lots to choose from.

These are the different types of masks:

The Bauta is a mask which covers the whole face, with a sharp chin line and no mouth. You may find masks sold as Bautas that cover only the upper part of the face from the forehead to the nose and upper cheeks. Whilst concealing the identity of the wearer, it also enables the person to talk, eat or drink easily. This tends to be the main type of mask worn during the Carnival. Masks like this were also used on many other occasions as a means for hiding the wearer’s identity and social status. This allows the wearer to breach social classes and convention and to intermingle with whomever he or she chooses to mix with. Whilst masks can be useful in pursuit of romantic encounters or to create mischief and amusement, they could also be used for illicit or criminal activities as well. I wonder if there’s an increase in the crime rate at Carnival?

The Moretta is an oval mask of black velvet that was usually worn by women visiting convents. It orginated in France and rapidly became popular in Venice as it brought out the beauty of feminine features. The mask was finished off with a veil.

The Larva, also called the volto mask, is predominantly white, and typically Venetian. It is worn with a tricorn and cloak. The word ‘larva’ was of Latin derivation and was also used for a terrifying mask. Imagine the scary sight of a Venetian all dressed in black with a white mask and a black tricorn, flying past in the moonlight. Like the bauta, the shape of the mask allowed the bearer to breathe and drink easily, thus preserving the wearer’s anonymity at all times. These masks were made of fine wax cloth and being much lighter, they were ideal for wear as they allowed one to eat, dance or flirt.

So next time you go past a mask shop, see if you can find the different types.

Helen

Travel Signposts Blog

The Rialto Bridge and the nearby markets are a great place to stroll around and also to shop for gifts and souvenirs.  In the past, this was the city’s commercial quarter and it was here that bankers, brokers and merchants carried out their wheeling and dealing in high finance.  Nowadays, it’s the restaurants, food markets and pasta shops that thrive here and bankers and brokers have been replaced by tourists.

Along the Grand Canal frontage, there are many restaurants to chose from if you get hungry after all the walking.  However, if you prefer something quick and light at lunchtime, there are also cafes in the many side lanes.  We happenend upon this one called New York, New York a few years ago and found it again this time. This is a very small local pub and the owner must have been inspired by the musical, however be warned that there’s nothing New Yorkish about the place.  The cheese sandwich and coffee were good though and gave us the necessary energy to carry on with our exploration.  Along your promenade, you’ll also come across bacaris which are the old-fashioned standing-only bars which are frequented by locals. 

As you wend and weave your way around the back streets, you’ll never know what will unfold upon you.  We came across this shop selling Venetian glass-bead jewellery and I did some serious buying here.  Finding this shop was fortunate for me as I was able to take care of much of my gift shopping here, and very fortunate for the owner as she had just set up shop this month.  She was a very nice lady and as we got chatting she revealed that she was a single mum and was keen to create a business for herself.  Her very attractive glass-bead necklaces ranged from €15 to 50 and made great gifts for friends back home.  It’s great to be able to support nice people like her.

Other shops that caught our attention were the colourful pasta shops.  The bags of pasta look more like bags of lollies and it was so tempting to buy some, however the reminder of baggage weight problems very quickly put an end to such fleeting folly.  The greengrocers had beautiful displays of fruit and vegetables and then there was this candle shop full of colorful displays of the owner’s craft.  Although the gaudily colored candles weren’t to my taste, it was interesting watching the young man carve and create the colorful strips. 

Last but not least was the mask shop.  As it was late, the shop was already closed, otherwise we would have been in there looking to buy one home.

Helen

Travel Signposts Blog

Carnival of Venice 2008 kicks off this Friday.  This 10-day annual event organized by the Commune di Venezia brings fun, entertainment and merriment to the city in winter.   Masked parties, street performances and parades are held all over the city.  Piazza San Marco is the centre stage of Carnival, although other events take place throughout the city. People dressed in all types of costumes and masks happily invade streets and squares.

The origin of Carnival dates back to the 12th century when the Republic defeated Ulrico, Patriarch of Aquileia in 1162.  To commemorate the victory, a tradition of slaughtering a bull and 12 pigs began in the Piazza San Marco around Shrove Tuesday. The first document mentioning the use of masks was dated 1268. Masks are a great way to temporarily override the social order.  If you’re not able to identify the wearer of the mask, then you cannot determine his social status.

Carnival was at its prime in the eighteenth century when Venice became a centre for conspicuous consumption of pleasure . Rich young nobles doing the European “Grand Tour” were keen to grasp at these pleasures as well.  Carnival was banned in the 1930s when Mussolini took over.  It was not until 1979 when a group of Venetians and lovers of Venice decided to revive the tradition. The image of the masked reveller very quickly became a worldwide icon of Venice in winter.

Everytime we’re at the Sydney Opera House Shop, I salivate at the few beautiful masks that they have for sale, but the prices are as scarey as the sinister characters that may be hiding behind them.  Next time we’re in Venice, a mask is definitely on the shopping list. 

Helen

Travel Signposts Blog

For years now, we’ve heard the City of Venice complain about the hordes of tourists that invade and crowd out their beautiful city.  The Venetians are particularly offended by badly dressed day trippers who flock into the city, use their facilities, take up their space, breath their air, but don’t contribute anything to their economy at all.  I recall an article some time back when the city’s major complained about budget travellers who brought their own sandwiches and drinks in plastic bags and apart from using up their resources, they also thrash up the environment.

The truth is that budget tourists are not likely to be bothered by the city’s grizzling and the tourist boom continues.  Some 20 million people visit Venice each year – quite staggering really, when compared to only 60,000 residents in the historic centre.  It’s no wonder that the residents feel swamped.  Various discussions and proposals to stem the tide of visitors to Venice include, limiting access to the historic center to imposing a tourism tax, however such measures are difficult to implement as well as being unpopular with tourism industry workers.

Well, it seems that the City of Venice is striking back.  Yesterday, the Director General of the Venice Transport Authority announced a new Grand Canal waterbus line here with one particular feature: Day-tripper tourists are not allowed!  The new line is strictly reserved for holders of the Carta Venezia pass.  As a visitor, you can buy of of the Carta Venezia, but it’s only sensible to do so if you are going to be a repeat visitor to Venice.  The Carta Venezia costs Euro 40 for non-residents and is valid for three years.  This special waterbus service for residents should pacify the natives, but one wonders how long this is going to remain viable considering the small local population.

Frankly, the numbers of times that we’ve been to Venice and taken numerous rides on the Grand Canal, we’ve never felt that we were packed in like sardines.  During peak hours of course the vaporettos are more crowded and may mean that you don’t get a seat, but hey that’s no big deal!

Helen

Travel Signposts Blog