The Venice Ladies Club

Today the Venice Ladies visited the newly restored Palazzo Mocenego Museum.  It has beautiful rooms with silk on the walls with matching curtains.  There are some ladies clothes of the 18th Century but more of men's jackets and waistcoats which were beautiful.

Following this we walked to the restaurant All Ferata, one of my favourites.  Geraldine took me there last January then three days later I went with the Venice Ladies.

This year Liz, who usually organises the outings was in India so before she left she asked if I would book the restaurant as I knew them.  I've been lots of times & took my family there on their last night in August.

I've been up there three if not four times for lunch and to sort out the menu.  I was really unsure exactly what we were going to eat, but I was sure it would be good.

The restaurant at lunchtime is always full of workmen and gondoliere having at least three courses and copious amounts of wine.  I would never go for a gondola ride just after lunch!  Anyway for this reason we couldn't go until 1.30pm.  It was still busy and they were slow, but brought water, wine and bread.  But instead of just bringing us all the same meat menu he gave us two or three choices for each course.  The food came out very hot and fresh.  My starter was the soft salami with polenta and mushrooms.  

Following this was pasta, ragu, amitricana or gnocchi.  I had the ragu but those who had the gnocchi said it was the best they had ever eaten.  Finally there was a beef stew with more polenta and their delicious chips.

It was Magali's birthday and she asked me to get her a cake from Tonolo.  This is one of the best cake shops in Venice and I went there on Wednesday to order it.  It was carnage in the shop, it was packed.  Eventually I was served and ordered the meringue gateaux. I went this morning to collect it, once again mayhem prevailed, but I was Venetian and "shoved in".  They also gave me candles.  I took it straight to the restaurant as it had to go into the fridge.  The staff cut it up and served it to us which was so kind.

I met some more new people, took a new friend and had a wonderful time.  The conversation just kept flowing with lots of laughter.  We all had a wonderful day.

Two nights at the opera

Wednesday Luisa came over from the Lido to have lunch with me at bar Palanca.  Andrea was really pleased that I had taken a friend to his bar and looked after us so well.  he brought us polpette, meatballs as an aperitif.  Then I took her to see my apartment before going off to look at my favourite handbag shop and Gaspare's bookshop.  Whilst in the handbag shop Christine rang and offered me a ticket for The Barber of Seville that evening.  It was our book club night, changed from today as I am going to La Traviata.  Gaspare gave me dispensation to go which was so kind.  It was great, just like pantomime.  Looking forward to Verdi tonight.

Ragu all'anatra and tiramisu

Last Thursday I took the train to Treviso and was met by Angie and Bubbles who took me to Magali's home 20 minutes outside the town.  She had invited us for lunch and had made the duck and béchamel sauces for the lasagne.  

The lasagne pasta sheets ere much larger and thinner than the ones I buy at home.

As you can see there was very little of the two sauces between each layer.

This is why when I have lasagne in a restaurant I see they have so many slices but how is it still not so deep?

Then we went onto the tiramisu.  Here is Bubbles stirring the cheese and cream mixture.

And Angie.

And Luisa.......

Finally all in combines, the eggs, cream and cheese then finally the whisked egg whites.

The sponges are dipped into strong coffee and layered.

Then we needed prosecco and nibbles!!!

Here I am with Magali our host and chef.

The lasagne on my plate.

What a wonderful privilege to be invited to Magali's home with friends.

Week of Christian Unity in San Marco

During the week of Christian Unity at the end of January, yes that's how far behind I am with stories, the final service is in the basilica.  The sermon is given on a rotation basis by clergy from the different denominations.  This year it was the vicar of St George's turn to preach.  Here he is in all his finery, including his order from Alexandria, Egypt.

Howard was so thrilled I had taken this.  I was there early and sat on the second row to get a good view.  Unfortunately there was a transport strike and there were not as many people present as usual.  It was a wet evening and just for Howard I walked there from the Zattere.

During strikes a traghetto keeps going between the city and outlying islands.

This weekend

On Friday morning I was up early to meet Liz at the Sacca Fisola market at 09.30.  You have to understand that I was at her home for dinner the previous evening where a wonderful group of people, including an Anglican vicar and a Scottish monk from San Giorgio ate delicious food and drank beautiful wine.  It was a beautiful morning, really springlike.  After putting my shopping away I went to the Coop and called at a local bar for another coffee and met a lady from church who lives in Milan and who I hadn't seen this trip.  We had a lovely catch up.  Then it was home for my shower and I had to go to a restaurant to finalise details for the Venice Ladies Lunch next Friday.  Yes I'm organising things here too.........

Finally it was off to work in the bookshop.  I had a great three hours and sold €100 of books.  The only uncomfortable few minutes was when a group of ten Japanese came in and were everywhere.  I grabbed my phone, iPhone of course not my I'm embarrassed to get it out ex Imperial phone & stood on my handbag.  They were all picking up books & were in both rooms.  I just kept saying no to any book they asked for and they left.  I'm sure they were fine & no books were taken but it was just having so many everywhere at once.  As I was recounting all this to Gaspare on his return a couple came in & the guy said that's a Yorkshire accent, I agreed & he told me he was from Huddersfied but had an italian father & lived in Venice.  I said I couldn't understand why he had chosen Venice over Huddersfield!

Saturday I was up early and first I made minestrone soup for Sunday's lunch.  At 10am I thought I would take the rubbish out & hoped the bin men hadn't been.  I put my coat on top of my PJ's & was caught by Liz passing by.  It was a wild, wet, windy morning.  Hence I decided not to wash my hair, just put my hat on.  After the ritual coffee in Bar Palanca I went off to check out water glasses for a wedding present.  I walked to the vaporetto via the Piazza and it wasn't busy and there were no costumes.  I had a delicious lunch back at the bar and then went off to Murano to check out glasses there.  It was 15.02 by the time I fought the boat and it takes an hour to get there.  I now have to decide between two designs.  Then it was an hour back and almost 7pm.  I did plan to go to the Jazz Club but that was a step too far after my busy day.

Sunday

After church I was having some friends to lunch, here we are sat at Nico's bar on the Zattere.  It was a beautiful day and too lovely to miss sitting outside for a spritz.  Well two!

Eventually I saw a boat coming and decided we needed food.

When we got to my apartment it was wonderful, the sun was on my garden so we had a glass of prosecco sitting outside.  Eventually we dragged ourselves inside for the soup, cheese and an apricot tart.  Before we began I really felt I wanted to say a prayer and give thanks for finding such wonderful friends in this city which has taken me to it's heart.

 

As it was such a wonderful sunset after seeing off my guests I went back out with my camera.  Here is San Giorgio.

These are from the Junhans and I've never seen these mountains, on the way to Rovigo so clearly from Venice.  You pass them on the train to Bologna.

What a perfect end to a special day.

The Rialto Mercato

Here are the photos of my trip to the Rialto Mercato.  This is the fish, fruit and vegetable market near the Rialto Bridge.  It's one of the oldest ares of the city was was once the banking (banco giro) area and the first giro banks were set up here to trade with the east.

The majority of the fruit and vegetables are Italian and very seasonal.

Beautiful artichokes.

Hot chillies can only be bought dried, any fresh green ones I see are "sweet" and very mild.

At the fish market I only take photographs, for me fish is haddock, in batter with scraps on top and wrapped in newspaper!

Many of the crustaceans were still moving!

Octopus

I could enjoy the scallops.

A butchers shop.

Half a pig hanging in the shop.

The light

This was Friday morning waiting for the vaporetto.  In winter the sunlight on the water is amazing, much sharper than the summer months when I found it disapointing.

Correct spelling!

The title of this blog has been spelt incorrectly from the beginning.  I did take a look a few weeks ago and couldn't change it.  I just tried again now and found the edit section straight away.

It is SerEnissima not as previously SerAnissima!

Burano

Burano, the final of my island tour.  Some of these photos are from a previous trip.  Each year I usually have a theme, but more of that in another post.

Here is the largest piazza on the island.  The houses are brightly coloured so that during foggy weather the fishermen could find their way home.

Here is the leaning campanile, on clear days it can be seen from Venice.

Not all the houses are pristine.......

The reflections in the water are beautiful and that can be a theme in itself.

I came out via Fondamente Nova and thought I'd go home the other way round via Treporti and Punto Sabioni.  So here we are back on the boat heading to Treporti.  By now the light was fading & it was getting a bit misty, but the houses are still clearly visible.

At Treporti I had to change vaporetti to continue.  ACTV have reduced the boats to one an hour and I had to wait 40 minutes for the next one.  Fifteen minutes later at Punto Sabioni I had to change boats again and continue onto the Lido then San Marco.  Another change of boat got me back to Palanca at 7.30pm.  It had taken me 3 hours to get back, what a day!

Mazzorbo and Torcello

The vaporetto takes 35 minutes to go from Murano faro to Burano.  Almost there you pass the island of Mazzorbo.  I'm led to believe one of the best restaurants in the lagoon is here but it doesn't open until April do I've not been able to sample it.

These right for renovation properties are on the left of the canal.

A view to the left.

The vaporetto stop at Mazzorbo.

The church of Santa Maria della Assunta on Torcello, one of my favourite place in the lagoon.

The Ponte Diavalo on the walk from the vaporetto to the churches.

Looking back along the towpath to the entrance.

The two churches.

The church of Santa Fosca, it's which is surrounded by a porticus in form of a Greek cross.

The church of Santa Maria founded in 639.  Inside is a beautiful mosaic of the Last Judgement on the rear wall and a mosaic of the Virgin Mary in the dome.

The Madonna and saints mosaic.

Leaving Torcello back to Burano.  That will be the next blog.