"You're taking four children to Venice for a week?!"
I don't know if anybody else has a husband who will only take time off work if they are going away on holiday? Travelling with children, does, however, fill ME with a certain amount of dread. It's hard work keeping people alive. Really hard work. And aeroplanes and unfamiliar environments do not make the job easier. I'm not the world's greatest passenger even when I'm on my own. I'm pathologically impatient, freakish about control and my skin gets really dry on aeroplanes. Not to mention that it used to take a fair amount of alcohol to get me on a plane back in the day. Now, however, my anxiety over air travel has lessened because, when you're travelling with a screaming toddler you actually don't mind the thought of sudden death so much.
So, I recently got to thinking how Venice was the first place I went that made me go "WOW!" At the age of 14, on a day trip from Lake Garda, I was absolutely blown away by..... By what? I only really remember St Mark's Square and the pigeons. But what a square! What a cathedral! I mentioned this to my husband and BAM! "We're going to Venice, honey!"
And on balance, I would say, don't do it with small children. There are over 400 bridges in Venice. To be fair, approximately two of them have ramps. My husband carried the pushchair and three-year-old over every single one of those bridges. What else to do? You can't avoid them. This makes walking the city hard going, obviously. You really need to be travelling with older kids to Venice. And as luck would have it, we had some of those as well. Our 15 and 12 year old were, I think, as blown away by Venice as I had been first time round. It is just absolutely beautiful. Wherever I go in the world from now on, before I'm tempted to call it beautiful, I'll think of Venice first. Water everywhere, glistening in the sunlight; ridiculously intricate buildings crumbling into the water; marble wherever it's possible; gondolas with velvet cushions and brocade; window boxes of geraniums, wisteria falling over walls. And Venetians, of course. If you get bored of the Classical splendour, it ain't half bad just staring at the natives.
You can fit a lot into a week. But with small children you have to pace yourself and stop often to eat gelato. It is a wonder that Italians are not fat. I managed to avoid the gelato but pizza, pasta and Prosecco were pretty much all I consumed for a week. I'm not going to bore you with every little thing that we did in our week but will tell you about the very best.
Have a gondola ride. Would be rude not to. It's extortionately expensive but why shouldn't it be? You can't go to Venice and not experience it by water. And without doubt, you'll be punted around by an obscenely handsome young man who will be able to give you lots of information about everything you see during your half hour journey.
Depending on the weather, get a boat over to Lido. Kids love to be on the beach and the boat ride over gives you a great view of Venice. When you get off the boat, the walk to the beach, down a long tree-lined boulevard, with exquisitely adorned cafés offering the chance to sit with a spritz and people watch, provides a nice interlude from the city herself.
The Guggenheim Collection. Firsly, before I even mention the art, I would say that the courtyard around which the museum is housed seems nothing short of a miracle. How does all this exist in a city criss-crossed with canals and alleyways? A walled courtyard is always a magical space and the café was particularly lovely, with table service and delicious food (not just your pizza & gelato). I didn't love the collection to be honest, apart from the sculptures, which were varied and dotted around almost surreptitiously but children were made very welcome and the environment was determinedly unstuffy; unlike the Gallerie dell'Accademia where my 5 year old was told off for making a noise, which she wasn't really anyway, so I would give that a miss, if I were you.
On the way back from Lido we stopped at Biennale park. This provides you with greenery, shade and playgrounds. Really great when you have little ones. You can walk from park to park and make your way back to the city, along the water, with breathtaking views. The children hardly notice they're walking and as you get to the city you'll cross Ponte della Paglia and look to your right you'll see the Bridge of Sighs.
Before you die go to Venice. She is living her best life, so unapologetically flamboyant. I would sum up by saying that in our apartment we had no iron but an electric orange juicer. Venice seems to know that life is short and you should get your priorities straight. Drink freshly squeezed, forget about creased clothing. She is sinking all the time and what with Notre Dame going up in flames, you should catch Venice right now, in her prime!
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