Exploring Italy with Nanaw and Papa: Venice!

On Sunday we opted to stay near home. We went to the big open air market in Camisano, then Papa and B went to see the new Batman movie. We were all still a little tired from the day before and we knew that Monday we were going to....Venice!

I love Venice. I don't love the crowds or all the tourist crap, but I do love the back alleys, the canals, the gondalas...it's adorable!

While we had been to Venice before, this was our first time taking a gondala ride and I have to say, we loved it! Our gondalier spoke English and talked enough to point on interesting buildings but not so much that it took away from the experience. We rode in one gondala and my parents rode in the other. It was fascinating to see them maneuver these long boats through tiny canals alongside other gondalas and boats. It was on my ''must do/bucket list'' while in Europe and I'm so glad I can cross it off. I'm not sure if we'll do it again as it's pretty pricey but it was well worth it for the experience!

Another pricey but well worth it stop in Venice was Hard Rock Cafe. I love Italy, I really do but I'm a Kansas girl. I'm used to meat and potatoes. I like pasta and pizza and tomatos and paninis but there is only so much one can eat before practically shouting ''I JUST WANT A CHEESEBURGER". A bacon cheeseburger that is so juicy it drips down your arm when you take a bite, kinda burger. Not a frozen patty ''maxi burger'' that they sell in other restaurants.

So when I was telling a friend about my craving she said "go to Hard Rock Cafe, it's truly American and their cheeseburgers are perfect''. So while in Venice, here I am insisting on a cheeseburger. {I do justify this by saying, it's not like I'm a tourist only here for 10 days seeking a burger...we've lived here almost 8 months, I just wanted a taste of home!}. We get there and it's like I stepped into a HRC in Chicago...I no longer felt like I was even in Italy! The staff spoke English, Styx was on TV and I was given a buzzer to wait til the table was ready! We were seated very quickly and I immediately opened the menu and there it was! The "Legendary 10 oz Cheeseburger" is €16.95...or almost $22. For a burger and fries. I didn't even care. I ordered it, cooked medium, and waited. When it came...oh my gosh was it everything I had hoped for and more! I didn't get a picture of it, I was so excited to dive right in. And I'm not even ashamed to admit that I ate damn near the entire thing. I don't think it was the lack of having had a burger in so long either ,as it was truly delicious.

So we ate at Hard Rock and wandered around St. Marks Square:

 

 All in all, we had a blast in Venice. And it wasn't even that crowded!