Venice, with Children
Walking through Venice with a couple of small children can be hit or miss, depending on the kids' interests.
Obviously, playgrounds are going to be scarce in Venice, as either water or concrete dominates the landscape. Here, one needs to apply to their more creative instincts. We got lucky with the Peggy Guggenheim Collection, as kids have more of an eye for art than you might think. Riding on boats or gondolas gets stale after a while, the same way riding in cars on streets would be. You need to use the labyrinthine streets of the city to your advantage, I've noticed, and do so in a way that you don't jeopardize the tourist body as a whole.
Project one: one kid alternately takes the lead and must follow the GPS. Liebi took us to the Guggenheim, after that it would be time to for the kids to take the wheel. Axl, take us to this restaurant. Wonderful, nothing like lunch in a real Italian restaurant. Worth the overpriced check we eventually receive. A tip for visitors: the cheap house wine you order at a restaurant is as good as any Italian import you might be drinking wherever you are now. Unfortunately, we also noticed that restaurants resort to other cost cutting measures, like wrapped bread sticks. Luckily, you don't live on bread alone. The food itself is as good as advertised. The kids don't care for Italian food (note that spaghetti and meatballs is an American invention and thus not an option in the old country), so we end up ordering them boneless cutlets. I have a pasta dish that I am still dreaming about as I am writing this.
We continue to mix childlike activities that can be reconciled somewhat with the adult agenda, like looking at shop displays. There is a baker, for instance, whose specialty is making faces and other figures out of dough.
The objective is to make it to San Marco. When we reach the place, the line at the basilica is too long, and I know as sure as there are pigeons and sea gulls on the piazza that we won't be in that line and, by default, not in the basilica. Venice might just be one of the top ten least desirable places for kids, unless they are heavily into boats. For kids, it still comes down to playgrounds or, alternately, what internet connection is available.
We stop into another church near San Marco, which piques their interest. Churches are always a good bet, for the same reason you may be surprised by museums. The Chiesa di San Moise, for example, is a gorgeous little church by anybody's standard and not your average building back home, something the kids can even appreciate. Add to it the stories in the bible, and you have the audience's attention. Never underestimate the power of a good story, and that goes double for the bible. Talk and read about it long enough, and you might have just created twelve superheroes out of the twelve apostles, who otherwise would just be remembered as a group of boring fishermen and tradesmen.
Also, there's the physical exercise we are quite grateful for. Let kids sit around, and they will become aware of the fact that they have nothing to do and repeat the word 'boring' ad nauseum, backwards and in the language of your choice. With a little finagling, you will get enough done that you were glad you came. All right, so in the end we missed the basilica and the duke's palace, although I still claim we came out on top...and that the kids will remember the place as well.
Obviously, playgrounds are going to be scarce in Venice, as either water or concrete dominates the landscape. Here, one needs to apply to their more creative instincts. We got lucky with the Peggy Guggenheim Collection, as kids have more of an eye for art than you might think. Riding on boats or gondolas gets stale after a while, the same way riding in cars on streets would be. You need to use the labyrinthine streets of the city to your advantage, I've noticed, and do so in a way that you don't jeopardize the tourist body as a whole.
Project one: one kid alternately takes the lead and must follow the GPS. Liebi took us to the Guggenheim, after that it would be time to for the kids to take the wheel. Axl, take us to this restaurant. Wonderful, nothing like lunch in a real Italian restaurant. Worth the overpriced check we eventually receive. A tip for visitors: the cheap house wine you order at a restaurant is as good as any Italian import you might be drinking wherever you are now. Unfortunately, we also noticed that restaurants resort to other cost cutting measures, like wrapped bread sticks. Luckily, you don't live on bread alone. The food itself is as good as advertised. The kids don't care for Italian food (note that spaghetti and meatballs is an American invention and thus not an option in the old country), so we end up ordering them boneless cutlets. I have a pasta dish that I am still dreaming about as I am writing this.
We continue to mix childlike activities that can be reconciled somewhat with the adult agenda, like looking at shop displays. There is a baker, for instance, whose specialty is making faces and other figures out of dough.
The objective is to make it to San Marco. When we reach the place, the line at the basilica is too long, and I know as sure as there are pigeons and sea gulls on the piazza that we won't be in that line and, by default, not in the basilica. Venice might just be one of the top ten least desirable places for kids, unless they are heavily into boats. For kids, it still comes down to playgrounds or, alternately, what internet connection is available.
We stop into another church near San Marco, which piques their interest. Churches are always a good bet, for the same reason you may be surprised by museums. The Chiesa di San Moise, for example, is a gorgeous little church by anybody's standard and not your average building back home, something the kids can even appreciate. Add to it the stories in the bible, and you have the audience's attention. Never underestimate the power of a good story, and that goes double for the bible. Talk and read about it long enough, and you might have just created twelve superheroes out of the twelve apostles, who otherwise would just be remembered as a group of boring fishermen and tradesmen.
Also, there's the physical exercise we are quite grateful for. Let kids sit around, and they will become aware of the fact that they have nothing to do and repeat the word 'boring' ad nauseum, backwards and in the language of your choice. With a little finagling, you will get enough done that you were glad you came. All right, so in the end we missed the basilica and the duke's palace, although I still claim we came out on top...and that the kids will remember the place as well.
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