10/6/2012
So close and yet so far away beaches of the Adriatic
Sea. The kids want to see Venice & I
need a beach fix, so we head to Lido De Jesolo, an island to the east of
Venice. After an 8 hour drive with
several disorienting round-abouts we finally arrive at our destination in the
dark. We stayed at a lovely hotel right
on the beach. It is the end of the
summer vacation season and fortunately the prices have been reduced which help
us stretch our budget.
Please note when
traveling in Europe rooms are singles or doubles which means when traveling as
4 we always need 2 rooms. Interestingly
enough the prices are most often per person not necessarily by the room and in
our experience always include a nice breakfast.
After getting settled into our room we head to a local restaurant
recommended by the hotel manager for authentic Italian Pizza. The pizzas were large and delicious, thin
crust with fresh ingredients and a light tomato sauce. Very different from our typical American
thick heavy crust, heavy sauce and many layered ingredients. Ryan had a calzone that was as big as his
head! There was not much left over but we were able to take a few slices to our
hotel for lunch the next day.
After dinner we all go for a walk along the tourist strip
for a little sightseeing and then head to the beach to listen to the Adriatic
Sea lapping at the shore. There is a wonderful
brick boardwalk that runs along the beach behind the many hotels that line the
beachfront.
In the morning in the light of a beautiful sunny day we
discover that the Hotels are stacked 3-4 deep in some areas to accommodate all
the tourists at this popular spot. It reminds me of what is happening to Fort
Walton Beach, FL. Beach chairs and
umbrellas are in rows 10 deep in front of the hotels. Some hotels have fenced in their own “Private
Beach Area” for chairs & umbrellas. The beach area is very deep allowing
for the many rows of chairs in addition to fenced in “beach areas”. The sand is a bit more coarse than in the FL
panhandle and darker similar to the beaches of South Carolina.
Surprisingly most of
the hotels, restaurants and souvenir shops close for the winter season early
Oct – April. Luckily for us the season
is near the end and we are just a few of the tourists in the area. We have the beaches to ourselves and enjoy
walking and picking up shells near the surf.
The water is chilly enough that walking ankle deep is plenty enough. I am told that the weather in Northern Italy
gets cold enough that the tourist head to warmer places or to the mountains for
skiing.
Mid-morning and we drive a few kilometers to the end of the
island to catch a ferry that takes us to Venice. It beats more driving and traffic since
Venice doesn't close J. What a wonderful way to arrive in Venice, by
boat. We can see the bricked shoreline, stone
fortress walls, Cathedral spires and many old buildings on the nearby
islands as well ( Murano, Burano, and Torcello).
Venice is just like the pictures. The gondoliers gracefully moving their
passengers along the canals, old magnificent buildings, stone walkways, several
outdoor cafés, (Italian espresso is the best!!) and lots of souvenir carts line
the main street where we dock. It is
like turning back time when you walk through the streets off the beaten
path. Laundry still hangs out of the
windows, streets are winding and narrow, it is easy to get lost in this small
island city. After walking through
several narrow streets we come out on the other side of the island and take a
waterbus back to the main square. This
is also a great way to see the other areas of the island and a great deal more
reasonable than the gondolier boats (80+euros).
Not as romantic but with 2 kids in tow it wouldn't be the same
anyway.
One long day in Venice is enough for us so we head back on
the ferry just after 5pm to have dinner near our hotel. We have another long walk on the beach
boardwalk after dinner which is the perfect ending to a beautiful Italian day.
The next morning after another great breakfast – is spent on
the beach enjoying the surf and peaceful beaches before packing and heading
back north.
Next = Travel Drama – tough lessons to learn for Ryan &
Carmen.
