Teatro La Fenice
We started the day with a fantastic self-guided audio tour of Teatro La Fenice (The Phoenix), a very famous opera house in Venice. It rose to fame in the 19th century when it became the site of many famous operatic premieres at which the works of several of the four major bel canto era composers – Rossini, Bellini, Donizetti, Verdi – were performed. It’s also where Maria Callas, one of the most influential opera singers of the 20th century, made a name for herself.
There have been three historic fires, with the theater rising from the ashes each time, in keeping with the name. The most recent was 1996. It was rebuilt to exacting standards using original plans and thousands of photographs. “As it was, where it was” became the motto of the reconstruction. The theater re-opened in 2004.
There were some new innovations, however. An elaborate heating and air conditioning system was installed that brings hot or cold air directly underneath each seat, allowing it to run much gentler and quieter.
Dorsoduro District
After the opera house, we headed over to the Dorsoduro neighborhood to explore and have some lunch. Dorsoduro is one of the six sestieri, or districts, of Venice, located on the southern side of the city, bordering Santa Croce and San Polo, on the other side of the Grand Canal from Piazza San Marco. The district is home to the University of Venice (Ca’ Foscari University), making it a popular and lively area for students. Some things you don’t want to miss in Dorsoduro are the Basilica Santa Maria della Salute, and the Accademia Bridge (Ponte dell’Accademia), which has one of the most photographed views of the Grand Canal. (The bridge itself is also very nice.)
The photo below of the nun walking across a bridge next to the Basilica Santa Maria della Salute caused me to make a Monty Python joke, exclaiming “nun shall pass!” to the delight of me and me alone.
Lunch at Lineadombra
We had lunch at Lineadombra, in Dorsoduro, right on the water looking across to Giudecca. You can see San Giorgio Maggiore Church directly across the water. The restaurant is Michelin listed. It’s expensive, but a bit more reasonable at lunch vs dinner, and we both agreed it was worth it, both for the delicious food and spectacular view. I had octopus and Teresa had mushroom and zucchini ravioli.
We headed back for our daily siesta, then more wandering. Had some mediocre pizza at a spot I knew was going to be bad, but the place we wanted to go had very minimal seating and we didn’t want to wait. That was a mistake. Always wait for good food vs eating bad food right away. We knew better, but still made the mistake.
We finished the evening on the roof of our hotel with a bottle of wine.
Here are more random photos from the day:
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