Venice is like a beautiful painting come to life. This is the first thought that came into my head when I first saw this beautiful place. It’s just like a scene out of a storybook or even a fairytale. It’s been exactly 2 years since our honeymoon trip here and I could still recall how awestruck I was at its colorful beauty. Italy was the 2nd country we visited in our Europe honeymoon in 2012. We flew in from London via Easy Jet and landed shortly in Venice after a couple of hours. We arrived in Marco Polo airport late in the afternoon and we were met by the son of our Filipino friend and contact who lives in Venice with his family. It was a good thing we had a guide with us from the airport who helped us get on the right bus and go on the right stop. Since there was a language barrier, this saved us a lot of time and effort to have a local guide us the moment we arrived until we got to our hotel.

It turns out that arriving in Marco Polo airport is not the main destination. The airport is outside the island of Venice. So from there we took the bus and from the bus, we had to walk over the first big bridge you’ll see. And from that bridge, you’ll immediately get a preview of Venice and it’s beauty. I was so excited and so enthralled seeing the water, boats and the little colorful Venetian buildings and homes you only get to see in books, photos and paintings. Seeing it in real was just incomparable.

Arriving all bundled up from London with a glimpse of the beauty of Venice at the background.

Walking with our luggages to find our hotel.

Maschera!

Venice’s rustic charm

In Venice, water is your road.

We arrived hungry from London. So we had quick merienda at the cafe below our hotel the moment we arrived.

We stayed in Casa Martini which was a quaint boutique hotel with a lovely vintage feel! Our room was tiny but cozy and clean. I love that it’s not modern at all and really gives you that authentic Venetian experience. Felt like we’re staying in a place right out of a book. To get inside the hotel you have to pass by a narrow entryway and climb high stairs with your luggage. The hotel is at the 2nd floor because the first floor is a cafe. The hotel offers just a few small rooms and we were lucky we were able to get one. Staying here sort of transports you back in time. And being an old soul and a vintage junkie, I really really loved the interiors — from the chandeliers hanging from the wood paneled ceiling, old trunks display and all. Check out the photos below of our pretty little Casa in Venezia! 🙂

Our teeny tiny but pretty little home in Venice!

Our rustic but romantic room 🙂

Hallway leading to the other rooms. Pink, purple and a chandelier!

Shabby chic waiting area. Love these chandeliers!

Love the vintage vibe!

Lovely isn’t it? The door at the end opens to the balcony.

The view from the hotel and the activities downstairs.

Another thing that we liked in our hotel was its location. There are a lot of shops beside it and street stalls are all over selling the most random things from souvenirs, shirts, magnets, masks, food, etc. We immediately began to explore the moment we arrived. We tried on different masks which was fun. Their masks are really unique and in very good quality. The workmanship of each mask was really impressive. There were a lot of really pretty ones that I wanted to get one as souvenir but where will I wear it though? Hahah! But what I really love are the mini groceries and shops selling all kinds of chocolates! I was literally in chocolate heaven here while Ken was literally on a tiramisu high! He had tiramisu for our every meal here, his serious attempt to find the best tiramisu as we toured Italy.

Taking in the sights the moment we arrived.

Autumn afternoon in Venice.

Gelateria right below our hotel!

Stuffing my face with honest to goodness gelato! 🙂

And the chocolate madness begins! I love the mini mart beside our place!

Wanted to bring home everything!

These were my fave!! Oh how I miss these and everything else!

As we walk around the streets of Venice during dusk, I felt like Belle in Beauty and Beast as the song “Little town in a quiet village, everyday like the one before” kept ringing in my head. I love how romantically lit up the streets and the sky become during dusk. The skies become a gorgeous shade of painted blue. Everything becomes like a soft colorful moving painting. My photos aren’t edited in anyway and it doesn’t even do justice to the real thing. I just used my old iPhone but look how pretty the shade of blue is at the background of our pics which is actually the sky. It’s amazing how beautifully lighted it looks like it’s not real. Sort of like the artificial painted ceiling of the Venetian Hotel in Macau. But this is actually the real thing and a natural beauty hand painted by God.

Venetian selfie

Pretty little homes with vintage shutters. Pop out your head and call out “Ciao!” from your window.

Twilight in Venice shows you this beautiful sky.

Streets are romantically glowing.

For dinner we  were invited in the home of our Filipino contact, David and his family. They cooked us a really good meal and afterwards they took us to the Campanile in Piazza San Marco which was a pretty sight at night. I love the structures around Piazza San Marco and its pretty intricate design that gets lighted up really nice at night.

Basilica San Marco

Live orchestra music makes Piazza San Marco more romantic.

Outside the Basilica

Palazzo Ducale, the palace in St. Mark’s Square

Old world lampposts and an old beautiful structure.

Lovely first night in Venice with the husband ❤

Stunning Palazzo at night! ❤

This ends our first day or half a day in Venice. In just a short span of time we were able to see a lot already. This is what’s nice in Venice. It’s just a small charming island city that you can explore leisurely. Coming from a hectic 5-day stay in London, we needed a place to recharge before the rest of our Europe tour and Venice was just the perfect stop. It was small and compact. If you’re not going to the other nearby islands, you can easily tour the whole of Venice in a full day or two so our 2 and a half day stay actually gives us a chance to sleep in and just rest. You can really take time enjoying the food, do a bit of shopping and just taking in the sights again and again. I’ll share more about food tripping in Venice in my next post. For now, ciao! 🙂

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