March 22, 2011
Our water taxi picked us up at 8:10 am to take us to the rental car place near the rail station in Venice. The early morning cruise saw us motoring through a few small canals, then out on to the much larger canale della Guidecca from where we saw a diverse multitude of boats. These are the boats which make Venice work. Everything from bus boats, garbage boats, barges piggy-backed with semi trucks, ferries, product and people tenders, to the ever famous gondolas. We then headed back into a number of narrow canals while making our way to our last stop in Venice.
A note of caution: You can NEVER pre-plan enough of the details...always expect surprises when visiting Venice!
We prearranged our departing water taxi ride through the hotel concierge and gave them the name and number of the water taxi company Winett was using. We told them we were headed to the EuroCar rental office near the railroad station. We gave them the address to the EuroCar office to give to the water taxi company. Our water taxi driver picked us up as scheduled and gave us a very good ride. He even docked very near the railroad station. We assumed (NEVER assume anything regarding arrangements in Venice!) that the EuroCar office would be close. One would guess that it might even be inside the railroad station, so we lugged our heavy wealth of luggage and Esther's camera equipment up the stairs of the railroad station...and NO there weren't any ramps, porters, or carts! Guess what? No EuroCar office in the station, so we had to lug our gear back down the stairs and about a 1/4 mile away across a rather large bridge. Mind you virtually all the bridges in Venice have steps. This bridge was no exception. Needless to say we finally made it to the EuroCar office and received a completely unexpected cardio workout along the way. The water taxi driver must have been given the wrong stop.
We got our rental car and then drove the 45 minute drive to Costabissara near Vicenza to visit Dario Loison and his Loison bakery where he makes luscious Panattone, Colomba Easter cakes, and other assorted sweets. Here is their website:
We entered the retail shop at Loison, which was filled with all of the multi-pastel colored Colomba for Easter. Dario Loison came out to greet us, and then gave us a full tour followed by a delicious tasting.
Darrell asked Dario if there was anything nearby that we should visit. He gave us a few possibilities. Darrell decided that we should go visit Damini macelleria & affini in the town of Arzignano about a 40 minute drive away. Damini macelleria & affini is a fourth generation family of butchers who recently began a new concept business. They are part market, meat shop, deli, wine merchant, restaurant, and butcher. We arrived around 2pm just in time to look at the market, then eat lunch. After lunch the owners gave us a tour of their kitchen and very impressivley clean and efficient butcher facilties below the market.
Our next stop was The Vignalta Winery in the town of Arqua' Petrarca situated about 700 feet above the Venetian plain in the Colli Euganei. The 1 hour 20 minute drive went smoothly. The rise into the extinct volcanos that make up the Colli Euganei was very picturesque. We stopped at the winery to meet Katia Gomiero who owns Vignalta along with her husband Lucio. Lucio is known as the "Radicchio King" as he is the most important grower of Radicchio in the world, and was first to bring it to the U.S. Katia took us to their nearby vineyard to show us the wild rosemary they grow and harvest to make their wonderful Vignalta Herbed Sea Salt, which is a very popular item at Corti Brothers. We then went to tour the winery and had a barrel sample of one of their wines. The stay was short, but very much enjoyed for the beauty of their property and the present family feel.
As evening fell, we drove down to the base of the Colli Euganei and checked into the Radisson Blu Majestic Resort at Galzignano Terme. The hotel was very new and modern. It was very interesting that the majority of guests were from Germany, and of a certain age...60's and up. Darrell told us that they come to unwind in the area's natural spas and hot springs. The rooms were comfortable, the food and drink was enjoyed, as was the good night's sleep we all got.
