Travelstory #1: Venice - my love

Venice. It´s like meeting someone and falling in love immediately. Or like eating freshly baked banana bread. Or both. Venice can be recognized by its smell. This really intensive salty smell from the sea. And the hustle and bustle. There are a lot of things going on but nevertheless you know that you can also find quiet places there. Like for example at the Lido, where I have booked my hotel. There are sandy beaches, chic hotels - like the Grand Hotel Excelsior, which became famous through Thomas Manns book "The death in Venice" - but also a lot of native bars and restaurants where you can enjoy your pizza. Without knowing what you will do next. Venice is so much more than just the Markusplatz oder the Rialtobrücke. The island Pellestrina, for example. So incredibly quiet. Without any sights. Nearly no people. There the inhabitants have built so called Murazzi, walls which protect them against the wind and the water. And the colourful houses, which give the impression as if they would like to hide behind the walls. The beach is wild. The whole island is really authentic and it´s very windy there. There you will find no package tourists and no beach bars. But you can walk to the peninsula Caroman and you can listen to the monotonous blowing of the wind.

5 things you should do in Venice:

- Visiting the Jewish district in Cannaregio

- Going to Giudecca, a small island in the south of Venice

- Touristfree: the Campo San Ciacomo dell´Orio

- Eating ice cream in the tiny salon Alaska, where you will find really extraordinary sorts

- Going to Burano, where you can sit in the sun and have a look at the colourful houses

Reading recommendations for your holidays:

Venedig: Eine Verführung (insel taschenbuch): A really good book by Hanss-Josef Ortheil with recipes and a lot of tips apart from the most famous sights.

Leben in Venedig: Dirk Schümer who lives in Venice himself, gives a fascinating impression into the lifestyle of the city´s inhabitants.

Reiches Erbe: Commissario Bruntettis zwanzigster Fall: Because there is no Venice without Donna Leon.

For film lovers:

Der Liebeswunsch: A young girl marries an older man, but the marriage isn´t really happy. Then she starts a love affair with a younger one.

Der talentierte Mr. Ripley: Tom Ripley has the assignment to bring back the playboy Dickie Greenleaf from Italy to the USA. This encounter has far reaching consequences.