I thought I was the big spender. Bought a nightgown and a couple of scarves Actually, wrong! I was with Dorlee when she bought a bracelet, which I now covet.

:) :) :) Certainly not outside the realm of probablility.

The VAT on a half dozen Burger King meals is probably not worth the effort so I can see why Dovster can't get all excited about claiming it.
But in your case where you spent in excess of 1000 Euros in Murano, a little follow-up might be in order.

Monitor is correct. (And one hell of a guy.)

AFAIK: Hotel and meals don't count. Services don't count; i.e. eyeglass frames count, but not the lenses; etc.

If the shops didn't offer the service, and they often do, one could try to recoup from the Italian govt later but it depends on your perseverance. Your receipts from the shop should be enough, along with the appropriate forms (which are probably only available in the EC at the airport or perhaps online.)

Michael and I were in SFO waiting and waiting and waiting for our bags when we realized neither of us had any memory at all of checking them at VCE at 4:30 am. Perhaps we had just walked away and they were still at our airport seats? We remembered hauling them from the water taxi. No way we could have done the EC VAT tax refund at the airport at that time.

In SFO Joanne's rollerbag arrived, so we had to believe ours were there somewhere, and they were eventually last off. Older son ran out of gas circling SFO to pick us up.

Enjoy your purchases, I'm sure they were lovely. Post photos :)

MsEverywhere, I don't think this is the proper forum in which to discuss what can or can not fit in the palm of my hand.

To get VAT returned in Italy, you have to spend a minimum amount (I believe it is around $400 but I might be wrong on that) in one store at one time. You are then given a "check". When you get to the airport, you have to show Customs your purchase (meaning that it has to be in your hand luggage as you don't reach Customs before check in). It has to be unused in Europe. Your check is then validated and you take it to a counter where you are charged a fee for cashing it and another if you want it in $ instead of Euros.

I have found that you wind up getting about 12-13% of your purchase price back.

You are right....and it is not worth the hassle for less than $400.......but I don't recall the fee and cashing it......??? But then, I have not been doing much shopping over there of late due to Euroshock......
BTW, I am VCE bound again on Jan 12.....sightseeing with my friend who runs SAVE VENICE...

OK, that explains why I didn't even try. I had all of the masks shipped home in one box, so they weren't with me. Same for the glass pieces, they were all shipped home together from the factory.

Oh well, they are beautiful! I'll see if I can take pictures and post them.

Four of the masks were Christmas gifts, and the recipients all loved them. The other 3 masks and all 3 glass pieces were for me.

A couple of years ago I was bemoaning the fact that the only art I had in my house was what the previous owner had left, except for a Thomas Kinkade that I had bought. So my girlfriend suggested that I buy some art work on my travels.

So..... I hit the art fair in Ann Arbor, Michigan the past two years and brought back (well, shipped back) some beautiful stuff. I've bought some stuff in Puerto Rico. In the meanwhile, my parents were downsizing so they gave me some paintings my dad had done, and the only painting I've ever done. I had them framed and hung.

Now I'm running out of room. I have a small condo anyway, and many walls are mirrors where I can't hang anything. It seems like it's time to get a second place so I can collect more art work! :D

Same here. The masks were definitely the hit of the 2004 Cholula Christmas Gift-Giving Extravaganza.

I had to pay shipping for the masks. The little store shipped them plus masks I had bought at another store.

The factory paid shipping for the glass. But I just got a bill for the duty on the glass, 5% of the purchase price. The factory tried to get me to put only half on my credit card and send them a cashiers check for the other half, so they would only have to declare half of what I really paid. I said "No" because I thought it would arrive quicker by putting it all on my credit card. So I'm not sure how reputable they are. :confused:

VAT refund
 

My understanding is that you must file for the VAT refund before you leave the country. I think you must have spent $250 or more at the individual store. You ask for the VAT refund paperwork at the time of purchase. You fill it out, with the receipt for purchase, and present it with the merchandise ready for inspection, at the VAT refund counter at the airport which is located before security.

The man at the booth may or may not ask to inspect the merchandise, but you should have it in your carry-on in case he does. He stamps the forms, and gives you back a pre-paid postage envelope to put the paperwork in. You have to place it in the correct post box.

I think you have the choice of having the VAT credited to the original credit card you used for the purchase, or getting a refund check. I think I opted for the credit card refund, but whatever you choose, it takes a long time to get the refund. The company that does the paperwork takes a commission. As low as the dollar was against the Euro, I filed for the refund, because we had a lot of time at the airport before our departure.

I think if you have purchases shipped out of the country, the store does not charge the VAT, but you pay for shipping, and duty, if any.

Sgroppion recipe
 

Well, we certainly did enjoy the trial-and-error we did on Christmas Eve. In fact, we had to repeat it again on Christmas Day, just to make sure it was as good as we thought . The second time, we doubled the vodka, and we all agreed that it improved the Sgroppino.... :p

SGROPPINO
2 cups (1 pint) lemon sorbet
2 tbsp. vodka (or more, to taste)
1/3 cup Prosecco

Add all ingredients to blender. Serve immediately in chilled champagne flutes. It will separate if it is left standing.

Supposedly serves 4 - 6. (We found it barely served 5 )

By the way.....how do you pronounce Sgroppino? Isn't the "S" silent?

This is so funny.

I have been trying to plan a cruise and fell asleep last night wondering what type of clothes to wear and wishing I could look at pictures of Dorlee Cruisewear, knowing that whatever she chose, it would be the most stunning cruisewear available anywhere.

It was not surprising, therefore, that I actually dreamed of sitting on the deck of the ship, with a crowd gathered 'round drinking Sgroppino from chilled champagne flutes, while the lovely Dorlee modeled a bright red sailor suit, accentuated with an exotic sparkly white boa, bright red high heels and a white sailor cap.

I wish I could remember the more formal outfits. :D

As I am ringing out the old year and ringing in the new...it is time to reflect. Thanks to all who participated in the Venice Meet. Truly, it was the highlight of my year. Everyone who came to this wonderful event contributed something special. I will not list all of the participants and what they added--suffice it to say, that I will never forget all of you and I will never forget the "Venice Meet."
All best wishes--
O2K

Thank YOU, O2K for making so many wonderful arrangements in VCE for us happy FTers.....
We rung in the New Year with a bottle of Prosecca.....and I thought of you all...
Happy 2005!

Thanks! I love simple recipes. I'll give it a try one of these days soon!

As for the pronunciation, nothing is silent in Italian (in contrast to French, where about half the letters are silent). ;) (OK, slight exaggeration....)