Dorlee, there is no such question in Venice. It is actually a tiny city and everything is near everything else.

That having been said, the Campo -- by Venice standards only -- is far from the Ai Mori and much closer to the Piazza San Marco. If you don't feel like walking, you can get on a vaporetto near the Ai Mori (at station number 4) and take it 8 stops to station number 12. The trip will be about 10 minutes.

The concert idea sounds great!

These church concerts are generally wonderful and my experience is that seats are available day before. We plan to be on for all that don't conflict with planned events.

Hey, wait a minute. When are we going to go bar hopping in search of the perfect grappa? Compare and contrast Italian wines. Figure out why Italy has not contributed squat to the beer world?
I can only take so much culture what with the opera, concerts, Murano glass exhibits, etc. :rolleyes:
We need to get our priorities straight here..... ;)

1 - Q - "Compare and contrast Italian wines"
A - At every lunch and dinner

2 - Q - Beer?
A - try Belgium or Germany

3 - Q - Opera?
A - In this case, virtually mandatory.

4 - Q - Concerts?
A - Strictly optional.

5 - Q - Murano Glass?
A - Also mandatory (if you don't believe me, check with wife). Get your credit cards on the ready or bring along an extra bag to carry the Euros that you will need for this expedition.

6 - Q- Grappa?
A - At every evening's get together while recapping the events of the day.

1. Murano glass is not culture. It is an excuse for Mrs. Cholula to spend some money.

2. Italy has not contributed squat to the beer world because it is bordered by Austria.

3. There is no such thing as perfect grappa. There is not even such a thing as potable grappa.

4. Wines are going to be a problem. Monitor is an oenologist and will undoubtedly steer you towards the allegedly perfect vintages of remote vineyards. I, on the other hand, have taken the most solemn of vows to support, protect, and defend the honor of the Veronese varieties (chiefly Bardolino, Soave, and Valpolicella). You, coming from California, will most likely wonder "Why don't these people have any gallon bottles of Gallo? Ain't that a good Eye-tie wine?"

On the happy side, there are no cars in Venice so there will be no need for a designated driver.

Revised schedule:

Nov 18: Obscure2k, Doc2k, Monitor, Franny, Dorlee, Leonard, and Dovster go to a really good restaurant for dinner, sampling the various wines in preparation for the Main Meet.

Nov 19: In the afternoon, Dovster takes dedhans, MsEverywhere, and KLC to a local pastry shop for some coffee and cake. Obscure2K takes Cholula and Mrs. Cholula to the Peggy Guggenheim Museum of Modern Art.

In the evening, we all meet at a bar in St. Mark's Square. Everybody except Cholula tastes Veneto region wines. Cholula goes into St. Mark's Cathedral and admires the Renaissance frescoes. (Cholula's Amex remains with Mrs. C at the bar, who pays for all the drinks. We then direct her to Venice's most expensive glass shop, which is adjacent to the bar.)

Later, we head to the Casino while Cholula attends a violin concerto.

Nov. 20: Dovster meets Bianca at the train station, thus putting an end to his attempts to seduce all the other women at the Meet. The Opera buffs go to La Traviata, where they try to explain to Cholula that laughing during the suicide scene is not considered de rigeur. Dovster and Bianca try walking around the city, a difficult task as he insists on turning right at every corner while she invariably heads to the left.

In the evening, we have the Main Meet, where Cholula distributes the hot sauce goodies he has brought and Dovster hands out the Israeli stuff. There is a possibility that Traveller will present somebody with The Mouse.

Nov. 21: This being Sunday, Cholula spends most of the morning attending Mass at various churches. The rest of us recover from The Meet before heading out late breakfast of prosciutto and panini. In the afternoon, Bianca guides Cholula and Mrs. C around the Doge's Palace, and points out the works of the Venetian Renaissance masters.

In the evening, we all meet for drinks -- except for Cholula, who will be a bit hung over from all the sacramental wine he had that morning.

Nov. 22: The rest of you head to Murano, where you are able to pick up glassware identical to that which Mrs. C bought in St Marks, but at a fraction of the price. Dovster and Bianca take the train back to Milano.

Nov. 23: We meet in Verona. O2K's Hotel Marco guides you to such places as the Arena and Juliet's balcony. Dovster guides Mrs. Cholula to Via Mazzini and shows her where the city's most expensive clothes, jewelry, and leather goods shops are.

Most then head back to Venice. Dovster heads back to Milan. Cholula heads towards bankruptcy.

Doge's Palace
 

Dovster , do you think we could borrow Bianca for a tour of the Doge's Palace? What about the Frari Church and the Scuola di San Rocco? We have to see the Titans and Tintorettos!!

I don't know. She hurt her knee skiing this winter and still does not find it comfortable to walk around very much. I imagine it will depend on how she is feeling at the time.

At the Palace, however, I would suggest getting a guided tour from a pro -- they are bookable on line, inexpensive, and well worth the money. I think we should look into it a bit later on, when we know for sure who is coming.

I, personally, have a problem with the Palace. Casanova was locked up in its prison and I have always identified with him for some reason.

Many FlyerTalk members say many variations of that superfluous statement. Having stated that, perhaps you ought to learn the proper way to say it in Italian in time for Venice.

I always thought Venice was a safe destination. Where did Dorlee hear about violence in Venice, anyway?

Violence in Venice? Do you think the Titans and Tintorettos are pro hockey teams?

Dicendo quello, I want to remind you that I am still still looking forward to moving you to the "Definite" list.

Yes, violence in Venice, according to Dorlee, whom I would not think is trying to string us along!

Is Murano near the Austrian border?

I ask this because I was originally supposed to take a business trip to Vienna late last month but that was postponed. I am trying to re-schedule it around the time that the Venice meet is supposed to occur so that I can incorporate it all in one trip. That is another reason why I have not requested to be on the definite list yet.

Murano is a one of the islands of Venice, but a little further away than most of the others.

If you are going to be in Innsbruck, you can drive through the Brenner Pass and take Autostrada A22 to A4 and then take that right into Venice, but it is going to take you most of the day.

I'm probably out...
 

unless I win the lotto or sign up a new of new clients asap.

Bizness is down $60K this year due to clients scaling back: letting 50% of their employees go - and my contract :(. I have to move next week (only going 4 blocks but it's still a $6K move w/ deposits & movers) & some other big ticket expenses that I didn't anticipate, in combination w/ bizness being down, is just too big a delta.

So alas, things are very tight at the moment & much as I'd love to attend, I can't justify spending $$ on FT Dos right now. Rest assured that if I DO win the lotto or manage to sign up a # of new clients, I'm back in!

But if I don't make it please post from over there so I can live vicariously through you. I've never been to Venice, so to miss what looks like is going to be a fabulous time is very depressing.

Cheers. Sharon

PS - Timing of move sucks too, as I leave 3 days later for biz trip to AMS. Trying to get ready for that, pack/unpack, notify various utilities, actually do some work for the remaining clients - aaahhhh....

Sharon, it is with great sorrow that I have removed you from the "possible" list.

In two weeks I am going to Turkey and plan to pick up some 1 million Turkish lira notes to distribute at the Venice Meet.

Wouldn't a cool million help defray your expenses?

Canarsie--if you are not loaded (someone will take off on this one...)with luggage (you bizman, doubtful...) get a point to point first class rail ticket to VCE....station not far from ai mori hotel :D

http://www.raileurope.com/us/rail/fa...ules/index.htm