venice's great neighbourhood...the enchanting cannaregio!

Venice is magical. It really is like a fairytale...

But, to truly experience Venice you need to move off of the beaten path...only steps away to enjoy Venice's neighbourhoods. Away from the tourists you will find the most beautiful corners where the Venetians actually live.

The six Venetian sestieri (neighbourhoods) are nestled together in bundles of bridges and small canals, and seem to vie for attention from the ‘most beautiful street in the world', the Grand Canal, which carves an elegant ’S’ through each of them.

I hear many comments from visitors to Venice that the crowds of tourists and the cost and quality of the food, made their visit unpleasant and not as remarkable as they had hoped. Trust me, don't leave Venice off of your European adventure. Do not strike it from your bucket list! Just be smart, and visit the parts of the city where the Venetians call home...where the locals eat and live and experience this most incredible place. And most of all, respect the fact that this is their home…where they work and play, and then you will know and see the treasure that this speck of the earth is.

Just like in Amsterdam, where the flow of tourists, like a dedicated stream of ants to a picnic, follow one congested route through the inner city,  in Venice the twenty-minute route along the Strada Nuova, from Piazzale Roma and San Lucia train station to Ponte di Rialto (the bridge) and Piazza San Marco (the square) can seem like three hours. Every day thousands of extra people flood the city between dawn and dusk, only to then clamber back onboard their massive cruise ships and float away again the same day.

Locals say, and I can completely agree after visiting Venice four times (the first time at the tender age of twelve), that the city’s iconic landmarks can only truly be enjoyed in the early morning, or after dusk when the hives of selfie sticks are long back on their boats and preparing to invade the next port.

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Cannaregio

Cannaregio is the sestieri which the most Venetians call home. Here is where the locals come to live…and to eat. It blankets most of the northern part of the city in an almost orderly lattice framework. It is one of the most beautiful parts of Venice, settled in the 15th century, and exudes charm and elegance around every corner.

The architecture is very traditional, and many of the original facades remain wonderfully intact. I received two local tips on where to enjoy a great traditional meal in Cannaregio; Osteria Ai Osti (Corte dei Pali gia Testori), usually filled with locals and which you will miss if you're not looking for it, and Osteria Bea Vita (Fundament Della Capuccine), another local favourite sitting on a quiet side canal away from the tourist masses. If you ask locals where they love to dine you will rarely be disappointed, and that is something that I try to do in each new city I am fortunate to experience. It won't break the bank and you are sure to enjoy the food.

Walk just a few steps north of the tourist hub and you will enter the Venetian Ghetto, or you'll bump into the incomparable Santa Maria dei Miracoli, or you'll just experience the quiet solitude of normal Venetians running errands by boat or foot. Santa Maria dei Miracoli is also known as the 'Marble Church', built in 1481 with a facade completely made from light pink Venetian marble. The houses along the canals will greet you with blooms overflowing from flower boxes and the constant calming sound of the water slapping up against the canal walls will guide you along your way.

Santa Maria dei Miracoli

At the northern edge of the district you will find the Scuola vecchia della Misericordia (School of Mercy) which is attached to the church of Santa Maria della Misericordia, built in 1310. Still very much intact, on the facade hangs an original bas-relief of Madonna with Child by Clemente Moli.

Scuola vecchia della Misericordia

But, what you won’t find here are bikes. I didn’t see a single bike in Venice. Of course, that’s because every 20 feet or so you have to climb 3 or 4 or 5 steps, and then go back down again to cross the insanely many, and oh-so-cute, bridges that pop up around almost every corner.

This is not a friendly place for wheel-chairs or delivery trolleys, or for that matter, luggage-toting tourists. But still they come. Because it really is one of the most beautiful cities in the world…at least that I’ve seen so far.

Here, in Cannaregio, you will find many a osteria or trattoria filled with locals dining on the specials of the day, prepared with the freshest ingredients found that morning at the Rialto Market.

Rialto Market

If you’re Air BnB-ing it during your Venetian holiday, then I recommend heading to the market in the morning hours and watching what the locals are snapping up that day. Located just across the Ponte di Rialto, on the San Polo side of the Grand Canal, the market will provide you with all of the local specialties and freshness from the sea you will need to live like a local.

Or head out to one of the simple Baccari, a traditional Venetian bar, and join the locals after work for an aperitivo while standing at the bar. I knew that this tradition, which originated in Milan but has now become all-round Italian thing, was a must-do on my very busy Italian schedule of ‘doing as the locals do’. So, I sidled up to the bar, in a quiet side calle, where I could see a few people already taking a nip, and asked the bartender for an apertivo...whatever he recommends.

He nodded, and within a minute had prepared, as if he’d done so already a million times (probably has), a beautifully peach-coloured concoction (which I recognised as aperol) in a large wine glass and placed it with a napkin on the bar in front of me. ‘With campari’, he said.  Since I’m not an aperol aficionado I just smiled and said ‘mille grazie’. Thereafter it was easy to strike up conversation with a few smiles and a ‘chin-chin’ (the local 'cheers') and a wave of my glass to the others standing along the bar. After a few sips of my spritzy drink I began to notice that campari is a bit stronger than the usual aperol, white wine and water spritz that I was familiar with. No wonder these people are all so friendly, standing here enjoying their 2nd or 3rd aperitivo, while the gentle laps in the small canal outside serves as the best background music.

You will notice that even the darkest little taverns, if you peek inside, will have people standing at the back in the afternoons, loitering about. That’s because in the back of all the traditional baccaris, hostarias, and even pasticceri, there is a bar at the back, along with a serving of inexpensive cicchetti, the Venetian answer to tapas. This is how many locals get their fill when they go out for lunch or a light dinner. You will find them at the bar, always standing, having a drink and munching on a few cicchetti; such as grilled squid, prosciuttos and salamis, all sorts of amazing Italian cheeses and fresh baked bread.

As you make your way around Venice, two things are for certain: you will get lost, and you will experience amazing moments. Just wait for them.

And, a personal tip, book a hotel or hostel with a rooftop deck (and believe me, it doesn't cost extra). On one recent visit, where I spent only one quick night, I stayed in an exceptionally friendly, perfectly situated hostel, which included breakfast and a rooftop for just 35€ (Bed & Venice, Calle della Pietá, Castello) and for a solo-traveller who just needs a clean bed, it was perfect. It is a treat to experience a city, especially one like Venice, from among its rooftops. And Venice is exceptional. 

Not to be missed on your Venetian holiday, no matter how short or long, is to see the Grand Canal at dusk. Sit down and enjoy a glass of Venetian Friuli and a plate of deliciouso pasta at an outdoor osteria, if the weather permits, and soak in the view. It is hollywood magical, and you will pinch yourself to prove to yourself that you're not watching a movie. At least that's how I felt while I sipped wine and ate a delicious bowl of Spaghetti al Arrabbiata at Al Pesador (Campo San Giacommetto 125, San Polo), taking in the sights around me...while snapping a million pics.

For my last night in Venice, just a couple of weeks ago, I finished off with a Tiramisu. It was as beautiful as it was delicious, and I savoured every bite. Gracie mille Venezia!

canada's grand railway hotels...chateau-style.

Canada is celebrating its 150th birthday this summer, so I thought it would be interesting to look at one of the most important aspects of it becoming the developed, cross-country country that it is…the Canadian Pacific Railway. This artery of transport and tourism, now over 20,000 kms of track, finally unified the provinces when the last spike was hammered in on November 7, 1885...just 18 years after Confederation.

Anyone who has traveled through Canada has surely seen one or two (or more) of the stunning, chateau-like hotels that are sprinkled throughout the country. Not coincidentally, these hotels were placed in some of the most picturesque locations along the Canadian Pacific Railway line by the company itself.

Chateau Lake Louise, Lake Louise, Alberta

During the building of the longest railway ever constructed at the time, the company had acquired lots of land throughout the prairie and western provinces. In order to encourage settlement out west, CPR began to offer packages to Europeans. The company created enticing advertising campaigns offering passage on a CP-owned ship, travel on a CPR train and a plot of land starting at $2.50/acre. The only caveat: the land needed to be cultivated.

Photo: William J. Oliver

The idea of the Canadian Pacific Railway developing grand railway hotels came from the company’s then vice-president, William Van Horne, who said, „If we can’t export the scenery, we’ll import the tourists“. Van Horne set about hand-picking the site of the first such hotel, the impeccable Banff Springs Hotel, set at the edge of Bow Falls in Banff National Park.

Banff Springs Hotel, Banff, Alberta (Photo: Kim Payant)

Built in Scottish Baronial style to resemble a castle, the original architect, Bruce Price, was one of the afficiandos of building Chateau-style. This type of architectural design went on to become an actual Canadian 'thing' with turrets and towers joining the picturesque Canadian landscape from sea to sea.

Growing up in Calgary, Banff is like a second home to me. My father was born in the mountains of southern Germany and therefore spending time in the mountains of Alberta during winter and summer was a common experience for our family…and still is.

I have organised weddings at the Banff Springs Hotel, have taken countless number of tourists through its corridors, have romped about on the golf course and alongside the falls, and even honeymooned here. But it's not just meaningful in my personal history, it is an iconic part of Alberta, hosting famous faces, such as Winston Churchill, Queen Elizabeth, along with a whole host of Hollywood royalty, with no face more familiar than Marilyn Monroe.

The rooms within the hotel also have numerous stories to tell, if only they could speak. Mount Stephen Hall for example, a medieval dining hall and event space, is the most popular wedding location in Alberta. This gorgeous space is dedicated to the first president of the CPR, Lord Mount Stephen, whom Van Horne took the company over from in 1888.

Mt. Stephen Hall

Directly following the construction of the Banff Springs Hotel, the continued design of further Chateauesque railway hotels, this time on the other side of the country, included the impressive Chateau Frontenac in 1893, in Quebec City.

Arguably the most photographed hotel in the world, Chateau Frontenac, who also has William Van Horne’s fingerprint on it, was built to rival the most elegant European hotels. Located in the old part of Quebec City, its home is also in what most people would say, the most ‚European‘ part of Canada.

Chateau Frontenac, Quebec City, Quebec

The grand railway hotel to follow was the Empress Hotel in Victoria, British Columbia. Sitting on the edge of the Victoria harbour, the Pacific Ocean lying at its feet, the Empress Hotel is an impressive sight to behold and a very popular tourist attraction.

The Empress Hotel, Victoria, British Columbia

The Empress is not just beautiful on the outside, but remains decorated with turn-of-the-century charm and elegance...while serving possibly the grandest high tea in Canada.

My favourite of the Canadian Pacific Railway hotels has to be Chateau Lake Louise, completed in 1911, and today a UNESCO World Heritage Site. I love this hotel quite simply because of its location. The lake on its doorstep, the mountains looming above, this place is magical at all times of year.

Lake Louise at dusk

Not just Lake Louise, but the surrounding mountains lakes, like Peyto and Morraine, are already instagram stars in their own right. These are incredible sights to see, with turquoise colours so bright my boyfriend said that he’s sure they put something in the water – "like some sort of highly poisonous liquid". The colour is a result of the light refracting off of the rock flour; a minute fine dust the melting glacier erodes from the surrounding mountain. This creates the most incredible colours in a milky bright hue.

Travel Alberta pulled off a great April Fool’s joke in 2015 which had people around the world actually dumbfounded, stating that every 100 years the lake bottom gets a fresh coat of turquoise paint.

“Lake Louise is one of Canada’s most popular and photographed locations,” said Leslie Bruce, President and CEO of Banff Lake Louise Tourism. “Visitors ask us all the time: ‘How do you get the lake so blue? Is the water dyed?’ I can categorically say: no, we don’t dye the water. We paint the bottom of the lake with non-toxic, environmentally friendly paint.”

The mayor of Banff was even in on the gag. “Painting the bottom of Lake Louise is really important,” said Karen Sorensen who apparently volunteered at the centennial event. “My grandpa painted the lakebed 100 years ago and here I am now. We all have to do our part to make sure this province stays beautiful.”

Photo: Travel Alberta

Moving eastward from Banff, across Alberta and into Saskatchewan, the next Chateau-style hotel that the CPR built, was the Bessborough Hotel on the North Saskatchewan River in Saskatoon.  Officially opening in 1935, 'The Bess' (as locals call it) was designed by architect Francis Rattenbury to resemble a Bavarian castle. To this day, it remains the focal point throughout the gorgeous river valley.

The Bessborough Hotel, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan

Joining all of the provinces with a railroad made it possible for the country to grow and unify, to develop out west, and to entice visitors to get to know Canada. Without the railway, the fastest route to get from Toronto to Vancouver had been a four-month sea voyage. 

Rail bridge across the North Saskatchewan River

The cross-country railroad was also a huge economic boost, allowing the fast movement of Canadian raw materials to get to either ocean port, and down south into the United States.

Photo: Ken Walker

Canada turns 150 years young in 2017, and thanks to its first Prime Minister, Sir John A. Macdonald, one of the visionaries of a unifying railroad, this beautiful country was built on the welcoming values of diversity, inclusion and acceptance. Not without its flaws of course, including the horrible stain of what settlers and government did to the First Nations communities already living on this land, I think that the good traits and its committment to reconciliation make Canada the best place to grow up in…and that I can say from first-hand experience.

Happy Bday my beloved country...thanks for being you.