Sightseeing Venice – Oct 5 & 6, 2009

I’ve always wanted to go Venice and I’m glad we managed to sneak Venice in during our Europe trip! Here are some pictures we took during our less than 24 hours stay in Venice!

Venice is famous for its Venetian Masks (Above) and you’ll definitely see plenty of these beautiful masks on the streets on Venice. Some of these masks are hand made using the traditional paper mache way, some adorned with Swarovski Crystals, some just too pretty, and some just plain odd. We did not get any masks as we don’t know how to carry them without crushing them in our backpacks! =)

Random picture of the many canals (Top Left) that surround Venice. View of the Grand Canal (Top Right) from the Rialto Bridge.

Shops on Rialto Bridge (Top Left). There were just so many stuff to see and buy! Rialto Bridge (Top Right) is one of the four bridges that span across the Grand Canal and is the oldest and most famous in Venice. The present bridge today was completed in 1591.

Another random view of a canal from yet another bridge in Venice (Top Left). Basilica di San Marco (Top Right) which was rebuilt in 1063 to form the basis of the present basilica. Unfortunately we arrived just in time for its doors to close for the day!

 

Another random view of a canal and bridge (Top Left) in Venice. Torre Dell' Orologio/St. Mark's Clock (Top Center) which was built and installed between 1496 and 149. St Mark’s Square (Top Right) also known as Piazzale San Marco in Italian. The St Mark’s Campanile is on the left, the Basilica is in the middle and Doge’s Palace in on the right.

 

Closer view of the details on Basilica di San Marco (Top Left). Doge’s Palace (Top Left) which was largely constructed from 1309 – 1424. This is a gothic palace in Venice and was the residence of the Doge of Venice.

View of some gondolas and San Giorgio Maggiore is an island of Venice (Top Left). We did not sit in one as we wanted to save money. Gondola rides are said to cost about Euro 80 for a 40 minutes ride. We’ve sat in a fake gondola in Venetian Hotel in Las Vegas and that was sufficient, I guess!

Another picture of Gondolas with Santa Maria della Salute (Church) in the background (Top Right). What is Venice without it’s world famous Gondolas? =)

Around & About Venice

We flew from Barcelona to Venezia (Venice) on Vueling Airlines, a budget airline where cost of the flight is decent but you do pay extra for check in luggage and drinks/snacks onboard! Venice is famous for its canals and bridges. Venice is actually built on one hundred seventeen islands, holds over hundreds of canals and countless bridges. Flying into Venice Airport (VCE), we walked to the docks after getting our Alilaguna (Water Bus) tickets. The walk to the dock is about 10 minutes. The water bus comes about every 30 minutes or so. The comfy ride from the dock to our Fondamente Nuove stop where our Bed & breakfast is cost us Euro 13 per person for a 40 minutes ride from Mestre (where the airport and dock is) to Venice. We love that no vehicles are allowed on Venice. The only place in Venice where you would see buses (and cars, I think) is on Piazzale Roma. It was definitely nice to walk around the island and not worry being run over by a moving vehicle!! =)

Venice is tiny, walkable and can be quite confusing. Very soon all bridges, canals and squares looked the same. We brought along a compass (thanks to Kelvin’s cousin’s advice!) and that helped us a lot to get our bearings right whenever we got lost. One thing about Venice, no matter how lost you get…you’re still within the island.

We spent one night there and stayed at a wonderful Bed & Breakfast (Almoro B&B) minus the breakfast! To us, one day is enough to discover Venice! =). Next Up…Pictures!

2009 Halloween Dinner

Halloween this year seemed like nothing to us.  In previous years, we will get a wig and hang out in town. The first year, we had a dinner party at Kristen’s and hung out around witch town Salem. The second year, we had a dinner party at Seyda’s and hung out around Cambridge. Both years, we bought wigs or masks to dress up. That’s the extent of our Halloween costumes! =)

This year’s Halloween, it was at my place…dinner with close friends and a horror movie marathon. Since we weren’t home during Halloween the past 2 years, we weren’t sure if kids would be going ringing our door bell. We prepared some candy nevertheless and hope for some cutely dressed up kids to scream “Trick or Treats”!… Well, none came and I was left with a bunch or candies! I shall try to bring them to my local library!! =)

I planned for a 6 course meal for Halloween and ended up with a 5 course meal. It was not because I ran out of time that I only made 5 dished instead or 6. I overestimated the food (pasta to be exact) and thought that we already had more than enough food for 5. I made all the food from scratch (ok, I did not make the pizza dough) in 3 hours. =) Nothing creepy about the menu…but can I claim, they were delicious? Oh yeah, I gave my guests packets of treats as well. =)

Here’s what I made:

1) Pincho de Tortillas de Patatas (Left): Omelet Potatoes, inspired by our visit to Barcelona, Spain! I will share this recipe later!

2) Cream of Celery (Right): Celery Soup. I accidentally added a lil too much milk. It was not as thick as I wanted, nevertheless still good and “celery-ey”.

3) Pizza Ai Funghi (Left): That was a fancy Italian name for Mushroom Pizza. We had the best Mushroom Pizza in Rome, Italy….I wanted to recreate it. It was good, but still not like the ones we had! I used fresh mushrooms (sautéed prior) this time. It was better than the canned mushrooms I used the first time.

4) Lobster & Asparagus Macaroni (Right): Kraft’s Mac & Cheese where it’s all orang-y scares me! This is my version, perhaps a little more grown up? =)

 

5) Crème Brulee (Below): I was nervous how this will turned out. It was my first time making one of my favorite dessert. Thankfully it was a success. I pulled off the crystallized/caramel top by broiling the sugar covered top under the broiler. I have a blow torch, but I think I do not have propane in it! The broiler worked out just fine! =)

Happy Halloween!!

So, what are you up to this Halloween? Are you dressing up for a party or are you like me…….just staying at home? =) After 2 years of playing semi-dress up ( we only buy wigs) and partying at a friend’s place…..we staying home this year. We are however inviting our usual suspects over for dinner and we do have some candy ready just in case someone rings our door bell! Oh, I do hope somebody does.. I badly wanna give away candies!!

Happy Halloween and have fun trick or treating! And Be Safe!!

Chicken Salad Sandwich

I had some yummy Chicken Salad Sandwich at Finale Desserts and was inspired to make one for hubby’s lunch the next day! Since I have a whole Rotisserie Chicken, grapes and celery…. it was just perfect timing! I’ve had celery in my chicken salad before, but not grapes. The addition of the grapes were just brilliant!! I simply love the combination of flavors and texture. Sweet, salty, crunchy and soft? =)

My version here is almost like Finale’s… minus the onions and pecans. I don’t like nuts in my salad! You could serve the chicken salad in between 2 slices of bread or perhaps over some shredded lettuce! =)

CHICKEN SALAD SANDWICH RECIPE

Ingredients:

• 1 Cup Chopped Rotisserie/Roasted Chicken Breast
• 1/2 Cup Chopped Celery
• 1/2 Cup Quartered (Red) Seedless Grapes
• 2 (Heapful) Tablespoon Mayonnaise
• Fresh Ground Black Pepper
• Salt
• 4 Slices of Bread
• 2 Pieces of Lettuce (*Optional)

Method:

Add the first 4 ingredients into a bowl and mix well. Season with black pepper and salt. Place a piece of lettuce on one side of the bread and pile half of the salad mixture on it. Cover with the other piece of bread. This should give you 2 sandwiches! =)