Venice Local Custom Tips by newsphotogirl

The street in front of our hotel had some serious flooding at certain times of the day. The entrance even had a barrier to keep the water out. So bring good shoes for walking through the water. Some places have temporary walk ways set up to help you get around. And at some of place like Piazza San Marco there are wooden platforms.

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We met the nicest people during our trip to Venice. When we were having trouble figuring out the vaparetto we asked someone who was dressed in a suit reading a newspaper if we had passed our stop. We had. He didn't speak much english but he got off at the next stop with us, talked to the cashier at the ticket booth and the two of them helped us figure out how to get to our hotel. It turned out that the line we wanted wasn't running that day and it would have taken us twice as long at least to figure it out if he had not stopped to help.

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It has been said on VT time and time again. Learn a few words. Although most people in Venice speak at least some english, it really doesn't take much effort to learn some italian and it's the polite thing to do. And you're more likely to get better service.

Thank You: Grazie
You're Welcome: Prego
Please: Per favore
Do you speak English?: Parla Inglese?
One, Two (as in one espresso or a table for two): Uno, Due
A table for two: Un tavalo per due
Do you have: Avete

You can also get free podcasts of italian language lessons on iTunes. Another helpful website was http://babelfish.yahoo.com/. You type in the sentence in your language and it will translate to your language of choice. I used it when I needed to email hotels with questions about rooms or cab fare. The only problem is it's a literal translation which doesn't always work well. I would send both the english and translated version.

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There were street artists everywhere. Some simply dressed in Venetian costume others played the guitar or entertained the crowd with props.

We came across one guy dressed as a statue who would wink and make kissy noises at women when they walked by. He was a riot. We also listened to a guy doing a horrible cover of Hotel California. Absolutely terrible. And then there was a glass musician.

As we got closer to Piazza San Marco the musicians got better.

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