Archive for 'Veneto'

Titian, or Tiziano Vecellio, is one of the greatest artists to ever come out of Venice. Although, while he is celebrated as a big player in the Venetian Renaissance, he was actually born in Pieve di Cadore. However, he came to be an instrumental figure in Venetian art and many of his works still remain in that great city. If you want to see the city in a different way, why not follow his art around Venice? Many works occupy churches and cost nothing to visit, plus you'll see a lot more of Venice and some beautiful church interiors as you go about finding them. Just find a holiday rental in Venice and use our list to locate some of Titian's hidden gems in the city.

An unassuming and rather unflashy building both inside and out, Harry's Bar in Venice has, however, housed and birthed some famous names; Hemingway was a regular and it is the birthplace of the world-famous Bellini cocktail. Despite a lack of obvious signs of greatness, there are touches that let you know that you're somewhere special. The waiters still dress sharply in dinner jackets, the simple décor retains early twentieth century charm and, above all, the food and drink is legendary. An institution of the city, it was named a national landmark by the Italian government in 2001. Find yourself a vacation rental in Venice and you can walk in the footsteps of some of the greatest writers and figures in history, all while enjoying a bite to eat and a good drink.

The Bellini is on almost every cocktail menu in the world and is one of the world's most beloved alcoholic beverages. It was born in Venice in Harry's Bar sometime between 1934 and 1948. Its inventor was Giuseppe Cipriani, founder of Harry's Bar, and it was so named due to its typically distinct pink colour (depending on ingredients used, this can vary in hue) which reminded him of the toga a saint wore in a painting by 15th-century Venetian artist Giovanni Bellini. The drink started as a seasonal speciality at Harry's and later became popular at the bar's New York counterpart. Once fresh white peach purée could be shipped constantly to both locations, it became a year-round favourite.

The Dolomiti Bellunesi National Park was created in 1990, but steps towards its creation actually began all the way back in the 1960s. Its holdings are impressive with over 32,000 hectares being protected by the National Park.

The park takes in territories from fifteen different municipalities, in the Val Belluna, north of the centre of the Piave Valley.

It is the most visited national park in all of Italy and with good reason.

In 2005, a very unusual discovery was made on the Venetian island of Lazzaretto Nuovo. Among other bodies discovered in the mass plague graves of the island was a woman's skull with a brick jammed into her mouth – a vampire. Thus, Lazzaretto Nuovo became the vampire island of Venice and news outlets from around the world reported on the discovery of the strange corpse. Of course, you might wonder why a brick in her mouth didn't merely suggest an accident or prank but the act of putting a brick in the mouth of a corpse had a very distinct reasoning behind it.