Santa Claus is coming to town...( by way of the Babbo Natale regatta in Venice yesterday)

How to make an ordinary day extraordinary? Take ten minutes to watch about 50 Venetians participating in one of the cities newer traditions, the annual Babbo Natale regatta.  Despite fog and spitting rain, these stalwart rowers donned their Babbo Natale (Santa Claus) outfits and raced the course between San Zaccaria and Ca'Foscari down the Grand Canal yesterday. 

I took up a post just the  San Zaccaria vaporetto stop, knowing I wouldn't be able to see any more than all the racers queuing up and taking off. It was enough to put a big smile on my face and start my day off right. 

 This rower changed up their outfit a little bit  by adding a reindeer hat (FYI- reindeer in Italian is la renna)

 The boat with the pink flag on the end is the local Pink Lioness group, an organization who row in support of Breast cancer research and cures.

  

 This is still pre-race, and although hard to distinquish in my photo, this woman is taking a last minute phone call, probably from the North Pole!

 Elves, reindeer and Santas, oh my!

The race official giving the signal to begin racing.

 While standing around waiting for the regatta to kick off, this boat was just off to my right, decorated to the hilt for Natale.

It's been a week of preparation for the holidays.  Besides getting our tree up, apartment decorated, last minute gifts purchased and meals planned, my preparations included beefing up my Italian vocabulary related to Christmas and studying about Christmas traditions in Italy.

Here's some useful Italian vocabulary, if like me, you are learning too!

Buone Feste - Happy Holidays
Buon Natale - Merry Christmas
Felice Anno Nuovo - Happy New Year
Stella di Natale - Poinsettia
Babbo Natale - Santa Claus
la renna - reindeer
la slitta - sleigh
il presepe - nativity scene
il presepe vivante - living nativity scene
il pupazzo di neve - snowman
il fiocco di neve - snowflake
il regalo - present
l'albero di Natale - Christmas tree
la vigilia di Natale - Christmas eve
luci di Natale - Christmas lights

This is, believe it or not, the top of a torte in the window of one of my favorite bakeries ( pasticceria) in Castello. Too pretty to eat!

Here's a version of the classic Christmas song, Santa Claus is Coming to Town, performed in Venetian dialect by one of my favorite local groups, Ska-J.

Buon Natale! Buone Feste!

December "Firsts"

So far this month, I've had several firsts. No, I'm not talking about the first day of December.

1)...there was the first panettone of the 2013 season

Panettone is a cross between a bread and a cake, more bread-like though, and comes in two standard versions - classico (with raisins and candied fruit) or without. My personal favorite is with the fruit. Every grocery sells a large selection of brands, and each pastry shop makes them. It wouldn't be Christmas without panettone.

2)  - My first sighting of Babbo Natale

Babbo Natale ( otherwise known as Santa ) doesn't come down the chimney here in Venice like he would in the United States. No, he climbs in through a window. This time of year you will see Babbo Natale make his appearance on balconies and the iron work surrounding windows. This guy is the first one I've spotted.  Just might go on my annual Babbo Natale hunt in a few days to see how many I can find in my neighborhood.

3) - the first Acqua Bassa 

Acqua Bassa is "low" water, meaning a very unusual low tide. Typically it's this time of year we are all on the look out for the high water, Acqua Alta. Instead, over the last few days we've seen very low water in the canals. It's always strange to see so many steps visible on days like these. Not what we're used to at all

4- first sighting of fur coats out for the season

It's officially winter, and that means the fur coats are out in force. They are worn to go to the market every morning, to walk the dog, or even to take out the trash. Everyone wears them. In every color, style, and length imaginable.

5- My first close up photo of this bird, probably an egret. 

I first spotted this guy in the vicinity of the Ca'Rezzonico vaporetto stop over the summer months. Every time I tried to snap a photo, he flew away.  The other day, he was perched on a pole at the Sant'Elena vaporetto, and let me get just a few feet from him, enough to get a few pictures.

                       

What "firsts" have you had recently?  Share them with me, please. Can't wait to compare notes. 

A foggy day in Venice

Yesterday morning we set off for Rialto market in search of fish, more precisely sardines, for our Christmas Eve meal. The fog was thick, so thick that all the vaporettos that run up the Giudecca canal were being routed up the Grand Canal. Typical winter though, it's foggy here. Here's what the vaporetto dock at Sant'Elena looked like as we were leaving.

I disembarked at San Zaccaria, with the intention of walking the remainder of the way from St. Mark's up to Rialto.  I had no idea there was a regatta being held yesterday, so  you can imagine how pleasantly surprised I was to discover  several boats queuing up right in front of the San Zaccaria boat dock. Not your usual regatta participants either. All the boats were being rowed by Babbo Natales- and , looking a bit closer , I spotted some ....yes, that's  right, women rowers.  Brava, ragazze!!!
These photos are as good a view as I could get, through all the fog.

As I watched these women maneuvering their boats, I found myself having an Italian language discussion with myself, in my head.  I thought..if one is Babbo Natale, is two or more of them (males) Babbi Natale??  or Babbi Natali??   Is a female then a Babba Natale?? And more than one Babbe Natali??
I found myself completely in the fog... inside and out!!   So I convinced myself to give up. To satisfy myself and end the internal debate, I took it upon myself to call these female rowers "Babette ", and not worry about the plural at this time. Basta.   At least then I could get my head out of the fog.

Hmmm... Rudolfo and friend pulling....a boat, not a sleigh. Only in Venice!

I didn't have time to stick around to catch the entire regatta as I needed to get to the fish market before it closed.  The market was swarming with people, all with the same shopping list I had, evidently- fish for their holiday meals.  I bought crab, oysters and rombo. Unfortunately, not one tiny sardine left in all of Rialto to be had by the time I got there (about 10:30-11 am).

Loaded down with not only fish but a bag full of vegetables, I waited for the vaporetto at Rialto Mercato to return home. Fortunately, most of the fog had burned off.  As I waited for the #1 boat to make it's way down the Grand Canal, some of the Babbo Natale regatta racers were making their way home down the Grand Canal, post race. I had a great vantage point for photos right on the front of the dock.

Wonder if she is the Ice Queen??

As the last rower passed in front of me, I turned to my right, and caught this man also observing the rowers (see photo below) while queued up for the vaporetto.     Santa?????

A little bit more Christmas in Venice

It's not Christmas in Venice without at least a few sightings of Santa Claus..opps... make that Babbo Natale!  Santa delivers gifts to good children (but of course, only the good ones) by climbing up the balconies on rope ladders. No chimneys to climb down here in Venice. Here's a selection of a few Babbo's I spotted yesterday on my walk from Sant'Elena to Via Garibaldi.

I loved this one, looks like he's rapelling down to the window! Brave Babbo!

In addition to Babbo sightings, you can't help but know it's the Christmas season when you start seeing all the Panetone's stacked up in all the bakery windows.

And while this guy isn't quite the same as the other Babbo Natale's I've seen, I had a hard time passing -him by. This life size Babbo - well, at least my size Babbo (he's as tall as I am)- is standing in front of a shop on Via Garibaldi.  I particularly love his fur trim jacket and hat. Fits right in with winter in Venice.

 Yes, there are Christmas trees (alberi di Natale) in Venice. Not many, but you can find them. These are at the little nursery close to the Giardini vaporetto stop. Most likely you would need the vaporetto to get the tree home after buying it. Can't imagine carrying a live tree through Venice. As much as I regretted giving up having a live tree when we moved here, we did break down and by a very nice "imitation" one a couple of years ago.

I loved the red balls on this gate decoration on Sant'Elena. Note the Babbo Natale at the window ....

And finally....it wouldn't be Christmas in Venice without some Murano glass Santa sightings. This whimsical little tiny one standing only 2 inches high  is in our living room.  It's blown by Igor Balbi, a talented glassblower who has a shop near the Rialto market.

Buon Natale from our house to yours!

Ice skating rink open in Campo San Polo

On December 9th, the largest ice skating rink ever set up in Venice was opened to the public in Campo San Polo. It will be open until the end of Carnevale on February 21, 2012.   (Hours are Mon-Thurs 3-7pm, Friday 3-9 pm, Sat 11-9pm and Sunday 11-7pm)  Along with the ice rink there is also a small Mercatino - shopping area- where there are some stalls set up for vendors selling foods.

This is not me in the photo, although I will admit I am very tempted to take a spin around the rink.  Not sure if that's something my new knee would be happy about though! In the center of the rink is an interesting structure that is lit up at night.  I love how it sits right on top of the campo's pozzo (well)!  When we were at Campo San Polo yesterday afternoon, there was a good number of families enjoying the skating. It's good to see this kind of activity for a change. Normally we just see crowds of tourists. 

I'm a mercatino girl, I just can't get enough of them. We used to have a nice sized mercatino di Natale in Campo Santo Stefano, however that hasn't happened in the last two years. I'm very happy to see this small one at San Polo, and I'm sure I'll be back several times to purchase cheeses and salami's during the coming weeks.  Here's a few photos of the vendors stalls at Campo San Polo for you to get a good idea what it's like.

Several varieties of cannoli- covered with chopped nuts, chocolate chips, and my favorite- with maraschino cherries on both ends!

These are all marzapan candies!!Lots of them!

 This liquirizia (licorice) from Calabria looked like large chunks of coal. I wonder how many kids will be getting some of this in their stockings!