St Francis, Coffee, Making Lists and Venice.
I paid my 3 Euro and entered to high vaulted ceilings and marble floors. Although the height of summer, the tombs on the floor outnumbered the visitors. For me, the Basilica Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari proved one of the best art galleries I visited in Venice. Furthermore, if I hadn’t been in the habit of making lists and keeping them in my camera bag, I would’ve missed it altogether.
People travel in different ways. I always read so much about where I’m going, my girls view me as a walking guidebook. I usually begin with the history before dipping into the art of a place, then taking a few steps sideways to investigate the food or whatever else I come across. I always take to a book (or three) to read, which is either set where I’m going or written by an author who lived there. (Think Thomas Mann’s Death in Venice versus Casanova’s “Storia della Mia Vita” — The History of My Life.)
I always end up with hundreds of pins from Pinterest to inspire me (I find Pinterest a great way to get a feel for an area that is different to what guidebooks might say. It’s easy to spot those places so touristy they’ve been photographed a thousand times, but I also find others I could easily…
