Or
There's no Fire on Murano after 5PM.
We last saw our hardy travelers having been cut loose by
Nadia, and 3/4 of the way to the Vaporetto #1 stop, trying to decide on where
to grab lunch. They finally decide on the cute little terrace of l’ombra del leone, which of course is back he way they came, back up the alley
to the vaporetto stop, around the corner and back down another alley to the
café next to the Bauer Venezia. They do a lot of back tracking lately.
Lunch and wine were delightful although there was an
extended discussion with the waiter about the customary “Cover Charge” that was
added to the bill. Many restaurants throughout Europe automatically add a
“cover charge, per person” just for sitting at a table rather than standing at
a counter. Chucky and DL learned this the hard way on the first trip to Italy
in 2001} Once resolved, they were off,
back up one alley, down the other and all around San Marco to arrive just in
time to hop on the #1 back to Ferro Via, to transfer to #3 that will take them
to Murano.
Something in the back of Chucky’s mind told him that going
to Murano at 4:30PM may not be a great idea, but WE4 were intent on making the
trip so they set out for Ferro Via.
30 minutes later, they arrive at Ferro Via and wait to take
#3 to Murano which is supposed to go the short route with only 3 stops, but in
fact takes the long route which hit every stop along the way. All of which
makes absolutely no difference because upon de-barking at the Navagero Murano
Stop at 5:45PM and popping into the first shop along the fondementa, they
discover that the shop is about to close, and all the others including the
Glass Blowing factories have already closed and don’t open again until Monday
morning, when of course WE4 will be in Corfu.
Oh Welllllll, they’ll just have to squeeze it in on the
Saturday between cruises.
A walk around the area led the to the Museo stop to wait for
whatever Vaporetto takes them back to P.le Rloma and of course wind up on the “local”
that hits EVERY stop back.
Once back at P.le Roma, they get to the Bus Stop just as 4L
is pulling in.
The trip back to Milano was quick and after a little refresh
they call a cab to get to Trattoria Al
Passo, 15 minutes from the apartment in Compalto, a famous Seafood restaurant recommended by on of
Chucky’s Italian Clients who swears it is THE BEST. Reviews on Trip Advisor and other sites are
mixed but they have to try it.
RadioTaxiVenezia picked them up 7 minutes from the call and
the were at Al Passo in no time.
We would like to say that it was one of the Best Dining
Experiences in Italy.
However, in spite of the Raves, it was NOT.
What started out with great expectations, careened down-hill
rapidly after being seated and waiting 20 minutes, trying to decipher the menu
and still no solicitation for Drinks or anything else for that matter. When the overworked “front” waiter [you
restaurant types understand that] finally dropped the bread and was about to
run off, WE4 was able to put in a drink order.
What arrived was a joke. Donna
ordered Vodka on the rocks and got a shot of chilled Vodka in a large glass, no
ice. The Wine Chucky ordered took a bit
longer.
By now the “front” waiter was getting a bit surely and
flagging him down was getting more tedious.
Finally, the “back” waiter dropped by to take a food order
and after protracted “negotiations” explained some of the selection and managed
to get half the order wrong, because when the food arrived 40 minutes later,
the appetizer was missing and had to be reordered.
What arrived, food wise was an embarrassment, and truly, if
they weren’t way out of town with no cab stand outside, Chucky would have lead
a parade out of there in no time. As it
was, they tried to make a go at the various items ordered, preferring to make
it Family Style so they could sample all of the Highly Touted Fare, only to be
disappointed there too.
3 hours after arriving at Al Passo, they called for the check
which arrived with no itemization, just a total. At
this point, all they wanted was out and asked to have a cab called. All of which was another Cluster F**K.
The cab finally arrived and they headed back to Via Milano
15 with Chucky vowing to communicate directly with the Chef/owner about the
experience once he had a chance to calm down.
Back at the Via Milano 15, it was time to crash as the next
day would be a flurry of activity, including Baci-Baci, Hug-Hug with Lara to
return the keys, get the “Black Taxi” to the Port and getting on the ship for
the next phase of this adventure.
Ciao 4 Now
Uncle Chuck & The
very disappointed with dinner,
Dragon Lady
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