Ale in the Kitchen

Translation done by Alessio Petri, which is me eheh 🤭

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What you will find in this guide 📄

• Arriving in Italy in the main Airports
• Main Apps
• Accommodation in Venice and Mestre
• Hostels (CX, A&O, Anda, Camplus Santa Marta, College AMDG) (update) ⚠️CX HOSTEL IS CLOSED TILL MARCH 2026⚠️
• How to make the Venezia Unica Card for transportation
• How the means of transportation work
• How to get Tax Code and Residence Permit (new)
• How to get a SIM card plan with Iliad or Tim or Vodafone (new)
• My favorite places to eat and not
• My favourite Asian Markets (new)
• Places to absolutely avoid
• Pages to follow on Instagram to stay informed about life in Venice
• Things to visit in Venice
• Main university locations
• Italian Culture (coming soon)

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Arriving in Italy – Main Airports 🛬

Here’s a small introduction because, regardless of where you’re coming from, you might arrive at Venice Marco Polo Airport, Milan, or even Rome. So, I will classify the necessary movements:

• Venice Marco Polo Airport: It is a silent airport, so there won’t be any announcements as soon as you disembark from the plane. I must warn you, Venice is very expensive, incredibly so, and as soon as you arrive, you will need to purchase a bus ticket (I absolutely do not recommend taking a taxi, never). The bus ticket costs €10.00 regardless of your destination because it departs from the airport. Remember that a regular bus ticket within the municipality of Venice costs €1.50 from machines or tobacco shops, but if you’re in a hurry and board the bus without a ticket, you can request one from the driver. However, tickets bought on the bus cost double, so €3.00. To find the best way to get around, I recommend using Apple Maps, but many of my friends prefer Google Maps (use Apple Maps, in my opinion, it’s better). Upon arriving in Italy, you will notice that public transportation is not always punctual. In fact, in Venice, there will be at least three strikes a month during which transportation services are not guaranteed.
• Milan-Malpensa Airport: From Milan, I highly recommend the high-speed train app Italo Treno, available on both the Apple Store and Play Store. I suggest using Italo in advance because every two weeks, there are discount codes that allow you to find trains for the Milan-Venice route for as low as €9.90 (Youth fare for those aged 14 to 29). Note that this route refers to Milano Centrale to Venezia Santa Lucia (approximately 2 hours and 15 minutes). If you’re arriving from the airport, you will need another ticket that you should buy through the Trenord or Trenitalia app from Malpensa Airport T1 or T2 to Milano Centrale (about 1 hour) costing €13.00, and then the ticket I recommended with Italo from Milano Centrale to Venezia Santa Lucia or Venezia Mestre. Alternatively, if you don’t find decent discounts with Italo, you can use Trenitalia where the base fare is around €22.00 (about 3 hours and 25 minutes with regional and/or regional fast trains), or from €19.00 to €35.00 (about 2 hours and 30 minutes with Frecciarossa) – remember that prices are not fixed and increase as the departure date approaches, so if you only buy a Frecciarossa ticket (regional and regional fast trains have fixed prices), you will pay much more compared to buying a ticket with a departure date, for example, three months in advance.
• Rome Fiumicino Airport: It’s too far, are you crazy? But some people have done it, so I’ll share their experience. In short, it’s very similar to Milan’s airport, so I recommend using Italo Treno and/or the various trains available with different fares. Here, you can take the regional train that departs from Roma Fiumicino Airport to Roma Tiburtina for €8.00 (approximately 48 minutes) and then continue from Roma Tiburtina to Venezia Santa Lucia or Mestre with Italo for €23.50 (about 3 hours and 50 minutes) – remember that the Italo prices I mention are thanks to discount codes that are occasionally available, so the price always depends on the discount percentage of the given code. My Korean friends organised small integrated vacations: instead of traveling directly from Rome to Venice, they stayed a couple of days in Rome, then stopped in Florence, Bologna, and finally Venice. This might be an initial solution to avoid immediate jet-lag fatigue and to start experiencing Italian culture gradually.
• Other Airports: For other airports, the transportation options are very similar to those from Milan. So remember the main train transport apps, which are Italo Treno, Trenitalia, and/or Trenord.

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Accommodations in Venice and Mestre 🏠

Before starting, here I attached the link to Ca’ Foscari website about Residences that have an agreement with the University so that you can first search here and then look more info on my blog.

Perhaps the most difficult part of all, but if we organize ourselves in time, we can really succeed in this rather tough endeavor. Personally, it didn’t take me long to find a place, and I’ll explain the little hells I had to go through: I started first on real estate agency websites and, despite being a stingy person, I wanted to avoid this, but better stingy than homeless, so I started by typing “student house rental Venice”. My first choice fell on the real estate agency “Otto Den” where at first glance the lady welcomed me quite well, but then, despite sending her messages on WhatsApp showing interest in a good apartment, she decided to behave like a 15-year-old girl, ignoring calls and reading messages without responding, so as a first experience with real estate agencies, it was more than a failure. So, first point – never get excited when you think you’ve found a house because there’s always a catch around the corner – remember to always read the reviews of any place on Google first, and be sure to read the negative reviews more carefully because those are much more important. Another agency that I absolutely loved, and I still thank my lady friend Anna for showing real interest because that’s how you work: always showing interest towards the client because if you want to sell/rent a house, you can’t ignore the person who buys/rents the house, right? Anyway, the agency in question is “Punto Agenzia Immobiliare” and in this case, Anna will help you all the time, and if they don’t have solutions for you at the moment, they will keep you updated if they find something in the future, and an additional point in their favor is that they always have a smile on their faces. I’ll write you about two other agencies that I contacted, and they were also very kind to me all the time (unfortunately, I evaluate a service based on the smile and kindness shown to me, and if I see hesitation in answering one of my questions for even a second, well, they are not for me – I’m not mean, to be clear, but finding a place to stay for a long time isn’t something that takes 2 or 3 days, but it’s about one or two years or even more, and it’s also an investment because Venice isn’t cheap, so one needs to feel comfortable in every aspect), the agencies are “Agenzia Michielan” and “Il Mediatore”. I really recommend these to you; here are the links to their websites below – tip: call them by phone or via WhatsApp message, make your interest heard with your voice, and don’t hesitate with all the questions you have in mind.

Click on the name to open the link:

• Punto Agenzia Immobiliare
• Agenzia Michielan
• Il Mediatore

Now let’s move on to how I found a rental house in Venice, specifically in Campalto. As I mentioned in the main applications section, I found a house thanks to the Idealista app. There are really many houses, and you may notice that the rental houses from the agencies I mentioned above might also appear because it’s an app that gathers all the houses for sale or rent across Italy. As I have reiterated several times, Venice is expensive, and it is difficult to find a place to stay under €200.00, and if you do find one, it might not be as decent as it appears, but you never know, you might get lucky and find a beautiful apartment for €100.00 a month that looks like a villa. In my case, I paid €410.00 a month, including water, internet, and staircase cleaning, in a fairly large house, but shared with 4 other people. I can’t deny that at first, living together was very difficult because cooking with 5 people in the kitchen and waiting for turns to use the bathroom is something not to be underestimated. But in the end, we all got used to it and became a nice family that I still miss a lot. Note that the house I found was without a real estate agency, so I didn’t have to pay agency fees. So, keep this in mind as well: many landlords still ask for a deposit that can be two or three months’ rent, which will be returned to you at the end of the rental contract (obviously be careful not to damage the property because otherwise they will withhold a small part. And since Venetians love money as if there were no tomorrow, I urge you to record a video and take photos of the furniture, walls, and any other part of the house when you move in so that you have proof that you were not the ones who damaged the place. This is very important because people take advantage of situations a lot – especially if you are a foreigners – so always act with caution and keep your eyes wide open). I repeat, never give money in advance to anyone if you haven’t seen the house with your own eyes, and also remember not to give a deposit to view the house—no one asks for money in advance to see a house.

Regarding the difference between real estate agencies and private landlords, agencies will charge you an extra month’s rent and sometimes even VAT, which is 22% in Italy (each agency operates differently, so some will always be more affordable than others). However, with the Idealista app, you can contact anyone once you create a profile and enter who you are, what kind of house you’re looking for, whether you have pets, if you are a student or a worker with a contract, and how many people you want to live with. It’s a well-made app. Then you like the apartment/house you are interested in, and you’re good to go. If you can’t find any house, I recommend following the Instagram page called spottedunive, where you can ask for help and stay informed about initiatives from the Venetian university. Usually, the Instagram stories with a purple color are those related to rentals in Venice, so keep an eye on them. I found my Korean roommate Paul, as well as Pietro and Nico, thanks to the purple posts from Spotted Unive. IMPORTANT: sometimes within these stories, there is a suggestion to join a Telegram group for housing ads in Venice. I recommend joining it and seeing what people offer because it was thanks to this group that I found my landlord, and then we moved to Idealista.

Click on the name to open the link:

• Telegram Rental Group Link
• Rent Students and/or Workers Facebook
• Room Rentals/Find a House/Rent Facebook

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Hostels 🛎

This part is more of a pros and cons list that I found while visiting my friends in different hostels in Mestre, so it’s not a real “I lived here so this is my experience”, but rather an external perspective. One of the most recommended hostels by all the students, if not the most “famous” one, is CX Mestre. More than thirty people I know have stayed in this hostel, and I have received mixed reviews: some found it a fantastic place, while others regretted staying there. As always, take everything with a grain of salt because everyone is different, and some people might not know how to get along with others, or even worse, they were assigned company that wasn’t compatible with theirs. And most importantly, as I always remind you, read the reviews carefully.

Now let’s move on to my opinion on this place, as I “stayed” there for almost 5 months visiting Jack, Luciano, Zeus, Aria, Minjae and Jongbeen during the years. The room my friends had was a bunk bed room with two desks with lamps, a television, a small fridge, and a bathroom with a shower. The room itself wasn’t very large, but I know there are bigger ones if you’re willing to sacrifice some other space within the room. On the ground floor, you’ll find the lobby with a small bar where you can get coffee and breakfast. Continuing further, you’ll find a quiet study room, a well-equipped gym, a pool table, and a large room with tables where you can eat, a laundry room, and finally, a kitchen with ovens, microwaves, two induction cooktops, and cutting boards (which were added not too long ago). You can decide which features are most important to you and whether what CX offers suits your needs. Be aware that around 18:00 and 11:00, the kitchens will be full of people starting to cook, so sometimes it can be hard to find a spot to prepare your meal. It’s good practice for everyone to clean up after themselves, but of course, not everyone does, so you might occasionally find clogged sinks that will either be cleaned by you or by the cleaning staff in the morning. One of the strengths of this facility is the gym, where you can go whenever you want for as long as you like. The pool table is also quite popular and often occupied in the evenings, as there’s only one available. I’m not sure how the roommate assignment process works, but for example, Jack didn’t know who his roommate was until we opened the door, and he wasn’t informed about our arrival. If you have problems with your assigned roommate, you’ll need to hope for a plausible excuse to change rooms. Additionally, whenever you want to bring a friend over, they need to leave an ID, be registered as a guest in the app (depending on the staff at the desk, as there are two or three people who weren’t very accommodating in my experience, while all the others were fantastic and I cried a bit the day I had to say goodbye because there were no more reasons for me to go there since my friendJack left the place and I left Venice too), and they can stay with you only until 23:59, after which they will have to pay. According to the app, a guest can stay for 3 nights per month for free at CX, but this doesn’t apply to CX Mestre, where your guest will only get a discount on the room and nothing more. P.S. the washing machines and dryers are not complimentary, and you’ll need to pay €2.50 per use, so it will cost you €5.00 each time you wash and dry your clothes. I don’t want to list pros and cons since I didn’t live there 24/7 like my friends did: if you’re someone who just wants a roof over the head in the immediate term and doesn’t mind sharing a kitchen and dining room and occasionally using the gym, then CX might be for you. However, if you’re picky, want any kind of comfort, want to have your own private space or moments of privacy, and hate sharing your things with strangers, then look elsewhere. Unfortunately, I can’t say much more, but I can always give my final opinion: would I ever stay at CX for two years or 6 months? No. Simply because I like cooking, and two small induction cooktops aren’t enough for me. Additionally, I hate having to wait for someone to finish using the oven, and I’m picky about kitchen equipment in general. Nonetheless, I found a great community of Koreans and Japanese at CX, with very few Chinese and Taiwanese, but also a nice Turkish community. So, you’ll be warmly welcomed and will absolutely make friends, which is the most important thing.

For the other hostels, I’ll be much briefer. Next to CX there is the A&O hostel: none of my friends have stayed here, but the CX and A&O facilities are connected as if they were one building. This means that the prices and room sizes are similar (but still unsure about that). Unfortunately, I only visited the rooms given to guests, not students, when Jack’s relatives came to visit, so I took the opportunity to check out this hostel too. It is very similar to CX, with the only differences being on the exterior of the building. Let me explain: CX has only 4 chairs and a small table outside, while A&O has many sofas and tables where you can sit comfortably. Another difference is that A&O does not have a gym. So, if you wanted to exercise, you might prefer CX, but instead of a gym, A&O offers something I adore: karaoke. I know many people might not care about a microphone, but I love singing, and this microphone also hosts various evenings and shows (CX also has different nice events that you can discover by looking at the flyers at the entrance or the posters inside the elevators). There are no other differences that I noticed. So, I recommend this place to those who are not very interested in sports but prefer enjoying the sweet life, listening to people sing, or relaxing outside while enjoying the nothing-view, as there’s nothing to see outside the hostels, really.

The next hostel I know of is the Anda Hostel: I will be much briefer here – I have only been there twice with Jack to visit two of his friends, and the main difference is the nightlife: it’s very lively and full of parties. There is always an event happening, whether it’s singing or playing darts. To learn more, I recommend carefully reading the hostel’s pages and the services they offer (just click on the hostel’s name and you will be directly sent to the official hostel page).

Campus Santa Marta is another university’s affiliated campus and in this case I will give you literally a feedback from my friend Huang which stayed there for more than an year – for your information, Huang is Chinese and was born in 2001, so think about this too: thanks to the International University Office, I found all the information. I have to say that the room types are a bit confusing, as they’re formally divided into single and double rooms – single rooms cost 750,00€ and double rooms 650,00€ – but some double rooms are very different in terms of layout. For example, some have balconies, while others have the two beds too close together, which could be uncomfortable. Living in a comfortable and spacious double room depends entirely on your level of luck. Humanities students only need a five-minute walk to reach their classrooms, while those studying in the Economics department need more than a thirty-minute walk. However, living on campus also has some positives, such as the presence of a gym – where they play horrible music in my opinion – and a Hum.us cafeteria, where you can study, play games, and eat, and there are also large study rooms next to your room where you can study instead of going to Hummus, which is literally across the small garden from the building. I asked Huang if he would like to stay here again for another year and he said no as it remains too expensive.

The last one I can suggest is College A.M.D.G. (here I linked you the page of the rooms so you can quickly have an idea about the prices and then you can search for other info if you like the prices of the rooms eheh) and here stayed my Japanese friends Tai, Mayuna and Ao for an entire academic year. Among all the hostels this is a bit far away from where I live – there are water busses but still far – however, I attach here the review from Tai since I went inside the building twice and mh, being honest, I didn’t like much, but you shouldn’t pay attention to me cause I didn’t live here. For your information Tai is 23 years old so the things he likes may differ also from age and persona: in summary, I truly enjoyed my time in this dormitory. However, in my opinion, it has both significant pros and cons. The biggest advantage is the people. The manager and staff are very kind to students and always cheerful. Even if you are shy or not very outgoing, they will approach you with warmth. The dormitory also organises events such as cosplay parties to encourage socialising. If you want to connect with both local and international students, I highly recommend staying here. The main disadvantage is the condition of the building since it is very cold in winter and extremely hot in summer and I often had flies in my room. In such situations, you need to find solutions on your own. The kitchen is also quite small and another thing to add is that you will have cleaning-turns so bear in mind that sometimes you have to come back around 21:00 because is your turn to clean – sometimes you can switch days with your friends of course – One thing I especially love about this dormitory is the view located in Cannaregio, one of the residential and seaside areas of Venice, so the atmosphere was calm and the scenery beautiful, which always helped me relax. In conclusion, I recommend this dormitory if you would like to stay on the Venetian islands, close to both local and international communities. However, I do not recommend it if you prefer a building with modern facilities and a perfectly clean environment. That’s all from Tai’s point of view and I think you can count on it and take your consideration.

Sadly, I don’t have any more recommendations about where to stay. One day I’m pretty sure I will also add somebody from San Giobbe Campus, but first I have to find a friend from it ahaha. I hope you really have clear opinions on where to live in Venice 🍀

If you’re still unsure where to go, consider this question: where would you stay if you were late in finding a place to live? I, Alessio, would choose A&O because I know too much about CX and I would like to see where they differ from each other, but that doesn’t mean it’s the best hostel in Mestre because by fame I would suggest CX. However, if I were on time with the organisation, I would look for an apartment in the island of Venice rather than Mestre, as houses become available around December and May, and there are many more rental listings. If you have a tight budget, I would search in Mestre, avoiding the train station area, and consider more distant areas like Campalto or Marghera, as you can travel easily with public transport. So, I would lean towards using the Idealista app and finding a place to share, ideally with no more than two other people. If I were wealthy, I would rent a place directly across from the university, and you could manage with €500.00 a month. If you want to make friends and save a bit more, I would opt for a hostel room – but be careful as not all hostels are budget-friendly, so thoroughly check everything and be wary of potential scams and contract clauses.

If I haven’t been able to help you, here’s the link to the official Ca’ Foscari page on accommodations, so you can see what they offer.

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How to make the Venezia Unica Card for transport 🚎

You can obtain the transportation card either on the island of Venice as soon as you arrive at Piazzale Roma or in Mestre city center (if there are other places where it can be issued, I honestly wouldn’t know where guys). – Click here for the location on Venice island and here for Mestre city center (Google Maps link). I’ll get straight to the key points to save you some time, though you’ll probably waste quite a bit of it, as this was the first place where I encountered rudeness in person.

The main things you need to bring, and the documents required, are obviously → an Italian friend. Yes, in places like this, I can assure you that people are eager to get rid of you as quickly as possible. So, if you don’t understand what they’re asking (because their English pronunciation is often very Italian and strong), they’ll likely tell you to come back next time. However, with an Italian friend by your side, things can go much more smoothly. Trust me, I’d love to be that Italian friend for you—I really would—but unfortunately, I can’t always be there, and eventually, you’ll forget about me. So, it’s better that you start learning to do things on your own, as “growing up” also means this. Jokes aside, make sure you bring every possible document, such as a passport or ID card (it’s better to carry extra, even unnecessary, documents than to have too few and end up waiting in line again). Another very important thing is to PRINT OUT YOUR UNIVERSITY ENROLLMENT FORM because they won’t print it for you, even though the printer is right behind them (and once you bring this form, they won’t even look at it… it’s just a waste of time). If you’re wondering “can I show the enrollment form on my phone?” the answer is NO. However, with this form that proves you’re attending university and are a student, you will only pay €10 for the card. The current prices (updated as of September 2025) are €100 if you want the card valid for 5 years, or €10 for a one-year validity. You also have the option of subscribing to yearly or monthly plans, and the prices vary if you’re a student and/or under 26 years of age: a student under 26 pays only €25 for a monthly pass. Once you turn 26 (whether you’re a student or not, it no longer matters because you’re categorized as “old”), the monthly pass will cost €37. Note that the subscription covers all ACTV busses, vaporetti, and trams within the municipality of Venice. So → if you’re under 26 and you’re applying for the Venezia Unica card and adding the first monthly subscription, you’ll pay €35 (€25 for the monthly pass + €10 for the card creation). If you’re 26 or older, you’ll pay €47 the first time (€37 for the monthly pass + €10 for the card creation). The advantage of having the card is that if you want to take the vaporetto, you’ll only pay €1.50 instead of €9.50. You can top up the card at any tobacconist (they usually, if not always, only accept cash, not card payments), again at the ACTV offices on Venice island and in Mestre city center, and at automatic machines found at some bus stops. I usually top up my card at these machines: just place your transportation card on the NFC reader and proceed by selecting the type of top-up you want to make. You can top it up month by month or load several months at once. I strongly recommend topping up your card not at the end of the month but at least 5 to 7 days before, because otherwise, there will be lots of people also renewing their subscriptions at the end of the month. You must scan the card both when boarding and getting off from the bus – though if you have a subscription, it’s not mandatory. However, I still suggest doing it, as the driver explained to me that the more people scan their cards, the greater the chances of having more busses on that route.

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How the means of transport work 🚢

There’s not much to explain here, honestly, but you never know. Many people use Google Maps, while I’m one of the first to say “no, I recommend Apple Maps”. Of course, I suggest this to those who have an iPhone, as I rarely use Google Maps myself, and the one time I did, I got lost. Anyway, I’ve already provided some help for this section within the main applications to use, so you can more or less refer to those again, but a quick review here certainly won’t hurt.

1. As I’ve mentioned, for busses, always scan your card both when getting on and off of it. It’s also good manners to offer your seat to elderly people and if you don’t, they will most likely ask you to in a rude manner. Keep in mind, though, that there are seats specifically reserved for people with disabilities, pregnant women, and the elderly, so they could just easily sit there instead of asking for your seat… Ultimately, it all depends on the individual’s temperament. However, if someone asks you for your seat (any seat that isn’t designated for special categories) in an arrogant or disrespectful way, you have every right to say “no” because politeness is key. Also, remember that to stop the bus, YOU MUST RAISE YOUR HAND; otherwise, it won’t stop, and you’ll have to wait for the next one.
2. Always double-check the direction of your route because bus stops are positioned symmetrically. For example, Bus No. 5 will be on both the right and left sides of the stop, but only one will be going in the direction you need. So, carefully check the navigation app for the correct route. If you get on the wrong one, get off at the next stop, and once the bus stops, politely ask the driver if you’re headed in the right direction (ask politely because, again, some drivers can be rude—though not all, of course—so saying “excuse me, does this bus go to this place?” is the best approach).
3. The situation with the vaporetti (water buses) is a bit more complex, as I’m not very experienced with them. I prefer to explore Venice on foot and use the vaporetto only for distances like Piazzale Roma to San Marco or to reach the islands such as Giudecca, Lido, Murano, and Burano. Nonetheless, there are plenty of signs indicating which vaporetto to take and the corresponding directions (though sometimes Apple Maps gives incorrect information, which is why I always prefer to ask). Usually, vaporetti, along with the metro, are more punctual compared to buses or trains. When you board the vaporetto, DO NOT STOP IN THE MIDDLE, as people will start yelling at you to move, so keep walking until you find a spot where you can stay out of the way.
4. The Venezia Santa Lucia train station isn’t very large, and it’s quite easy to figure out where your train is. If you’re unsure, feel free to ask for directions. On the train, you can sit wherever you like unless you’re on one of the high-speed trains with reserved seating. If you purchase your ticket via the Trenitalia app, remember to validate it (though I’ve heard they might be planning to remove this requirement, but I’m not entirely sure). If you have a paper ticket, make sure to validate that as well, haha.
5. If you plan to use the metro, it’s not very commonly used except for reaching the more industrial areas of Venice. The two main stops are at Piazzale Roma and Mestre city center. However, you’ll probably use the metro very little unless you live in more distant areas of Mestre, like Favaro Veneto.

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How to get Tax Code and Residence Permit 🪪

Becoming a student that’s studying abroad means becoming an adult full time and getting the Tax Code (Codice Fiscale) and Residence Permit (Permesso di Soggiorno) will stress you out that your hair will be grey in a second (or maybe not, it depends always on the staff you will meet eheh). Those two documents are the first things you must do as soon as you arrive in Italy and I will try to help you out step by step.

Tax Code – how to get it (read here for Ca’ Foscari information):

Tax code (abbreviation of C.F. on Italian documents) is a 16 alphanumeric number which identifies your surname, name, gender, place and date of birth. It is used to open a bank account, to work and access various services here in Italy. It must be requested from the Agenzia delle Entrate (Revenue Office), or Ca’ Foscari itself helps students to apply for it, so feel free to contact the International Office – Welcome Unit. Or, a better solution in my opinion, contact the Italian Diplomatic authority in your Country of residence – as my Korean roommate Paul did – and once you have the documents you can scan them and email them to Ca’ Foscari at immigrationteam@unive.it. If you want to be a real adult, you can request for it and the documents needed are:

• Passport or Identity Card (if EU citizen).
• Residence Permit or the Application of it (Non-EU citizen).
• Acceptation Letter from Ca’ Foscari.
• Request form with your name, date and place of birth, nationality and address (you can fill the form at home or at their office).

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Residence Permit – how to get it:

It is the document that allows you to legally stay in Italy for a long period (over 90 days). It is necessary for study, work or other activities if you are a non-EU citizen and you need to request the Italian residence permit WITHIN 8 days from your arrival in Italy – remember to read here all the information you need from Ca’ Foscari. I helped once Jack and Huang with those documents and they were pretty difficult also for me, but if you follow all the instructions and guideline from the Ca’ Foscari’s PDF everything is going to be fine. Here, indeed, you can find information on how to pick up the Application Kit at Post Office. Since all the info you need are in those links, I’m going to give you advice on how to behave when facing the Italian Poste:

• Go early in the morning, like super early, otherwise there will be plenty of elderly people that don’t understand and waste all the time.
• Be prepared that you will need more than 100,00€ to apply for these documents.
• With Huang in Venice we went in this Post Office that is only open on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 8:20-13:35 (there is a guy that is totally rude so be nice to everybody because I don’t remember which one is).
• With Jack in Mestre we went in this Post Office which is open from Monday to Friday from 8:20-19:05 and on Saturdays from 8:20-12:35 (here they were all nice, a bit slow, but all nice).
• It would be better if an Italian friend could come with you.

Please, read carefully everything that Ca’ Foscari put as PDF and if you need further help, just send me a message and I will try to give you a better help 🍀

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How to get a SIM card plan with Iliad or Tim or Vodafone 📞

Please, let this be one of the first things you are going to do as soon as you arrive in Italy. Here I’m going to explain (more well detailed for Iliad since I literally create a SIM card for my Korean friend Minjae these days – January 2025) how to get a SIM card.

Iliad (click the name to open the link to the Italian version for the mobile SIM options) – February 2025 options:

• Giga 180: you have 180gb in 4G (5G if the phone is supported) with unlimited messages and minutes for calls at 9,99€ per month – with this option you also have 13gb (included in the 180gb total) to use within European countries. Then you have to add 9,99€ for the SIM activation service. You can top up your monthly payment by going to the Tabaccheria shop by asking the cashier to charge 10,00€ by saying your phone number or in some supermarket (Despar, Intespar, Coop and Pam) by buying the “phone top-up card” (usually at the cash registers) or you can pay by credit/debit card which is better (but it is more better if you can ask to an Italian friend of yours to pay for you. I’m going to explain this better: I register my debit card for Jack’s SIM service plan and since he stayed in Italy from February to July 2024, he gave me 70,00€ (59,94€ for the 6 months (9,99€ x 6) monthly payment and 9,99€ for the activation service) and at the end I change the payment option in his Iliad’s personal account in order that I won’t pay no more months since he was not anymore in Italy. This solution is better if you don’t want to waste your time to top up your SIM card. I suggest this one by being the best option for a phone service.
• Giga 120: it is exactly the same thing as the previous one, but you are going to pay 7,99€ per month and you will have 120gb instead of 180gb and only 11gb for the European countries. The activation for the SIM card and unlimited messages and minutes for calls remain unchanged.
• Giga 250: in my opinion is too much, but nobody knows. It remains the same, but with 250gb (16gb within European countries) and 11,99€ per month. It remains all unchanged for minutes, messages and SIM activation as the previous ones.
• there are other options like only data or only messages and minutes which I totally don’t suggest because I’m 100% sure nobody will choose them unless you are an old person ahahah.

1. You can create a SIM card in the automatic machines in Porte di Mestre or Nave de Vero where there will be the customers service to help you out. Remember that you will need a passport and TAX ID (codice fiscale). During the process you will be asked to record a video for them, don’t be shy, it’s a cringe thing but compulsory: you must say in Italian “Ciao, sono *name and surname* e scelgo Iliad” -> “hello, I am — and I choose Iliad” and finished. It will take 2 or 3 days for the activation.

2. If you are too shy, you can create the SIM via the website to ship at home or CX Venice Hostel by following the passages, they are in Italian and I will help you of course. When you choose the SIM plan you would like to subscribe, click the button ATTIVA. You will be redirected to the next page where you have to choose if you want to keep your phone number (for those who are switching from another phone service) anche check the “no” box and then you can choose if you want to personalised your phone number or given a new one, click here what you want (Minjae choose a phone similar to her Korean one) and click CONTINUA. Check your new phone number and complete the following passage. Then you will be asked to complite the boxes with your info: NOME -> NAME; COGNOME -> SURNAME; CODICE FISCALE -> TAX CODE; NUMERO DI CONTATTO -> PHONE NUMBER (give your Italian friends’ phone number, of course ask first – they won’t receive any messages); DOCUMENTO D’IDENTITÀ (here you can choose what ID you want to show – check the PASSAPORTO -> PASSPORT option); NUMERO DEL DOCUMENTO -> ID/PASSPORT NUMBER; EMAIL; CONFERMA LA TUA EMAIL -> CONFIRM YOUR EMAIL (you cannot copy and paste, just rewrite it again). Then if you want to ship it at home check the box at the bottom IL MIO INDIRIZZO NON È PRESENTE NELLA LISTA (my address is not in the list). If you live in CX Venice Hostel, write as I list here: PROVINCIA -> PROVINCE -> VENEZIA (VE); COMUNE -> MUNICIPALITY OF -> VENEZIA; CAP -> ZIP CODE -> 30172; LOCALITÀ -> PLACE OF RESIDENCE -> MESTRE; NOME DELLA VIA -> ADDRESS -> CA’ ADRIANA MARCELLO; NUMERO CIVICO -> HOUSE NUMBER -> 15; APPARTAMENTO, UNITÀ, EDIFICIO, PIANO, ECC. -> APARTMENT, UNIT, BUILDING, FLOOR, ETC. -> CX VENICE – HOSTEL and click CONTINUA. After this page you will be asked to check the email and then, finally, you have to upload the picture of the document you chose to show and also a recorded video where you say the famous Italian sentence “Ciao, mi chiamo — e scelgo Iliad” after that you will choose the payment method, by credit/debit card or manual like I said earlier.

Of course you can choose between the physical SIM card or the e-SIM (electronic one). If you choose that latter, there won’t be any ship requirements but it will be immediately installed in your phone by reading a qr code, so check if your phone support the e-SIM. Minjae said that her Korean phone doesn’t accept e-SIM (she has a Samsung Note something) and Huang (my Chinese friend) didn’t even know what an e-SIM is, so I guess that many of you will make the physical one and good luck with that. If you managed to do all the passages by yourself with no helps, you are greater than what you think, I’m proud of you 🍀

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Tim (click the name to open the link to the Italian version for the mobile SIM option) – February 2025 option:

As it will almost be like for Vodafone, those two phone services have better option when you switch from telephone operator to another and I don’t know very well how it works with the creation of a new phone number, because also on their online website there are no info about “creating a new phone number” so I’m listing here the Tim options you’ll get by switching from a phone operator to another – it is ok also to start with Iliad and then switch in the future to Tim or Vodafone, but I suggest to do that if you plan to stay an year or more.

PASSA A TIM SOLO CON CODICE FISCALE STRANIERO (SWITCH TO TIM ONLY WITH A FOREIGN TAX CODE) – TIM INTERNATIONAL SPECIAL: switched from Iliad or other operators such as Coop Italia, Vodafone/HO Mobile, Wind tre/Very Mobile, Poste Mobile, Fastweb and Tiscali with a foreigner tax code only for 7,99€ per month plus the activation cost of 10,00€ and you’ll get:

• 100gb in 5G (if the phone is supported) which 12gb available in European countries.
• Unlimited call minutes.
• 1000 messages to use in Italy.
• 888 minutes of calls to China.
• 300 minutes of calls to India, Bangladesh, Poland, Peru, Romania, Morocco fixed line only, Mexico, Colombia, Czech Republic, Romania, Lithuania, Latvia, Israel, Singapore, Cyprus, Pakistan.
• 60 minutes of calls to Egypt, Philippines, Moldova, Nigeria, Ukraine.

I suggest to do this option with an Italian friend since it is pretty difficult to understand how to move through all the passages. Please keep in mind that the documents needed are still the same: passport, foreign TAX CODE or any other ID. And another thing to keep in mind, maybe the most important; phone companies such as Tim and Vodafone (also all the other except for Iliad) they can have price adjustment, what does it mean? It means that they can change their prices according the price market of the phone companies. So you may start paying a certain amount of money and then in a couple of month it can increase (it never decreases) while for Iliad, you are signing for a fixed price documents and their policy is to never increase their prices (but we don’t know what could happen in the future). If this scenario can happen, just switch for another affordable company.

Alessio suggestion is to pick Iliad at 9,99€. Choose Tim only if you have a lots of friends all around the world and you must stay in Italy for a long period. The time-waster is to switch from company to company, but you’ll save a lot of money at the end. Ah, I have Tim, but I’m Italian and also my family and I have Tim Fiber at home and personally I pay 9,99€ with everything unlimited and 50gb at Ultra 5G speed and 20gb to use within European countries.

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Vodafone (click the name to open the link to the Italian version for the mobile SIM option) – February 2025 option:

As I said earlier, I know little about this option, Huang has this one and he said “I ask to the operator at the shop and they did everything for a new phone number” so there’s a possibility. Huang pays 14,99€ monthly and in my opinion is too much therefore, here, I’m going to list in detail what, in my opinion, is a good offer:

VODAFONE YOUNG (younger than 30 years old): if you are young, you can apply for this and for 9,99€ per month you have 200gb in 4G/5G (still if the phone is supported) which 12,6gb to use within European countries and unlimited minutes for calls and 200 messages plus 9,99€ for the first activation SIM card and the ship is free. In their contract it’s written that the price is fixed for 24 months.

To activate this offer, you need to provide them (online) but I’m pretty sure also in the physical store -> NAME, SURNAME and TAX CODE. Sadly I cannot click any further, but keep in mind that the passages are all the same for all the phone companies.

Arrived at this point, the decision is up to you. I still suggest Iliad since it is also easy to stop the payment through their official page when you have to come back your country.

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My Favorite Places to Eat and Not 🍝

It might seem strange, or maybe not, but I have a big appetite. I love eating a lot and cooking (in fact, the name of this blog says it all – it actually started as a recipe blog but then took a less culinary turn, which I still like very much). To be honest, I haven’t tried that many restaurants, but for starting in Venice, I think it’s a good starting point. That way, you can develop your palate and also get a sense of the kind of food I prefer the most. Obviously, everyone has a different palate, and mine certainly isn’t better than yours, especially since I often prefer to cook things that are about to expire from the fridge – so you can imagine what kind of palate I have (one of a bottomless pit). But let’s get to my “small” list of all the places I’ve tried in Venice, eheh.

Restaurants serving meat and fish, sushi, fast food, Asian cuisine, and bars/pastry shops/gelato places (click on the name to open in Google Maps):

• Ca’ Foscari al Canton: Literally one of my all-time favorites. Giulia, Jack, and I have probably gone more than nine times because we love it so much. It’s near the main Ca’ Foscari building in Dorsoduro. Specialises in fish dishes, but their pizzas aren’t bad either. We usually order an appetiser, a first course, a second course, a pizza to share, and finally a dessert each. With TheFork’s 50% discount, we never spent more than €20 each. Every time I pass by, I’m tempted to stop again.
• La Patatina San Rocco: It’s almost next to Al Canton, and the menu is quite similar, with prices that are more or less the same. It’s very good, I can’t deny that. Jack and I have only been there once, but we were more than satisfied.
• Mi Sa Sushi Mestre: Oh my gosh. I categorize it as the best sushi I’ve ever found. It’s literally at the top of the list among all the sushi places I’ve tried in Tuscany, Lombardy, and now Emilia Romagna – delicious. They have great lunch and dinner menus, and I usually prefer dinner because they have grilled beef. It might sound funny since you don’t usually get beef at a sushi place, but I swear, if I could devour an entire cow, I would. It’s fantastic. It’s a 10-minute walk from the Mestre station, and if you book with TheFork, you get a 20% discount for dinner. I highly recommend it with all my heart (sadly, on October 2024, I noticed that it closed definitely… I’m so sorry and totally devastated…).
• Zu Sushi Mestre: It took the place of my wonderful Mi Sa Sushi and my heart never healed from that news. The price is too high and there’s no discount anymore. I went here, thinking of going to Mi Sa, with Linda, Nico, Sandro and Huang and we paid for the dinner menù (with 3 bottles of water) 33,60€ each. The food although is very good and all the dishes are redesign differently. I think you can give it a try but try to wait if they will put some discounts for it cause otherwise it is really a bit expensive.
• Burger King: Yes, I know, it’s funny too. But thanks to the Burger King app, I’ve saved a lot of money, especially with their rewards program. There are only a few locations in Venice, but I prefer the one at the station because it has a free refill drink machine, which gives it more points compared to the one at Rialto. It’s still a regular fast food place though, not different from any other city.
• Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC): Another fast food place? Yes. I absolutely love this one too, no question. They also have an app, and the fried chicken is really good. I don’t have much to say about it because I always feel guilty as soon as I step inside, so I try to order the small menu with ice cream, which is also very good, and I’ve never spent more than €5.
• Dolce Vita Venezia: One of my favorite spots to relax, have a spritz, and enjoy some cicchetti (typical bruschettas with various toppings). I like this bar a lot because their Aperol spritz is very good. I’ve tried almost everything here: iced coffee, cappuccino, chocolate, and pistachio croissants, and even some savory croissants. I loved everything. It feels like just yesterday when I was here taking notes or studying with Giulia and Jack, and we always ended up drinking.
• Pasticceria Tonolo: Since I love making desserts, this pastry shop was one of the first that almost all my friends recommended to me. I won’t deny that the prices are a bit high, but nearly everywhere in Venice is expensive now unless you shop at supermarkets. Their most famous treat is the delicious bigné allo zabaione, which is very good (though I prefer the chocolate ones).
• El Sbarlefo San Pantalon: We went here only once with Nicola, Giulia, and Jack because Jack really wanted to have a drink, and I had just started a diet. But I’ll tell you, I tasted everything anyway, haha. The spritzes were very good, the cicchetti too, and the meatballs were delicious. However, the thing that impressed me the most was the bathroom, hahaha. It’s beautiful and super clean. Oh, and these last three places I mentioned are almost next to each other, so you could try them all in one day if you wanted to.
• Caffè Rosso: I came here for the first time right after I arrived in Venice with my former Spanish roommate, Carolina, and my old course friends. I’ve only been there twice, but I would gladly go back. It’s just always so crowded, which is a sign that it’s very good. I had my first latte macchiato here – really good, I must say.
• Pizza Al Volo: The pizzas here are really good. They’re not the best, but definitely not the worst either. You can choose between regular size and large, and I highly recommend the large one. But be careful when eating it outside because this area is full of seagulls that won’t think twice about jumping on you to steal your food.
• Margaret Duchamp: I remember stopping here before going to Dolce Vita or other places because the name intrigued me, I don’t know why. I came here the first few times with my university mates and later with my former roommate, Pietro. The last time I stepped foot here was for my friend Emilia’s graduation, and I stayed for a while to taste the food. Excellent, there’s not much more to say, highly recommended.
• Orange: It’s literally across from Margaret Duchamp. I came here with Laura and Alice, and for the first time, I tried iced coffee, haha. I’m not a coffee expert since I don’t drink it, but the sandwiches and paninis my friends got were simply spectacular.
• Gelateria Il Doge: Next to Orange, this is a very good gelato shop. My favorite flavors are chocolate and fior di latte, which I absolutely recommend.
• Pasticceria Majer: It took me a long time to enter this pastry shop, even though it’s quite a big chain in Venice. My annoying roommate wanted to go with me to try a chocolate croissant, which he treated me to… and I must say, wow, it was amazing. Later, I discovered with Jack that he loves their cappuccino, and I remember he liked it so much he ordered two.
• Grom: Another very good gelato place. Giulia loved the milkshake here, so I recommend that as well as the gelato.
• GelatiNico: We’ve only been here once with Jack, and he tried the cappuccino and the gelato. Needless to say, he liked both.
• Bar Cicchetteria Terminal 2.0: One of the places I recently visited (September 2024) with Huang and Laura. I wanted to try iced coffee again, but since I don’t know what it’s supposed to taste like, they all taste good to me. They have many sandwiches and paninis to try. We didn’t try them, but according to Laura, it’s a very good place, so I recommend it.
• Bisicchia Rusticheria Siciliana: Wow, I ate some arancini (Sicilian rice balls with meat or other fillings) here and fell in love because they are similar, though not the same, as the ones I tried in Palermo. Of course, they’re more expensive here, but it’s worth trying them at least once. As always, be careful eating outside because of the seagulls.
• La Vacaria: This place is really good. It’s Jack’s favorite because he loves getting the hugo here, and I have to say, he’s right. We’ve been here several times, and they make delicious hamburgers with amazing fries.
• Farini: Funny enough, I’ve tried most of these places with Jack, so yes. We came here to try their large pizza slices, which come in various flavors. All of them are very good, and you’ll find several chains of this bar/pizzeria throughout Venice.
• Bacareto da Lele: This used to be my favorite stop before I started selling my soul to Burger King. I often got small sandwiches and glasses of wine here almost every day because of the very affordable prices (I think €1.60 per sandwich), and I happily made this my lunch or snack spot. Then, as I said, I started getting refill drinks at Burger King, and I stopped going, but I have many fond memories and a full stomach.
• Angolo del Gusto: What a cute place! It’s very hidden, and I discovered it thanks to Nico and Pietro, who often told me to go there because they make good kebab sandwiches and hot dogs. And indeed, we went. Very good, I must admit. The only thing I would say is that the pizza is not the best.
• Orient Express: Honest? Yes. I’ve never been, but according to Eleonora, Elena, and Arianna, it’s one of the best sushi places in the center of Venice, so do I trust them? Absolutely. One thing I can tell you is that it’s always packed, so make sure to book well in advance, especially for dinner, since it’s located on a busy main street.
• Suso: This was the first gelato Jack tried when he came to Venice. I remember how excited he was to taste his first Italian gelato. I tried it too, and I must say it’s very good. There’s usually a long line, though.
• Gelato Gallonetto dal 1985: If someone were to ask me, “What’s your favorite gelateria in Venice?” I’d absolutely say this one. I went there for the first time with Jack, and I tried a single flavor, nocciolata (hazelnut), and was amazed at how much I liked it. It’s one of the few really good, and most importantly, affordable gelato places in Venice—€1.90 for a single flavor. I only have five flavors left to try before I’ve tried them all. Highly recommended.
• 1000 Gourmet Pizza: Most of the pizzerias in Venice don’t offer the authentic Italian pizza experience; they’re more touristy. But not this one. I first came here with Jack, Eleonora, Elena, and Viviana, and I almost teared up because every time I come to Venice, I miss the pizza from my home in Tuscany so much. But with 1000 Gourmet, I feel a little closer to home. The prices are reasonable, though they might seem steep because you’re near Piazza San Marco. But the pizza is so good that it’s worth the price. Always book in advance because there’s rarely availability.
• Serra Dei Giardini: This small café is a bit out of the way, but easily reachable via the vaporetto stop for the Biennale. It’s literally a little greenhouse surrounded by greenery where you can enjoy good muffins and both non-alcoholic and alcoholic drinks. I came here for the first time with Mukesh and Tommaso, and since that day, it’s become one of my favorite spots to bring friends.
• InParadiso: I’ve only been here once with Eleonora, Elena, and Maria Pia. It’s near the gardens and is a beautiful spot, especially in the spring when it’s surrounded by flowers. It’s a bit pricey for my taste, which is why I only had a glass of water, but I remember the two Eleanoras had cappuccino and coffee and said they were very good, so I approve. In my opinion, it’s a great place to relax and admire the beauty of Venice.
• Orientale: Back to Mestre now. Huang brought me here for the first time because he wanted me to try pork intestines and blood sausage, which made me feel queasy just thinking about it. But when I finally tried it, I have to say I actually liked it a lot. Of course, I wouldn’t eat it all the time, but I’ll definitely go back for more.
• Chicken Fly: Tears of joy. After coming back from Korea last year, this place was paradise for me, not only for their delicious bubble tea but also for their fried chicken. I’ve practically become a regular, and when I was absent from Venice for almost a month, the owner asked what had happened to me as soon as she saw me again. They have a wide variety of items, but I usually get the round fries with cream, rice with fried chicken in sweet and sour sauce—absolutely delicious.
• Panda Fly: It opened recently and is literally right next to Chicken Fly. I haven’t been there yet, but I’m really looking forward to it. I’m including it on this list because I’m already sure I’ll be more than satisfied once I try it. I’ve seen from the window that they seem to offer a wider variety of food than Chicken Fly. Can’t wait!
• Old Wild West: We’re now inside the Porte di Mestre mall, where I briefly worked at Unieuro. During my lunch breaks, I tried a bit of everything, including this restaurant. The first time I went with Giulia, Pietro, and Nico—though at a different location—the menu was the same. We tried burgers, fried onion rings, tacos, fries, and various meats. Everything was really good, and you’ll feel like you’ve gained a few pounds, but that’s just how it should be.
• Billy Tacos: I’ve only been here a few times because it opened just as I was finishing my contract at Unieuro. I was “lucky” enough to try their burrito with fries, Nutella, and bananas. I felt sick for two days… But I gave it another chance with Bianca, Samuele, and Manuel, and ordered a regular burrito with fries. It was tasty enough to make me forget the stomach ache from the previous visit.
• Alice Pizza: I stumbled upon this one by chance because my roommate, Satana, mentioned a famous carbonara pizza, so I went there just for that. It was so good that I was blown away and even tried making it at home. They also have other types of pizza, like salmon and salad.
• Roadhouse Grill: Nico, Pietro, and I loved this place. I recommend going on Sundays when they have an offer through the app for “all-you-can-eat ribs” for just €10—you can eat as many ribs as you want until you explode. I remember the first time we went, we must have eaten the equivalent of an entire farm. I really miss those binge-eating sessions with my old roommates… They also serve burgers, tacos, and chicken wings, all really good. Just don’t forget the app!

My “Not” places (read carefully):

This list will probably disappoint you. I’m not someone who criticises places negatively because I always think a restaurant owner might have had a rough day, or who knows what could have happened. So, I won’t name specific places, but one piece of advice I can give is that the list of good places is long enough. You’ll have plenty of dishes to try, and you probably won’t have time to try them all anyway. However, I can tell you that if there are several nearby places that I’ve tried, and I skipped one, well, that’s a sign it might be one to avoid. Again, it could have just been a bad day, and maybe I was unlucky that time. Still, here’s how I want to help you choose where to eat:

• Avoid places in overly expensive or famous areas like Piazza San Marco or Ponte Rialto. These spots obviously charge a certain price because you’re “paying for the history,” but in most cases, while the food is good, the guilt follows quickly. Of course, this doesn’t mean you should deny yourself the treat—everyone is free to spend their money as they see fit.
• Avoid restaurants that cater too much to tourists. How can you spot them? Remember, a good restaurant will never have waiters outside trying to lure you in. When the food is good, you’ll know immediately: they’re usually the restaurants full of people, with no one outside because everyone’s busy inside preparing, serving and eating food.
• Avoid gelato shops with overly bright colors. Let me explain: you can recognize good gelato because it’s not on display out in the open air. Instead, it’s stored in covered containers to avoid absorbing external odors and to keep it fresh longer. A good example of these “hidden flavours” can be found at Gelato Il Gallonetto dal 1985.
• Avoid restaurants that advertise “authentic Italian food” because often, it’s not. Keep in mind, though, that these rules don’t always apply—some might actually offer authentic food. The best advice I can give is always to read Google reviews.
• Always check if there’s a TripAdvisor or Gambero Rosso certification sticker on the window, as it’s a sign that the place is genuinely good.

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Places to absolutely Avoid 😱

I don’t want to stress you out or make you anxious, but being in a place different from “home” can be unsettling. I was a bit scared myself, especially since I knew absolutely nothing.

• As in any city, avoid the train stations. The one in Mestre is particularly dangerous, so please, avoid going there at night. It’s not just the station itself that’s unsafe, but the whole street in front of it. As for Venezia Santa Lucia, it’s somewhat safer, mainly because there are always lots of people around.
• Always avoid alleyways where you don’t feel safe. Here’s an example: you know when you get that weird feeling of unease and fear? Listen to that feeling and leave, or at least don’t stay there alone. Stick to well-lit streets, and please, don’t talk to strangers under any circumstances, thanks.
• Avoid anyone who tries to strike up a conversation with you because, let’s face it, no one randomly talks to you in Venice. Everyone is in a hurry, and the only people who’ll talk to you are your classmates. I don’t think a random stranger is going to come up and ask you something.
• People asking questions like “Do you have prejudices against ex-prisoner?”, “Hey, you dropped this!”, “Excuse me, do you believe in faith?”—avoid all of these ridiculous questions, seriously.
• Just avoid everyone, mind your own business. Unfortunately, Venice is becoming more dangerous, and you don’t know who you can trust anymore.
• Avoid any kind of park at night, and be careful even around Piazzale Roma in the evening. If you’re scared of waiting for the night buses, which only run every 30 minutes, wait at the next stop, Libertà Santa Chiara, where no one will bother you.

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My Favourite Asian Markets 🌶️

I hope this section can be useful to you, but since I’ve been to South Korea, Taiwan and Japan, I’ve fallen in love with the local food a little more and have even tried to replicate it at home every now and then with good results. So here’s another short list of Asian food shops that my friends and I have tried – tap on the name to open Google Maps.

• Ipin Chinese Market: As soon as you exit the station, go right and continue straight along the road and you will find this well-stocked shop next to Tang Ramen. The food shop is run by a very kind Chinese family and Jack and I have been there several times because he found a good deal here for a box of 20 packs of ramen, and has been going there ever since. Of all the other Asian shops nearby, this is the one that, in my opinion, has slightly lower prices than the others.
• Venice Market: This is also located on the right from the station and is before Ipin Chinese Market. This is Huang’s favorite shop where he typically buys a very spicy Chinese oil that I certainly don’t know how to pronounce. In addition to having a large selection of food (more than Ipin Chinese Market) they also sell accessories such as backpacks and/or clothes and electronic devices for the phone.
• Mini Market Mestre: This is also located going right from the station, very close to the CX hostel. As the name suggests, it is very small shop, but it also has a butcher’s section with fresh meat.
• Asia African Market: This shop is located on the left from the station. There will be a very strong smell as soon as you enter, but I noticed that it has perhaps more food products than the other shops. Very affordable prices and maybe you can even negotiate some discounts.
• K-Shop Padova: As the name suggests, here we are in Padua (almost 15 minutes from the Mestre station to the Padua station and then another 15 minutes walk to get to the shop). This is one of the favorite food shops of my Korean friends. I personally have never been there, but all of them, and I mean all of them, of my Korean friends shop there. The prices are slightly higher than the others, but the quality is superior.

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Instagram Pages to Follow to Stay Updated on Life in Venice 🔔

First of all, follow me—what else is there to do? I want to be famous, come on.

Click on the name to open it on Instagram (except for mine, you lazy, type it on Instagram):

• aleinthekitchen_ – me, Ale… basically, me. I’ll do my best to help you as much as I can, but please don’t get too attached. When you leave, I’ll be the one who suffers the most… 😦
• cusvenezia – the university sports center.
• esnvenezia – Erasmus Student Network. You’ll meet new people looking to make friends, organize picnics, events, and parties.
• universitarivenezia – they know about every event happening in Venice.
• spottedunive – very important. They post all kinds of announcements, from people looking for or offering housing to information about which professors to choose for your thesis, or even for those who’ve lost personal items.
• bachecaspottedunive – info about exams, books, and tickets for concerts or parties.
• uduvenezia – a student university association.
• studentlifeinvenice – they’ll help you at the beginning of your exchange journey, where you’ll learn the basics for just about everything.

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Things to see in Venice 🎫

I’ll start by saying that I’m not a big art lover, and although I would like to be your tour guide in every way, unfortunately, I lose a lot of points on certain things. Although I’ve been in Venice for almost two years now, there are so many things that I still have to visit and discover that sometimes I regret not being as cultured as I would like. However, I really wanted to spend my time helping and making my friends discover new places that I unfortunately forgot to “live for myself.” I might feel guilty about this, but if I think about the smile I had while helping my friends, well, I’m happy like this. Should we cry for this? No, let’s continue with this list (I’m following a route line almost all the way around the island starting from Piazzale Roma, and in any case, there are still things to add, and I hope that one day you can help me add them) – click on the name to open the location on Google Maps:

• Ponte della Costituzione: or as I call it “the ugly bridge”. It’s the first bridge you’ll notice as soon as you get off Piazzale Roma, it’s all made of glass and every time someone walks on it, it wobbles badly. Be careful when you go up there when it rains or snows because it’s very slippery and in fact everyone recommends walking in the central part which is made of concrete and not glass. Usually when somebody falls, you can hear a laugh, don’t laugh! It can happen to you too eheh.
• Giardino Papadopoli: once you get up from the ugly bridge you will immediately notice this garden that from spring onwards becomes very colorful and full of flowers. You can relax peacefully on the benches, but don’t dare have a picnic there because the area is literally full of seagulls.
• Canal Grande S. Lucia: it is nothing more than the name of the canal in front of the station, which is (the station) nice both externally and internally. It will be mega populated by tourists, but it is still worth visiting or at least taking a picture of.
• Chiesa di Santa Maria di Nazareth: it’s a small church next to the station ticket office, I’ve never been inside other than just sitting outside, but it’s full of tourists, so it’s worth a visit.
• Ponte degli Scalzi: you will definitely walk over it and take a lot of pictures. It is the main bridge and maybe even prettier than the ugly one. It is next to the station and overlooks my favorite Burger King.
• Chiesa di San Simeon Piccolo: it overlooks directly in front of the station. You stand in the center of the station square and take a picture where behind there will definitely be this church. Many sit on the steps and admire the gondolas, boats and vaporetti that pass by there… I must say that in the evening it is very beautiful.
• Campo San Geremia: it’s a nice square, that is nothing special, but you will certainly pass by here too, where you will admire many unaware tourists who, either are stupid or I don’t know, but they insist on eating while walking and therefore, obviously, the seagulls attack.
• Santuario di Lucia: I’ve never been there, but it’s in front of San Geremia square. I can’t say much because I’ve never seen a long line in front of it, but it’s beautiful from the outside, so go there.
• Giardini Savorgnan: next to the square. There is also a park next to it, you are welcome to relax there.
• Ponte Valeria Solesin: you probably won’t cross this bridge unless you’re an economics student and have classes in San Giobbe. I honestly like it as a bridge, it’s small and funny and it also overlooks a bit of a station that during March and April there’s an absurd sunset.
• Ponte delle Guglie: you will cross this bridge too, of course.
• Ponte dei tre Archi: that’s right, maybe you’ll cross this one too and continuing straight you’ll arrive at the end of the road and that’s the best place to admire the most beautiful sunset you’ll find in Venice (always in the March-April period).
• Museo Ebraico di Venezia: it is located right in the center of the Jewish community of Venice. I must say that it is a very quiet and beautiful area… full of history, but I immediately forgot… sorry.
• Casinò di Venezia: easy guys with these places. I’ve never been there, Jack went there once with some Chinese friends of ours and they had a lot of fun (there’s a taxi that leaves directly from Piazzale Roma and takes you in front of the Casino, you’ll really feel like a VIP doing this boat-taxi ride)
• Chiesa della Maddalena: it is located in front of Campo De La Maddalena, it is a typical church like many others, but it is worth passing by because they are all beautiful.
• Row Venice: I don’t know exactly who told me about this place, but you can admire the fauna of the boats ahaha.
• Chiesa di Santa Maria dei Miracoli: yet another church to visit, this one is very beautiful.
• Campo Santi Giovanni e Paolo: I think I passed by here maybe twice and took a lot of pictures with Allegra, Giulia and Jack. It’s a quiet area in front of the Basilica of Giovanni and Paolo, obviously. In this area you are also close to the hospital which is huge so make a note of this place because you never know.
• Libreria Acqua Alta: everyone is crazy about this bookshop, but I just admired the photogenic potential of the outside where there is a small stage where you can take photos. I really appreciated that.
• Gasometri Venezia: I don’t know what it is exactly, I would say a museum with a beautiful garden, but I’m not sure. See it yourself to find out more.
• Arsenale di Venezia: what can I say, it’s famous. Here everything is connected to then see the Venice Biennale.
• Giardino delle Vergini: next to the arsenal, I think this whole area should be visited during the biennial period to fully enjoy it.
• Viale Garibaldi: you absolutely have to go there, they usually hold food festivals and fairs that you can’t miss.
• Ponte dei Giardini: beautiful, it is surrounded by greenery and then if you want to continue to the island of Saint Helena, you will certainly pass by and I know you will rest in the gardens.
• Campo Santa Maria Formosa: we got closer to almost Piazza San Marco, this church is also very beautiful to see and I think you will definitely pass by here too.
• Ponte Rialto: imagine if the most famous bridge was not worth visiting. Be careful of the amount of tourists on both sides of the bridge and beware of pickpockets.
• Museo di Palazzo Grimani: it’s a very, very interesting archaeological museum… if you were expecting a more detailed description, no.
• Basilica di San Marco: it will be the main attraction of all Venice if not the one that will make you shed a tear. Here they celebrate the three-year degrees with the tossing of the hat that I would really like to try.
• Palazzo Ducale: so many memories I have here… it seems like yesterday I was looking for Lisa from Blackpink for the Bulgari event and instead nothing… Ah, the building is beautiful but it costs a little to get in.
• Giardini Reali: my favorite gardens, here I have taken many breaks to reflect and hide from the sun during the summer. They are truly wonderful in every way.
• Teatro La Fenice: very famous theater, I often saw Sandro go here.
• Campo Santo Stefano: you will often pass through this square too. There are many things to see here, especially museums.
• Istituto Veneto di Scienze, Lettere ed Arti: my Spanish roommates Manuel and Carolina went there and I must say they liked it a lot, but I don’t remember which museum it was ahaha.
• SPARC* Spazio Arte Contemporanea: I saw it from the outside because unfortunately these things don’t interest me, but, again, Manuel and Carolina liked it.
• Ponte dell’Accademia: maybe this is really my favorite bridge hahaha. The photos here are really good. Be careful of those who do magic tricks here because they are just scams.
• Basilica della Salute: another really beautiful church, I mean they are all more beautiful than the other and this one is really worth visiting.
• Punta della Dogana: I promise myself that I will go this year to see this tip because everyone talks really good about it and I really want to see it.
• The Islands such as Burano, Murano and La Giudecca: It will take you a day to visit the first two and quite a bit of time instead for Giudecca (which I have never seen yet…)

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Main university locations 💻

In my opinion this is the most useless part and in fact it is at the bottom. Indeed you will just need to use the navigator as for everything if you do not find a location, but I will try to simplify things for you.

As I think you know, we can divide Venice into 6 areas (called sestieri, wow, I didn’t know anything about that), the main ones are:

Cannaregio	Santa Croce
San Polo	Dorsoduro
San Marco	Castello

Obviously we also have to add the island La Giudecca.

Now here – always thanks to Apple Maps and not Google Maps – click on the name of the location to open the location directly on your phone (I’ll start with the ones I frequented the most as I’m part of the linguistics department):

• Ca’ Foscari
• Auditorium Santa Margherita
• Aula Barbarigo
• Ca’ Bernardo
• Ca’ Bottacin
• Ca’ Dolfin Saoneria
• Palazzo Cosulich
• Palazzo Vendramin
• Polo didattico San Basilio (Magazzino 5)
• Rio Nuovo
• San Giobbe
• Santa Marta
• Campus Scientifico Via Torino
• Treviso – Palazzo San Paolo

If you don’t find your location, here’s a link to the official Ca’ Foscari website with all the locations in Venice, so we can all be more relaxed 🍀

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Italian Culture 🇮🇹

It will come very soon 🔜

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The End ☺️

Thank you for reading this far. I hope I have been of the best help I could, maybe I have not been perfect and I never think I can become perfect even though it will be my goal. I don’t know if the choice to study in Venice came on your own or because of other circumstances, I still wanted to wish you the best… there will probably be dark moments where you will want to go home and ask yourself “who made me do this?!”, you don’t know how many times I have thought that. I hate studying, but I love helping and that is why I am liking Venice. I have made so many friends that I am finally happy to be Alessio… and that is the only thing that finally matters most. If you have any questions, I will be eager to answer all your doubts, as long as you don’t constantly bother me. Thank you and who knows if one day we will see each other in Venice ❤️

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