Venice Via Kid's Books!

We love the idea of making up kids itineraries from good children's literature! I think it helps ground the experience in a deeper way when you use books with kids or adults.

This is our video on the subject that we posted on Youtube and now transferred to our website, for more detail check out the original post here:

http://www.soultravelers3.com/2007/05/kids-lit-itiner.html#more

Or look at our Youtube channel and subscribe to be the first to see our videos:

http://www.youtube.com/user/soultravelers3

Mozart really enjoyed both these books, so we used them to create some of our itineraries while in Venice. We went to Piazza San Marco and fed the pigeons, saw the Ca'd'Oro (house of gold), went to the the famous Rialto bridge on the Grand Canal and more.... just like Zoe Sophia ( the 10 year old protagonist in the book). Mozart also wanted to see if we could find the exact place where Zoe Sophia had a wonderful cup of hot chocolate. One of her favorite Paris adventures was finding Angelina's where Linnea had special hot chocolate, so we hoped for another exciting find.

Caffe Florian on the Piazza was found in a covered area near to the Basilica, but hidden behind the orchestra. According to the book, "Venetians have come to Florian's since 1720" and there certainly was magic there the day we came.

As you can see in the picture we found the exact same spot where Zoe Sophia and her aunt D.P. had their very special hot chocolate and we did it too! Like Angelina's, it is a pricey place to have hot chocolate, but a splurge well worth it as every time she looks at the book, she remembers her shared experience. Books help kids make it their own and we have loved using them on our world tour!

Mozart was a voracious reader long before we left, which does help, but even for a child who is not reading yet, books can help when preparing for travel and as an aid in keeping it more alive after one returns.

Hunting this famous location down and enjoying this enchanting experience was a treat for all of us as the small orchestra played on this beautiful day in Piazza San Marco. Another fun coincidence for us was that both the violin and piano players were woman. Mozart really related to the beautiful blond violinist and she went over to talk to her with her own violin in hand, as earlier she played on the gondola which was a thrill she will never forget.

Comments

[Michelle D]

Hey, I can't see the names of the books on this post ?
Am I missing something ?

Michelle

[[email protected]]

Hi MichelleD,
Sorry for the confusion & I will have to see how we can prevent this problem.

DaVinci just uploaded this Video from Youtube, but the actual full post on this topic, which lists the books is here ( they are also in our book list with clickable links):

http://www.soultravelers3.com/2007/05/kids-lit-itiner.html#more

[Nancy Cobra]

We visited Venice when our son was 9 and our reading was "The Thief Lord" by Conelia Funke. We found many of the locations mentioned in the story and are quite certain (at least my son is) that we even found the empty movie theatre where the lost children had their hidaway and even the "Isola Secreta". Stories can be a wonderful entry point for exploring with children!

[soultravelers3]

Ohh,that looks like a great book Nancy and I was not aware of it. We will have to get it. Mozart was reading Harry Potter all through the UK this summer & it enriched the trip so much. Love combining travel with books!!