Travel, Food, and Explore: Venice, London, Ibiza, and Barcelona
Updated: 2 days ago
At the end of 2025, my son and I declared that 2026 would be “our year,” and it's proven to be true. Along with many personal and professional successes, I began planning our first mother and son trip to Europe. My son, a young history buff and an inexperienced world traveler, had perceptions of the world and its people that were narrowly focused on destructive histories and troublesome current events. Our combined interests in art, history, and culture led us towards a few locations we could fit into eight days: Venice, Italy; London, United Kingdom; and Ibiza, Spain, with a brief stop in Barcelona for a late lunch and wandering before heading back home.
In preparation for our trip, I had to make some big decisions about how I wanted to travel as a single mother with a teenage son. As an adventurer, I wanted to stay true to myself and my keen sense of spontaneity, yet also keep us safe and prepared for our journey. After our flights and accommodations were secured, I mulled over the way in which we would travel. In the past few years, I’ve gained so much appreciation for the more rugged styles of travel, including light backpacking and heavy walking. I knew that I wanted my son to see the world in a way that would make him value his own strength, broaden his horizons, and indulge in the goodness of life. First thing, I made lists and plotted out things we wanted to do and bought the necessary accessories to make sure that we would be as efficient as possible.
Here's a a list with links to essentials I found helpful:
X-finity global pass
Ciao, Italia
Our host greeted us with a double kiss and led us to our apartment. Mariapaolo, a retired architect, had bought the villa and restored and renovated it to all of its old-world charm with exposed wood ceilings and brick walls, beautiful shuttered windows with a view overlooking a landscaped flower garden, and a gorgeous contemporary bathroom with a bidet.
We freshened up and made it into Venice by 2pm.
Our first order of business was to find pizza near the canal and ride back before sundown. We were tickled with excitement as our waiter cracked open our glass bottles of water and Cokes, and we devoured the savory, sweet, crispy, thin pizzas. As the sun began to set, we walked along the canal back to the tram to our cozy abode.
The morning drifted past us in a jet-lagged haze. By noon, we were back on the tram, hungry and ready to see Venice. We immediately stopped at a busy restaurant along the canal. We ordered scallops, seafood lasagna, and the pesto gnocchi, and I paired the warm sun and good vibes with a glass of sangria.
A perfect lunch date.
After our bellies were sufficiently full, we took the mile walk along the canal and alleyways to Saint Mark's Basilica. The line was long but moved fairly quickly to get inside. The outside architecture is grand, and the dimly lit interior magnifies its soulful history.
Afterward, we walked across the way to Doge's Palace.
Doge's Palace was grand and lavish. Big rooms adorned with artwork, weaponry, and ornately carved wood furniture, and walls lined with wainscoting. The most interesting section was the underground stone jail with several rooms and walkways.
We spent the rest of the evening in Venice taste testing gelato, walking over bridges, down alleys, and roaming in and out of bookstores and gallery storefronts. The most appealing was this tiny nook of a bookstore run by an independent publisher that republished classics. I purchased Animal Farm and chatted with the storekeeper before leaving just at sundown.
Back in Mestre, we dropped our souvenirs at the villa and went to see what the city center had to offer. We stopped at a café and savored our hot chocolate, decaf cappuccino, and biscotti. We sat out on the patio until the urge for tea, our pajamas, and UNO overtook us.
On our last day, we woke up with the sun to find a new cafe for fresh hot chocolate, decaf cappuccino, and to overindulge in croissants. We sat doing work and homework and enjoying the locals' Italian chatter in the dewey sun.
Forte Marghere
Forte Marghera is a former military base and currently a park and event space. The afternoon was easy, and the breeze carried us through the property to a festival. We strolled through, greeting vendors and checking out their offerings.
Ciao, Italy.
Exploring the Vibrant Streets of London
That evening, we flew into London, U.K. The air was damp and chilly, but we were roused by the scent of a new scene. We took the underground to our flat in West Hampstead and ceremoniously dropped our bags in search of nourishment. In Camden we found pad thai takeout and apple pies from McDonald's. Back in our living room, we huddled scarfing noodles and cardboard pies, playing cards, and chuckling at toxic relationship docu-dramas on Netflix.
The next day, we didn't rush getting out the door. We had tickets to the London Eye, so we took a double-decker and saw the city from on high. As we climbed into the Ferris wheel capsule with the 15 other people, we watched as we ticked our way to the top. The incredible view was worth the dizzying height.
Hunger struck, and we had preplanned to go to Rock and Sole, one of the oldest fish and chips establishments. We walked over the bridge and got in the 30-minute line to experience the crispiest fish we've ever had. It certainly wasn't the most seasoned piece of fish, but by far, it was masterfully fried, and the chips were thick, crispy, and soft in the right spots.
Full of haddock and cod, we spread out around the city, checking out the Parliament building, Westminster Abbey, Big Ben, the many monuments around the streets, and even popping into the National Gallery. Van Gogh's Sunflowers is gorgeous, but not worth the salt of the awkward selfies being taken.
We bought souvenirs and desserts from a cute pastry shop and headed back to the flat for our nightly routine.
Reaching New Heights: Discovering the Ibiza Castle – Castell d’Eivissa
Before the sun rose, we were back on the underground to the airport on our way to Ibiza, Spain. Exhausted, we slept through the flight and arrived refreshed and ready to take on the day. We checked into our oceanfront hotel and marched to our first restaurant. Tapas, croquettes, and a white sangria. The round crispy balls with soft innards were delicious, so much so that we decided to find another restaurant and have more croquetas. We were just as pleased with their duck and ham and cheese offerings.
That evening we walked around the steep, inclined streets lined with cement buildings and narrow walkways. We found a small art museum displaying the work of Puget, a wealthy father and son's work from the mid-twentieth century.
A Farewell Lunch in Barcelona
Our last night wasn't our last hurrah. In the morning, we saddled our backpacks and took the shuttle back to the airport and slipped in a lunch date during our six-hour layover in Barcelona. I was thrilled to show my son around and treat him to paella and the rainbow assortment of foods and spices of La Boqueria. I love Barcelona.
Picking up our bags from the airport lockers, we were sufficiently tired and gorged on blissful ease... and gelato.
Our destination: HOME.
Sounds like you got the travel bug now. Traveling lite give you so much more things to see. Glad the both of you had a fun trip together as mother and sons. Now you have to star planning new place in the world to see. Maybe South America or to Asia.