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Published: October 7th 2012
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Boats power or People Power
This is the bridge staircase that Brendon and I ascended and the descended to get to our hotel. The photo was taken at about 5:45 in the morning and this one man was delivering food and newspapers to businesses across the other side of the canal. Buongiorno from Venice,
Venice is visited by 21,000,000 people every year. They come on trains, ships, buses and cars to a city that has only water on which to travel, so the cars, trains, buses and ships are left at the gateway of the city. There are no cars, trucks, motorcycles or forklift trucks in Venice just boats and people power. 60,000 people are local residents here in Venice; these people share their home with the 21 million visitors each year. Every visitor consumes food and drink, produces waste and requires bed linen and towels when they stay. All of these items are carried into the city on boats and transferred to the hotels, restaurants and café’s by people power, over bridges with steps up and down and small walkways and narrow alleyways. Speaking only for Brendon and me, the Venetians should be congratulated every day for the efficiency of their service on numbers alone.
Some useless facts about Venice for you:
· Venice is listed as a World Heritage site
· 6 individual local councils, each one with its own numbering system for buildings
· 409 Bridges link 177 canals
·
2. Boat Power or People Power.
This is the second photo of our delivery man making his way over the bridge. Area is 412 km
2 including the waterways
We arrived in Venice in the middle of the afternoon last Wednesday. We took the time to purchase Venice travel cards that allow access to the waterbuses, which are the public transport here and to ask for directions to our hotel from the Tourist Bureau in the train station. We were provided with a map and a drawn circle on the map across the canal and not far from the station. Across the canal means dragging 3 suitcases, 2 computer bags and 2 back packs up a stepped bridge – 24 steps in groups of 4…. and down 24 steps in groups of 4. We were delighted that our suitcases survived the trip and also delighted that we did as well. We shared the bridge with hundreds of people also ascending and descending the bridge. The hotel was not to be found where we had been advised it was by the tourist bureau. I left Brendon with the luggage to scout where the hotel might be, I was not successful and Brendon put off many offers of assistance from some very dubious characters that hang around the train station. In desperation, I
The parks of the Arsenale.
Gardens and lush grass are not commonly seen in Venice. spoke to the concierge at a very swanky hotel, who provided me with ‘truthful directions’ on how to get to our hotel. His instructions were prefaced by the expression “Just around the corner”. Note to all – whenever a Venetian offers your directions and says “Just around the corner” – do NOT believe them. The directions were truthful just around the corner, then turn left down the second alleyway, then over the bridge – 18 steps – 9 up and 9 down, then follow the passage way past the church to the piazza and then turn left and go to the end of the piazza and on the left you will find your hotel – Easy Peasy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Our hotel has been excellent; right on the canal which as it turns out is at the end of the piazza. Fortunately, we have not had a room on the canal side of the hotel. This is the Grand Canal and the traffic of boats, barges, waterbuses, water ambulances and water police is ceaseless – all day and all night. We have been told that in order to service all the visitors to this city, the deliveries
A small canal near our hotel
This was taken at night near a restaurant where we ate. It was a 3 bridge and 5 passageway walk to the restaurant. start at 03:00 each day. We have contented ourselves with an evening drink on the balcony which sits above the Grand Canal so that we can watch the world go by. Actually, I am here on the balcony now, sipping Bellini while I type. Bellini is an alcoholic drink which combines peaches and champagne…………..It’s a wretched life!! Bellini were drinks invented by the originator of Harry’s Bar; it contains the local sparkling white wine and the nectar of the white peach, it is reputed to remind Mr Harry’s Bar of the colour a famous fresco in Venice. I am not sure about the fresco colour thing but it is a terrific drink.
Our first full day in Venice, we decided we would walk from our hotel to San Marco Piazza via the Rialto bridge. There are helpful signs up just behind our hotel pointing in the direction of the Rialto, which is a market on a bridge and the San Marco piazza which apart from the gondoliers is the most distinctive sight of Venice. The signs directed us to every alleyway and tiny piazza between the hotel and the Rialto, causing us to form the view
A distinctive Venetian sight
The Gondolas and their boats. that the signs were placed there by the local council (commune) of Venice as a public service for all small shop owners between the station and the Rialto, in the hope that the tourists would spend their money at some of the small shops along the way. Certainly there were plenty of gelato and coffee shops, if we needed sustenance, and plenty of jewellery and shoe shops if it seemed to take too long to get to the Rialto. We also wondered if we should purchase caramels from one of the many sweet shops and use them as a trail back to the hotel – Hansel and Gretel style. Along the way, we passed the local fish and fresh produce markets which sit on the Grand Canal.
The Rialto bridge is tourist shopping heaven with as many stores for jewellery, glass, shoes, leather, lace, scarves and clothes that can be imagined and the stores continue winding all the way to San Marco. We were delighted that we left the hotel reasonably early, the press of people in the small alleyways is hot and sticky, but then there is always gelato to make it better.
San Marco is a
One of the many Gondola 'stations"
This gondola "station" is just near San Marco. There are stations all over Venice, and some are in single or double "stations". massive piazza; we have some photos for you of the piazza very early in the morning and during the day. The press of people is a phenomenon. As the piazza is a UNESCO World Heritage site, no one is allowed to sit on the marble elevated stages or platforms. Brendon’s beautiful red marble lion sits on one of these platforms. There are a large number of very pleasant young ladies moving people off the marble and telling them to sit in the horrendously uncomfortable platforms provided. We saw stacks of these platforms stacked and sitting to one side of the piazza, so we assumed that the commune expected more visitors to Venice than we saw.
Our second day in Venice, we visited a glassworks on the island of Murano, which is about 20 minutes by boat from Venice. The glassmakers of Murano were moved to the island from Venice after a huge fire in the city somewhere in the 1400’s. It is sort of like an artistic ghetto of the some of the most famous glassmakers the world has ever known. We were given a lesson the glass making Murano style and then taken through the show room and
San Marco - no crowds.
San Marco in the mist. museum of glass maker. Amazing………….. We bought a little bit of glass; Brendon rather unkindly told the lovely lady manager of the hotel that Murano was sitting 50cm higher in the water after I had made all my purchases. I will say that he was not telling the truth!!!
On Saturday, we decided to get up early and take our cameras to San Marco Piazza and get some photos of the piazza, the basilica and the Doge’s Palace when there is no one there. Actually, we weren’t the only ones with the same idea and there was also one wedding party there as well. There was a mist or haze over the city every day we were there; it seemed to only burn off just as the sun was setting. You can see the haze in the early morning photos we have uploaded. Just as we landed at the piazza, before the dawn, a massive cruise ship sailed up the deep water canal past San Marco, it was a massive giant of a cruise ship which would stay only one day and then set sail again. We can only imagine how many people were on the ship.
After
The Bridge of Sighs.
Legend has it that prisoners about to be incarcerated for a long time took their last look of Venice from this bridge. Actually, the real truth is that only petty criminals were sent to this prison and they were rarely inside for long. You would not believe the number of tourist groups who come to see this bridge. our early morning start, we wanted to get away from the crowds, so we caught the waterbus to the “Arsenale” area of Venice that is the garden of Venice. It is green and lush and quiet. We had lunch by the canal and then headed back to the hotel by waterbus. The route of the waterbus took us past the Port of Venice, which had 4 cruise ships in dock all as large as or perhaps larger than the one we has seen that morning.
We thoroughly enjoyed Venice, it is a beautiful city, and the crowds were a surprise but not unwelcome.
Florence is our next and last stop.
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Kym
non-member comment
Bring on the bellini's!!
Wow what an amazing place. NO TRAFFIC ( as such) Country people often say "just around the Corner" and mean the same as the venetians. I cannot believe that you both walked all that way to your hotel. Is there not any little porters around that will carry stuff for you? NO NO NO what a crime to drop delicious caramel on a walking trail. I say just play spot the next carmel tasting shop on the way back or just following the sweat smell of caramel but never waste a good sweet. well looking forward to your blog from Florence and seeing pictures of your beautiful purchases from the glass factory. Brendan this magical glass doesn't weight much at all.