Saturday, August 27th and Sunday August 28th, 2022 - Oh, Venice, How Lovely You Are!

 

Rio del Gesulti, Venice

My decision to visit Venice as the last destination of this long journey, was inspired as a re-visit from many years ago when I was here with my family as a teenager in 1968. I had loved my brief sortie through the maze of narrow pedestrian streets and alleys at that time, and I wanted to see how it was holding up and if I would still like it.

Rio Terà Barba Frutariol Bridge Over Rio del Gesulti

 I had heard that the crowds can be bad here, so I chose an AirBNB on a little canal, with the thought that I could at least watch the boat traffic if the streets were unpleasant. Our apartment was on the right hand side of this bridge. The first photo was taken from our window.

Sarah and I Enjoy Cynar (Photo by Sarah Lamp)

I was really pleased that Sarah could continue her travels here with me . She was also here before, in October 2009. In fact, it was the blog that she created for her travels at that time, which inspired me to start this blog back in 2017. In case you want to read about her day in Venice, here is a link. https://likealightbulb.blogspot.com/2009/10/venice.html 

Happily, we had numerous great food experiences, unlike her previous trip and we did find that the cynar made a nice drink to whet our appetites (although mine rarely needs any enticement!).

Gondolas

Although they are only functional for tourism, the gondolas truly add a grace to the Venetian waterways that is unmatched elsewhere in my experience. I imagine it is a tedious job, repeating the same narrative day after day to stunned tourists, but it looks as if it pays well.

The Kick!

Sarah and I were curious about how they steered these boats, as the oar is always on the same side of the vessel. I expect they use some kind of J-Stroke, but never-the-less we noticed that the stern tended to veer to the left. We delighted in discovering that they use a kick off the wall to get back on track. I was happy to capture a decent photograph of the strategy for you. But I did wonder if the centuries of that 'kick', might be leading to damage to the buildings.

Double Oar Action

The canals are the roads of Venice. There are no cars, no bicycles, nothing mechanical on the pedestrian streets. Anything that comes in or out  has to be moved by boat or hand cart. The waterways become congested with utilitarian boats of all kinds. Perhaps this man was off to do some fishing. I really liked the way he rowed with the two oars while standing. It was very graceful and looked as it it would be easier on the back than the single oar.

Grace Among the Motorboats.

Owning a motor-boat looked like our equivalent of having a car for the residents of Venice. They were parked along many of the canals.

Reflections

When the water is still, the reflections are lovely, even with the motor boats along the walls.

 

Narrow Alleys

As I had found in Lucca, the very narrow and tall buildings made sweeping photography in most places impossible.

Cleaning Up Rio Terà Barba Frutariol After a Wedding

This street was a little wider than others, so it had been the site of a wedding party the previous night. There had been tables set up under the arbor and guests were gathered in the street to celebrate. Note, however, the absence of anything mechanical here to help with cleaning up. The brooms looked very similar to the ones I had seen in Thailand and the only way to carry anything away is with the hand cart.

Wheels Must be Appreciated!

We noticed the little wheels sticking out of the back of hand carts and wondered what they were for.

Leverage on the Bridge Steps

Many of the bridges have steps, (which we discovered to our dismay when getting from the ferry to our AirBNB). The people using these carts are able to use the small wheels (whether they be on the front, or the back) to leverage the weight of the load up, then slide it to the back of the step, then move the the big wheels to take the load fully, before negotiating the next step. 

Getting the Produce for the Frutterria

 Every morning we heard the clunk of this process across the bridge under our window, as the people from the frutteria down the street carried their produce from the canal to their store. I wished I had wheels like these on my suitcases! They set up their stand every day and took it down each night. Their produce was delicious.

Visually Rich Spaces (Photo by Sarah Lamp)

Whenever there we came across a little square, we could see the buildings more clearly.

Alley Bridges

 With access to land so tight, it made sense for people to build across the alley ways, providing more living space above the streets. We liked the cozy feel that they had during the daylight, but I thought they were a little creepy at night. As I moved through the narrow walkways, I pictured days of yore when it might have been easy for someone to hide in a doorway and attack a passersby. I never felt unsafe, but in the past, I think I would have stayed home at night. There were no streetlights, so it got quite dark along some of the alleys at night.

Chiesa di Santa Maria Assunta detta I Gesuita

There were, of course, many churches and the bells could be heard frequently. They were difficult to see from a distance to represent them fully in a photograph. Many of them were not open, or charged a fee to enter, so we didn't go into any churches here.

A Mottled Facade

So, what do people like me do when we can't photograph the big picture? ...... 

Porch and Windows

.....we hone in on the details.

Anchor to Hold the Plaster

We notice the beauty of decay .....even though it threatens Venice. We notice it in the iron grating over the 'window' but also in the bricks and plaster. I noticed many of the diagonally placed pieces of metal, such as you see at the top left, which probably anchor the bricks.

Locks of Love

We notice locks of love on bridges ....... the symmetry of the ironwork, along with the weathered filigree and rusty loops almost gives a gem-like quality to these locks.

Graffiti

We notice graffiti and rust ..... that renders an unremarkable shutters and door to become something of interest.

Laundry

But, if you're me, you derive joy from seeing colorful clean laundry flapping in the wind, with all its different designs, textures and lengths. 

Torre dell'Orologio in Piazza San Marco

Yes, we did get to the popular spots. They were crowded - I tried to photograph over people's heads.

Astrological Clock Face of Torre dell'Orologio

It took us a while to figure out this was no ordinary clock - There were twenty four hours and all the signs of the zodiac. It was a very lovely piece of work built in 1496. It displays the hour, the phase of the moon and the dominant sign of the zodiac. There is a rather gruesome story that when it was unveiled, the Doge (Mayor) was so struck by its beauty that he had its creator blinded so he would never make another one like it! Nice guy, eh! 

The 'Moors' Striking the Bells at St. Marks Clocktower

We watched the statues that strike the bells on the hour on the clocktower - Torre dell'Orologia. I remembered seeing that from my previous visit. They date from the late 1400's, so they must have been quite a 'thing' at that time.

St. Mark's Museum

We were disappointed that the beautiful St. Mark' Museum was under repair, so you just get a glimpse of some of its elaborate domes.

Grand Canal From the Rialto Bridge

We visited the Rialto Bridge. It was very congested with people, so instead I give the the view of the canal.

Selfie at the Rialto Bridge. (Photo by Sarah Lamp)

We waited in line to get the 'spot' where we could take a selfie with the famous bridge in the background.

Gondola Ferry

We chose not to spend our money on a tourist gondola ride, but enjoyed the experience on this ferry ride across the Grand Canal between the Santa Sofia Gondola Stations. It was enough. Notice that there was another gondolier at the front of the boat - I imagine the weight of all the people was too much for just one person.

Restaurants on the streets

Even after just two days, I was satisfied with my answer to the question I started with. Yes, Venice was just as entrancing as it had been back in the 1960's and I was glad I had returned for a visit. In reality, I don't think it was any more crowded than it had been in the late 60's. As in the other crowded places we visited, getting off the main thoroughfares yielded even more charm than pushing through the crowds. 

Vecia Cavana Restaurant

Sarah and I had enjoyed our couple of days of wandering and on Sunday evening enjoyed the best meal we had in Venice at Vecia Cavana. It was just around the corner from our AirBNB. The service was superb and the food even better.

Our trip is nearly over. Tomorrow we head off to the island of Burano and then we have one more day together before each of us returns to our respective homes.