Wonderful Churches
by fishandchips
Venice has some spectacular churches with a large number dedicated to saint Mary (Santa Maria) who is at the forfront of the Catholic faith. I enjoyed my visit to St Marks & a number of St Mary's including the one in this photo Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari. Also known as "i Frair" this Gothic church is not far from the Scuola Grande di San Rocco. It was built by the Franciscans and is second largest church in Venice after St Marks.
'i Frari' is fairly stark on the outside but has some wonderful items to look at on the inside including two Titian masterpieces (including the Assumption of the Virgin over the main altar) and a Bellini triptych (the Madonna and Child displayed in the sacristy). This is unlike St Marks which is beautifully decorated both in and out.
acqua alta
by ukirsari
good that we don't need to witnessing flood by ourselves but said by locals and a good friend of mine [lea chiaramellano], venice get hit by annually flood. it's called acqua alta where the sea level going up and create a flooding area.
usually, centro mare [a government body of ocean and meteorology and its forecast] will launch a siren whenever water level rise up and the venetians [also tourists] should prepare themselves from the flood.
Gondola - The "Stradivarius Boat"
by dvideira
The gondolas are built under strict rules and using the same material and yet each one of them is a unique masterpiece, a work of art.
They are built using eight different kinds of wood (fir, oak, cherry, walnut, elm, mahogany, larch and lime) and are composed of 280 pieces. The wood is still mostly worked by hand. The curved shape of the boat is achieved by bending boards of seasoned, dry timber which are wetted and then heated continuously.
The main characteristic of a gondola is its longitudinal assymmetry. Since 1890 gondolas have been built this way so as that one single gondolier - whith one single oar - is required to row the boat from one of its sides and it will still go straight !
Canals
by sim1
The reflections in the water are great on these little canals. I only wish I had a little more sunshine to get better pictures of it. Hahaha, but I shouldn't complain! The weather was great for this time of year!
Feast Day (2)
by zrim
Apparently the front portico of the Salute church is only opened on November 21. So we climbed the stairs and entered the church through the exclusive portico. A thrill that wore off quickly.
Actually, it was pretty interesting to see the church on the feast day. The locals were there in force, buying candles by the armful. Upon entering the church the scene was chaos. About six different masses were being held at different altars. Not used to seeing a European church filled to the gills with actual worshippers. Afterwards we joined the crowds in enjoying the street fair.
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Sunset
part of the cemetery
Salute - Venice
Campo San Bartolomeo Christmas 2009
