Alley - Calle - - - Orientation skills
by sinoda
Venice is not your average city with a nicely layed out (rectangular) city plan. Venice has only a few very staright streets, if streets at all.
The alleys are almost randomly winding around canals and houses. So it is pretty hard to navigate your way through those alleys.
My piece of advice: check out the city map and learn ie where P Roma, Rialto, Accademia, S Marco and the Park is and how they are situated in respect to each other, so you can grasp the city in a larger scale - during day time look for the sun and how the shadows fall, this helps you to remember where roughly is north, south, east and west... and the spot you are heading to going to a piazza off the VERY centre (S Marco), spinning around with eyes closed, then trying to get to a certain place without a map...
Glorious Display
by tpal
Carol and I love flowers. From May through September much of our time is spent working in and enjoying our garden. The payoff is fresh flowers inside our house as well. As the garden fades Carol heads off to the flower shop to fill her vases. Around here the flower shops are in the supermarkets or in small hard to find little storefronts but in Venice and in other Italian cities the shops are anything but obscure.
This flower shop in Cannaregio was typical but hardly ordinary. The variety and quality of the flowers was first rate but what really impressed us was the marketing. To promote their goods in the best possible way, the shop keepers appear to place their entire inventory out on the street. The effect was stunning. The "take-it-out...take-it-in" effort must be worth it. It's certainly an eye catcher!
San Michele ( Cemetery Island)...
by chrissyalex
San Michele ( Cemetery Island) this was formerly a 'prison island',but in the early 1800's, Napoleon's occupying forces told the Venetians that they should stop burying their dead in Venice and start burying them somewhere else. Though the cemetery is mostly Catholic, there are also small sections for Protestants and Greek Orthodox.
The island is small and these graves are not permanent. The bodies can only stay there for 12 years!!!After 12 years, they are dug up and placed in metal boxes for permanent burial somewhere else.
Regatta Storica
by SPW
The first Sunday in September is the date for the annual historical regatta on the Grand Canal, preceeded by a parade of historical vessels with the crews in traditional dress.
Crowds gathered early all along the Canal, and eventually the vaporettos stopped running as various historical racing gondolas, police boats, tourist gondolas and spectator rowing boats milled around. A band provided pre parade entertainment and then the procession began.
The parade is led by the Serenissima complete with heralds sounding trumpets, and drummers. Other boats include the Dogaressa which carries the Doge and Queen Catrerina of Cyprus who was honoured by the first parade, and other fabulously decorated boats.
Following these, the racing competitors also parade, decked out in their vivid colours.
We stood near the Salute and as the vessels passed the oarsmen stood and held their oars vertically, saluting the Virgin commemoated by the church.
Venice Fire Department
by croisbeauty
Venice fire-brigade, called Vigili del Fuoco, use boats, what else could it be. I wonder if this boat can pass through all those narrow canals we see around. Do they have step-ladders to reach the upper storeys?, I haven't see any on this boat.
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Ricotta, asparagus and spinach pancakes starter...
Sylvain at Hostaria Venexiana
local taverna for lunch or dinner
Palazzo Ducale
