VENICE
The FLOATING CITY of VENICE is actually built of wood and clay that has been hardened over years by the high-content salt water that it stands upon. There are 150 odd canals that snake all around the small islands and some are as deep as upto 17 metres. To make them accessible are 400 odd bridges that arch and curve around every nook and corner. No matter where you stand and view the city from, the scenes are sure to leave you spell bound.
Did you know that the word QUARANTINE was invented in Venice ?? In olden days , when people traded using boats and ships in the area, it was expected that the vessels that reached the shores would bring along various diseases from the various lands it crossed. In order to protect themselves the people of Venice followed a rule of making the vessel dock for upto 40 days on the shore, before resuming work flow. QUARANTA in Italian means 40.
After 7 full days of touring the mediterranean through the MSC Cruise, we reached the final day of our cruise travel. The Ship reached Venice Port at 9am. We were ready after a sumptuous and elaborate breakfast and were super excited to explore this beautiful lagoon city.
TIPS:
It is easy to navigate through Venice on your own for cheap. Instead of going through travel agents and pre-booked tours , try exploring this wonderful historical abode on your own.
1. To get to the centre from the Port, just use the PEOPLE MOVER ( something like a monorail/metro that runs overhead and gets you to the centre in no time). One single ticket will cost you EUR1.5 and can be purchased either through vending machines available or also online. We purchased ours at a machine near the station.
2. Also, back it up by buying a VAPORETTO (water bus) TICKET that is valid for 24 hours (or 1, 2, 3 and 7 day pass is available too) around Venice and there is nothing else you need. Currently this costs around EUR26. It will save you time and money. It is a means of public transport and is convenient and cheaper than the water taxis or private boats. It also follows the same route as your expensive taxi and boats. Additionally, It gives you the unbeatable experience of getting around like a local. You can buy these tickets online easily from websites that are available in plenty on that front. Search - “Vaporetto tickets online”.
3. Since the transport system works on perfect timing, you can chart out your route in advance and stick to it. Make sure you leave enough time to get back. That’s all you need to do and you are good to go. You will simply be able to explore the place to your heart’s content.
We walked to the People Mover stop at Tronchetto, that’s where our ship had docked. It took about 3 minutes to get there. The People mover took us from the TRONCHETTO stop to the Piazzale Roma stop in minutes. The pre-booked 24 hour vaporetto tickets came handy. We walked down pier and found all details on the digital boards . The pier is well divided and is more like a bus stop. No wonder the boats are called water buses. We needed to swipe our tickets at the available reading machines, just once, to validate it for the entire day and the job was done. We were then free to use as many water buses for the next 24 hours. But keep your tickets for every drive you make. If you are on your own, take care to check for the correct pier to board for the onward and return routes. If you stand in the wrong pier, you could be riding the opposite way. We were fortunate to be guided by one of the locals in this regard.
Our WATER BUS arrived. It was easy to find a seat. We were ferried through the winding GRAND CANAL with ease. Referred to as the “AQUATIC HEART” of the city , this canal runs for about 3 kilometres around the lagoon, in the form of an INVERTED “S”. It is surprising that only 4 of the 400 bridges that exist today, arch over this canal.
Our first stop was at the RIALTO BRIDGE
RIALTO BRIDGE
We got off at a crowded pier that was surrounded by a market place, right at the foot of the arching bridge.
The RIALTO is the oldest bridge in Venice. It connects the SAN PAULO AND SAN MARCO areas. Initially , the RIALTO was referred to the market place in Venice where trade flourished and later on, since a wooden bridge was built across the waters, the bridge was named the RIALTO BRIDGE.
The current MARBLE structure came into being in the early 16th century and is astonishing, although it didn’t differ much in design from its earlier wooden structure, except for the roof above. It is considered an engineering marvel as it stands without support in the centre.
Giving ourselves a 20 minute stop here, we looked around the market area and walked up and down the bridge savouring the views of the Venetian waters combined with the lively and busy land area. We then boarded a next available water bus and got to our next stop PONTE DELL ACCADEMIA.
PONTE DE ACCADEMIA
Getting off near the Academia bridge, we walked around enjoying sights of narrow canals, boats wading through inter-connecting bridges. A straight, narrow lane took us to the other side of the land to reach the Dominican Church of Saint Mary of the Rosary ‘Gesuati’, as it is called.
This 18th century, attractive building lies so close to the waters. The smooth pillars shine away in the morning sun and its beauty can be more admired from far, especially from the opposite banks. We had the opportunity to marvel at all the beautiful pieces of art etched into niches on its walls and architecture in and around it. Due to shortage of time, we didn’t get an opportunity to take a peek at its interiors. We posed around for photographs, before heading back to the water pier.
Boarding yet another water bus, we got to our next stop - SALUTE’
SALUTE'
It took us around 10 minutes to walk it up to the SALUTE from the Accademia stop. One of the well known landmarks, synonymous to Venice, noticeably found on all pictures of Venice is the SALUTE’ . Though, we are, by now kind of used to witnessing European type, light green domed churches, this one standing on water is something else. Dedicated to Virgin Mary this church is at the southern entrance of the Grand Canal. The octagonal shaped basilica is covered with various sculpted works, embedded with artwork scrolls, pillars in corinthian style and volutes. Yet again we couldn’t find time to have a look at its interiors. We hope to return someday to cover all the ones we left out. We crossed the waters using another water bus and got to the San Marco stop.
As we got off the stop, the first thing that stared right into us on the Land was the striking DOGE’s PALACE.
DOGE'S PALACE
I found this rectangular building, sitting facing the lagoon, rather islamic in style. The white, strikingly shaped and etched arches stares right into your eyes.
The Doges were the erstwhile elected leaders of the Venetian Republic and this building was the place where all the political meetings were conducted. The structure was damaged more than once in fire and successfully reconstructed. It today stands as the entrance to St. Marks square - St. Marco Piazza and the musuem.
ST. MARKS SQARE, MUSEUM AND BASILICA
MOST OFTEN REFERRED TO As the world’s most beautiful drawing room, the St. Marks square is surrounded by the Doge’s palace, St. Marks Basilica & museum, with the TORRE DEL OROLOGIO (Tower Orologio) stands guarding the entire place. It was bright and sunny and the PIAZZA SAN MARCO was bustling with energy. Lined up with plenty of shops alongside its perimeter, the rectangular piazza was teeming with people trying to get their best shot of the tower side or the Basilica side or just any side in the PIAZZA. The sight of birds happily flying in bunches out in the open added to the fun element.
The entry to the Basilica is free , but an audio tour or any other guided tour is chargeable. The entry to the museum is also chargeable. We gave all the tours a skip and just spent quality time around the Piazza. If you do have the time, please check out all their stunning interiors - the Palace, the Church and the museum.
We looked around the shops and walked through a gateway to get into the streets behind the Piazza. We stopped at HAPPY PIZZA and grabbed whatever we could for lunch. The pizza was delicious. We came out through the square and walked upto the San Zaccaria pizza. The stop here , of course, included a photo session. Admiring Venice from this end of the Grand Canal we moved towards the water bus stop here (San Zaccaria has more than one stops..you can just ask around) to board a ferry towards MURANO.
SAN ZACCARIA SQUARE
To the south east of the San Marco Piazza is the vibrant square of SAN ZACHARIA. We walked around the PIAZZA amidst the maddening crowd. A few photos here and there and a walk around the streets markets was time just enough before boarding our ferry to Murano from one of the stops out here. A small bridge arches over the waters here. The piazza lies open to the waters facing the SALUTE’ Found on this piazza is the Saint Zaccaria church. It is said to be one of those churches that is tourist free.
MURANO GLASS FACTORY
We still had about 3 hours left to safely return to Tronchetto in order to board our CRUISE ship to get back to Brindisi. We had no choice but to skip visiting BURANO (famous for lace works) and went with the choice of visiting the glass factories and shops in MURANO.
The taxi ride lasted 40 minutes onward.
Murano was a world of its own. An island where people practised the art of GLASS SHAPING AND CUTTING. We got off the water bus and walked around. In every little square we found colourful GLASS WORKS of various shapes and sizes adorning its centre. Without wasting much time, we asked around for the glass factory and got to it. It was amazing to watch the staff in the factory shape up hot ,melting “ lava” of the glass. They turned every piece into something unique. The entire process just swept me off my feet. I have been to a local glass factory before, a long time ago in fact, but this was so incomparable. The craftsmanship in shaping them all up was commendable. A 20 minute inside the small place gave us a good picture of the effort and skill behind making colourful pieces of transparent solids.
Further, a walk around the factory outlet that displayed all the wonderful pieces swept us off our feet. Each piece was more beautiful than the other. There were lamps, various animals, small curios, table weights, displays, dolls…
A solid 40 mins on this island ensured that we covered all that we could. Again, there was no dearth of photography amidst colourful backdrop. The area was secluded and less crowded than the main land of Venice.
We walked towards the water bus stop and boarded the next available ferry to Piazzale Roma directly.
PIAZZALE ROMA
We reached the place where the fun had all begun. We had successfully toured Venice for cheap. We had also taken rides both ways on the Grand canal. We had used public transport and travelled like a local.
The bridge found in this square is not to be missed. It is one of its kind displaying architectural excellence. We walked around the piazza before boarding the People Mover to get back to Tronchetto stop. A short walk yet again to get back to the port where our cruise ship was docked. It was a highly eventful day.
We reached our ship by 4:20 pm , well in advance before its scheduled departure. Thats the advantage of traveling in a country where public transport is always on time.
We left the shores of Venice by 5:00 pm.