The Crown of Italy: Venice

In Feb. 2007, we headed to Venice to enjoy the yearly Carnivale that is held the two weeks prior to Lent. I have alway wanted to go to Venice, both for Carnivale and for the city itself. After Katrina hit New Orleans, I thought better now than never. So, we headed to that most amazing city.

If you've ever been to any part of Italy or love Rome or Milan...Venice is not those things. In fact, Venice is nothing like anything else in Italy...and nothing in Italy is like Venice. It is an experience, and here is mine (along with photos).

Is Venice the Carnival ? No gentlemen, pardon me : Carnival is Venice!

Honestly, the two of these things really can't be separated. Venice is more than Carnivale, yet it IS Carnivale. Carnivale can't be separated from Venice...in many ways, it is Venice.

Contrary to belief, the events of Carnivale are not limited to San Marco square, they really encompass large parts of Venice. However, San Marco Piazza (Saint Mark's Plaza) is where most of the events are located. In this piazza roam your tourists, pigeons looking to be fed by tourists, those in costume who want to be seen, and those who want to see those in costume (and feed the pigeons). Most people stay around the San Marco district, especially during Carnivale because of these events and those in costume, but there's so much more to see.

At first, I wasn't sure of this 'jeweled' city of Italy. When we first arrived, I really thought about how much this place is like a 'movie' set. Everything just seemed a bit 'unreal', from the narrow streets, to the uneven cobblestone streets, to the saturated colors of the buildings. It didn't appeal to me, and I wondered if I would dislike Venice. I had heard that you either loved Venice or disliked it. And I was wondering if I would fall in that second camp. A friend's girlfriend hadn't been too keen on Venice during their visit only 3 months previous from mine. She much rather prefers Italy as Italy, and not as Venice. And I wondered if that would happen to me as well. However, as I started to walk the streets of Venice...well...that changed. You could feel Venice. The city isn't perfect by any means; it has its own set of problems that it must face, but, there's something about Venice.

It is like travelling back through time to the age of the Doges, to when Shakespeare wrote "The Merchant of Venice". To be trite, it is like living in one giant movie set, where everything seems a little unreal, yet it is real. The city has substance, grit, and life.

Much of the city really heralds back to the original designers, from its buildings and bridges. There are bridges stamped with the original designers' & architects' symbols from several centuries ago. There are standing buildings where historical figures, such as Cassanova or Vivaldi walked. Modern buildings, like the Gugenheim museum or even the new museum of modern art stand out as Not Venetian. And the city of Venice is investing heavily in restoring a lot of what is in disrepair.

Venice has its own culture, its own style, its own separate history. It has its own "feel". And every time you turn around, things just make you go "wow". Venice's unique character steeped into every cobblestone, building, and bridge. The best way to see Venice is to walk Venice. You can feel it walking the streets, crossing the bridges, and you can feel it in the air on a crisp morning.

If you've been to Italy, but not Venice, then you can't compare it to any other Italian city. The city of Venice, which stands out from Italy, is really its own world. Venice is unlike any other city of Italy.....or maybe better said, no other city is like Venice.

If there was any one place you could walk around in historic costume and be in sync with your surroundings, that would be Venice. If there's a place that could appeal to the romantic...that would be Venice. If there is a place that could inspire and awe...it would be Venice.

>Unlike any other place in Italy, I don't think it would be out of place for anyone to be walking down the street in costume outside the typical Carnivale season of two weeks. (Historically, Carnivale was known to last two months, and people wore masks all year round, except during Lent and other religious holidays.) If you were to walk in costume outside of Carnivale season, I doubt any of the 6000 residents (or even the tourists) would look at you strangely outside for more than 1/2 second before walking by; however, I'm sure the tourists would ask to take a photo.

And Carnivale adds a little bit more to Venice. The color and vibrancy of many of the costumes add to the atmosphere. Of course, there are downsides, like the crush of tourists in the middle of a Saturday afternoon in Piazza di San Marco. (According to news reports, they had record breaking attendance due to the aytpical nice weather this year). But we stayed away from San Marco during the weekends. During the week, it was much much nicer.)

If you're a costumer like me, you just stand in awe of those costumes.

And, if you're a photographer like me, you'll love the abundance of picturesque buildings and costumed people who are more than willing to stop and pose for you.

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Honestly, I think I'm in love with this city. It's not "magical" by any means. It's a busy city with the regular shops, bookstores, supermarkets, and the whatnought. It's got its own set of problems, from pickpockets, the flooding during the rainy season, and the little problem of sinking 1metre every 15 years. But, it's about as magical as you're going to get in this world (at least IMO).

I have been to places like France, Amsterdam/the Netherlands, Frankfurt, Colonge, and England. Cologne comes a little close to what I feel in Venice, but that's like saying I am similar in height (of about 5'3") to Michael Jordon.

As we traversed its sidewalks and its alleyways and churches, I see why people fall in love with it, and come back year after year. You could spend a lifetime in Venice, and still not know it. And, I think I'm one of those people, who have fallen in love with a city...Venice.

For more photos of Venice and Carnivale, please vist my gallery of Carnivale, 2007

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©2007. Copyright 2007. All images and text copyrighted by WyldFire Studios and may not be reproduced without the express written permission of its author and copyright holders.