Short Break in Venice

Our arrival was late in the evening and, on a friend’s advice, we travelled from the airport to St Mark’s Square by the Alilaguna ferry. Visitors have arrived in Venice by water for centuries, and it seemed utterly in keeping with the island’s long history. Those who take the more prosaic train or bus cross the 19th century causeway linking the city with the mainland. As we disembarked the striking exterior of the Doge’s palace greeted us, and the huge, illuminated, medieval building glowed with the colours of a pattern using white Istrian stone and pink Verona marble. The vast square with the multi-domed cathedral and soaring bell-tower must be the largest space in Venice and, at that time of evening, there were very few people about. We soaked up the beguiling silence of a city without cars as we wheeled suitcases to our nearby hotel.

The following day’s exploration began with a vaporetto ride up the Grand Canal, once the city’s port. I gazed at the splendid Renaissance facades and Gothic windows of medieval palaces built by patrician families and merchants who established the Venetian Republic’s vast trading empire. Passing under the Rialto Bridge there are views of the markets, held there since the 11th century. Barges arrived piled high with boxes and baskets of fruit, vegetables and fish. In this city without vehicles everything is transported by water from goods, furniture, all kinds of building materials, to rubbish, while the ambulance launch, police and fire boats weave between other craft or speed across the lagoon to answer emergencies. There are the inevitable gondolas, elegant black craft still using 15th century designs. Each has at the prow a metal bracket to counterbalance the weight of the gondolier at the stern. Cost deterred us from having a ride!

The beginnings of the city were on the rivo altus, now Rialto, where the ground was slightly higher. Forced to leave the mainland by Attila the Hun in the fifth century, the people fled to islands in the shallow sea of the lagoon. The buildings, which are only a few feet above the water, are constructed on piles which for centuries came from cultivated forests in the Alps. Over time the piles petrified and, overlaid with wood or slabs, form the foundations. Stucco has always been popular in Venice, often painted in subtle shades of terracotta, pink, yellow and pale green. Because of the damp in winter and humidity in summer, it tends to crumble, adding to the character of the city. With nearly two hundred canals, four hundred bridges and countless alleyways, it is quite easy to lose sense of direction and get lost. This is no hardship in such a fascinating, compact city which seems to offer a visual feast at almost every corner.

The Republic of Venice began in 697 when the first Doge, (from Latin Dux or leader) was chosen. Since the 9th century when St Mark’s body was stolen from Alexandria by the Venetians, he has been the patron saint, and his symbol, the lion, is displayed in various forms all over the city. The Republic was highly organised, efficient and very successful commercially. In 1204 with the 4th Crusade, the Venetians sacked Constantinople, returning with superb Byzantine treasures, many to be found in Venice’s churches and museums. Venice was at the height of its power in the 14th century, and began to decline after the discovery of the Cape route to India. It was during the next two centuries that many of the city’s great artists were working, including the Bellinis, Titian, Tintoretto and Veronese. Later came two of my favourites, Canaletto and Guardi who have both left brilliant portrayals of their city. 18th century Venice was a place to enjoy with art and music and more decadent pleasures. In 1797 Napolean took the city, bringing to an end the republic which had lasted 1100 years. In consequence an Italian we chatted to over a delicious lunch of lightly fried sole, could not stand him!

One is spoilt for choice in such a city, but we arrived already having some idea of what we wanted to see. Buildings were, of course, high on the list and also work of some Venetian artists. We combined the two by visiting the church of San Sebastiano, a surprisingly simple structure entirely decorated by Veronese. A visit to San Rocco, one of the ancient guilds which have always offered help to the poor and needy, had superb paintings by Tintoretto executed over 23 years. We crossed the water to San Giorgio Maggiore, a beautifully proportioned church designed by Andrea Palladio, and still unfinished when he died. From the belltower we had an unforgettable view looking back to St Mark’s Square and the island of Venice.

A hour-long ferry ride wove between numerous islands until it came to Burano, which has a centuries-old tradition of lace-making. The houses are painted in strong, primary colours; it is said this was so that the fishermen could recognise them when they turned for home. From Burano it was a short hop to Torcello, where a cathedral was founded in the 7th century. The ancient brick structure, mostly from 1008, contains exquisite mosaics, including a Byzantine Virgin and child of the utmost simplicity set against a gold background. This island once had 20,000 people, but silt and malaria reduced the population to a few hundred. On this trip we watched a dredger at work, removing silt and putting down huge quantities of Croatian stone to make a barrier against the open sea, in order to help protect the lagoon.

The fear of global warming seems very real when one is made aware of the danger that could literally overwhelm this jewel of a city lying just a few feet above the water. On the return to Venice the evening sky glowed soft-pink on the towers and domes rising high above the lagoon. How glad I am I finally achieved the fulfilment of such a long-held dream.

Gillian Hull