"The Town of the Merchant" a Venice Travel Page by fishandchips

Venice is a great place to visit and is very, very popular. Spots of note includes St Marks which is one of those places that tends to give you the 'wow' factor each time you see it. In the early evening it is at its best - sans pidgeons, sans hawkers & sans crowds. The sun setting on this place sets the gold off a real treat. Inside it is not the most remarkable of places but has an interesting and varied history including the odd pillaging Emperor. Venice has a varied history with its original people being refugees who had to build a life in a land that couldn't produce much in the way of food and drink so it imported most of this. This need was the start of the famed Merchant of Venice.

In its origins the City of Venice was on the Isle of Rialto and was a republic. The Dogo (chief) of this republic was under the control of the Maggior Consiglio. The foreign affairs were run by the Senate and the inner affairs by the "ten council". The city was independent until 1797.

I've been to Venice twice and so have managed to see quite a bit in a very short time for each. My list of things that should be considered is as follows;

1. St Marks Square - the central spot for many visitors.
2. Doges Palace - an essential visit
3. St Marks - described by some as the best church in Europe.
4. Rialto Bridge - not much to look at really but the view down the Grande Canal is fantastic
5. Grande Canal - a boat trip down here is a must
6. Gondola Ride - okay so this is very touristy BUT it allows you to see the underside of Venice and give you the full picture of the sinking city
7. Murano -Island of the Glassblowers
8. Burano - Island of Lace & some nice spots to eat
9. Accademia - a wonderful art gallery with many Ventian artists on display
10. Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari - a church with some fantastic art. Plain on the outside but very worth the visit when you see the inside

A trip to Venice is not complete without the 'optional' gondola serenade. I had my go at this in 1999 with my wife & left my mother to it in 2003. She had a wonderful time. I took the waterway photo from my gondola in 1999 - one of my all time favourite photo's for many reasons - both visual and sentimental.

It's not until you have taken a gondola ride that you are truely aware of the state of Venice and its impending doom from the rising water. No 'The Day after Tomorrow' scenario here as the land has been slowly sinking and the water slowly rising. Many old doorways under water level can be seen - a chilling reminder of what may happen to the whole place. The local government is looking at ways of draining the water away and they need to fast - when I was here in 1999 a sudden rain storm left the whole of St Marks Square under a couple of feet of water.

A trip to Venice is not complete without visiting one of the glass or lace makers. The 'how we create it' bit is normally quiet then you are suddenly surrounded by more sales people than customers. A trip to Burano (60 mins each way) will take you to a very colourful island where lace making is the main industry. They also have several very good eating places when the need arises.