Dusk colors and other Venice, Italy Things to Do Tips

It happens that all my visits to Venice took place in winter or spring. That way, I always saw a rainy or grey town. The balance between dusk and artificial lights allowed, in my last visit, this good picture of Rialto by my friend Paulo. It's interesting to see the face of town changing so deeply and quickly. And, no matter the weather, each direction you look or picture has its own beauty.

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With all my professional life connected to glass, my expectations about Murano were high. That's why I came back a little disappointed. I was aware of the industrial crises, but expected more from the museum. Anyway, for those who had never been in Corning or seen Baccarat museum in Paris, it is worth the vaporetto trip.
I went there again - crisis continues, but it is always an astonishment the imagination and technique used in glass manufacturing.

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Rialto is not exactly a bridge: It's a landmark, a comercial hub, a meeting point, and, yes, the most beautiful bridge over the Grand Canal.

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In my first visit to Venice, I was impressed by... a funeral. A boat with a coffin in the middle, surrounded by flowers, crossed the canal. Natural... It's main street. But it's strange, the way the water separates things, and at the same time joins them, in a different way. No visit to Venice is complete without a trip in Grand canal.

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Summer or winter, under the sun or heavy rain, even when flooded by "aqua alta", this splendid square is always filled with people and pigeons. The harmony of the buildings give intimacy to the large square, and the monuments share the space with heavy commerce. A strong sensation of dipping in history, only broke by the noise and movements of the crowds

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Venice is a city on the water; but... how to get potable water?
A very ingenious system collected the rain across filters to large cisterns in the centre of the squares. The water was then drawn up in buckets, under severe hygienic control.
Nowadays the system has been abandoned, but the wells remain, most of them real pieces of art, and all contributing to "tell" the history of the city.

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Religious promises or thanks giving, are, sometimes, the basic reason for some artistic monuments. Batalha, where I got married is my closer example, and Santa Maria della Salute is another one. In 1630, facing the plague, the Venetian Senate promised to build a church in honor of the Virgin Mary to stop the plague .

The plague was really stopped, and the Venetian authorities honored their promise having built the church in Dorsoduro, by the Grand Canal.

Baldassare Longhena, the architect, conceived a octagonal basilica, combining elements of Venetian Byzantine architecture with domes inspired by St. Peter's in Rome.

The sights from the Grand Canal are wonderful, and visiting it's easy and free, with a vaporetto stop just in face of it.

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Address: Dorsoduro, By the Grand Canal

The "Chiesa degli Scalzi", or Church of the Barefoot Ones, is named after the Barefoot Carmelites monks who have been in this church for more than three centuries. Built between 1660 and the early 18th Century, the church stands as one of Venice's most beautifully and ornately designed churches, with a façade designed by Giuseppe Sardi.

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Address: Cannaregio, near the train station

Right in S. Marco's square, this palace, together with the church, composes one of Venice's most celebrated images. As a matter of fact, I've been in Venice at least 4 times, and never entered more than its yard. It's a question of priorities (and companies - changing company you have to rewind prioritiies), but I always leave Venice swearing: "Next time I DO have to enter"

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Website: http://www.tickitaly.com/galleries/doges-palace-venice.php

Located in the square where everybody goes, the cathedral is, of course, a must see. A fabulous example of byzantine art, it deserves a detailed observation either of its beautiful exterior either of its rich interior. Permanently crowded, the observation is not easy, but its possible to admire the rich combination of stones (and gold) that makes each square inch a piece of art.

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