VENICE, ITALY |
Photos © Ruud Leeuw
Venice and gondolas go hand in hand. The water traffic here is something that will continue to fascinate you, on each and every visit. I hope you will enjoy my report on 'La Serenissima'. |
|
|
Unfortunately I passed this gondola wharf when they were out on their lunch break (which in Italy can last until 3 pm). Through a small window I managed to make this photo. Until the early 20th century, as many photographs attest, gondolas were often fitted with a 'felze', a small cabin, to protect the passengers from the weather or from onlookers. Its windows could be closed with louvered shutters—the original 'venetian blinds'. They used to be painted in many colours, but at some point a law was passed for a single colour: black. It is estimated that there were eight to ten thousand gondolas during the 17th and 18th century. There are just over four hundred in active service today, virtually all of them used for hire by tourists. Source: en.wikipedia.org_Gondola |
|
Returning from the canals to the starting point at Piazza San Marco one has to traverse this bit of unruly water. I heard a mother cry out for another route, for fear of her daughter getting seasick... |
THE VAPORETTIWhen we arrived on Marco Polo IAP we bought tickets (€68,- p.p. for 7 days) for the Vaporetti system, usable for a week of get-on-get-off transport in the lagoon. We took the bus from the airport to Venezia (included in that €68,- fare), to include a watertransfer from the airport to Venezia was an extra 27,- p.p. You see here the line 5.2 being prepared for our boarding at the Lido dock. The sign tells you at which stations it will dock, very easy to understand. The boats may be crowded though.
|
LINKS of the various pages reporting on this trip |
LINKS of the various pages reporting on this trip
|
|