Hello friends, yesterday I was lucky enough to be free from work and I took the opportunity to take a trip to Venice. I don't usually go at the weekend because with the carnival going on it's a mess, but I felt like seeing this beautiful city again, which I adore. I consider it an open-air museum and, for someone like me who does art and has studied art a lot, a tour in Venice is like going back in time. Moreover, in this period, it is even more beautiful in my opinion, precisely because there is the carnival.
My visit to Venice yesterday was an unforgettable experience. After boarding the vaporetto, I immediately noticed the many shop windows that had been dressed up for carnival, with numerous masks including the most traditional ones and many very pretty classic masks full of feathers and colours. I decided to photograph them to take a souvenir of that wonderful atmosphere with me.
While strolling through the streets, I came across a shop famous for its Venice prints. I entered and found myself in front of a myriad of artwork depicting this magnificent city. I took many photos so I could look at them at my leisure when I got home, but the beauty and emotion one feels standing there is difficult to capture in a simple photo.
The beauty of Venice is unique and indescribable. Its narrow, winding streets, its canals winding among ancient buildings, its romantic and mysterious atmosphere.
While strolling through the streets of Venice, I could not help but notice the large number of souvenir shops. You are spoilt for choice, but I noticed that, unfortunately, many of these shops offer items of very poor quality. There are no longer the shops of yesteryear, with handcrafted items made with care and passion, but only cheap industrial products.
Even the masks I saw were not all original. I discovered to my disappointment that many of them come directly from China and are not made here in Venice. This made me sad, because masks are one of the symbols of the city and represent a centuries-old tradition. Unfortunately, there are only a few shops left that still make these masks, but it is important that these shops resist in order to preserve this important tradition.
While strolling around souvenir shops in Venice, I noticed some beautiful plates with depictions of the city's most important monuments such as the Rialto Bridge, the Bridge of Sighs and St Mark's Square inside. I immediately thought it would be a perfect gift for my mother, but the price was out of my reach.
I also saw some beautiful glasses, but I had some doubts about their practicality. I am sure they would have been very delicate, and if I had given them to my mother, she would surely have broken them soon.
Despite this, I kept looking for something unique and original to take home as a souvenir of my visit to Venice. Eventually, I found a small shop that offered handmade handicrafts, and I decided to buy a pair of Murano glass bracelets. They are really beautiful and my mother will love them.
During my visit to Venice, I noticed the presence of many tourists, but I kept in mind that we were in the middle of carnival time, so it was quite normal. I continued walking around the city and every now and then I stopped to take pictures of the shop windows that I found particularly interesting. I would like to share them with you, so that you can see what you might find if you come to visit Venice.
Also, I discovered that there are several contemporary art galleries in Venice, many of which offer free entry, which is a really good opportunity for art lovers. I visited some of these galleries and was able to admire very interesting works of art.
Of course, I cannot forget glass, one of the symbols of Venice. The city is world famous for the production of Murano glass, and during my visit, I was able to appreciate many works of art made from this precious material.
I had the opportunity to visit Venice during the Carnival period, and I must say that the atmosphere was really unique. In particular, I was struck by the presence of many people dressed in traditional Venetian costumes, walking through the streets of the city, creating a very suggestive atmosphere.
I think this is one of the most fascinating aspects of the Carnival of Venice: the fact that the tradition is kept alive and celebrated in such a spectacular way. Every year, thousands of people come to Venice to experience this unique event, and it is no wonder that the city is so crowded during this festival.
When I arrived at St. Mark's Square, I noticed that unfortunately part of it was closed due to work in progress, but I still managed to take a few photos of this wonderful square that I consider one of the most beautiful in the world. I recommend visiting it during the week, because, coming on a Sunday like me, you risk not being able to move around inside the square because of the crowds.
After visiting the beautiful Piazza San Marco, I headed towards the Biennale. Despite the ongoing pruning work, I was able to admire the beautiful gardens and sit on one of the benches to enjoy my lunch. Being very crowded, the area of St Mark's Square is not suitable for a picnic, but fortunately I had brought something from home and found a quiet place to enjoy my meal. I really enjoyed the peace of the gardens and was able to appreciate the beauty of the surrounding nature even more.
I then moved on to Arsenale, a wonderful place where the Venetians once built their boats and fleet. This was used not only for commercial matters, but also to defend the Republic of Venice. It is an area unfortunately little frequented by tourists, perhaps because it is a bit detached from the centre. Personally, I found it very beautiful and definitely worth a visit.
I also managed to photograph a few gondolas I didn't take a ride on but it seems to me that there is this possibility inexpensively from St Mark's Square.
Then he also photographed a beautiful market, and in fact you often find these market stalls above the boat, and they are very quaint very nice even though the prices of course of these vegetables are very expensive, but in reality these would be for Venetians living here, in the end like a greengrocer's shop at home, because here in Venice there is little chance to find fruit and vegetables around. I saw very few supermarkets selling them.
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After my walk, I took a last tour and headed back to the station to catch my train and go home. I was lucky enough that the temperature was mild and the sun was shining, as you could see from the photos, which warmed me up quite a bit. It's always a great experience to return to Venice, and every time it feels different, even though this city doesn't really change much.*
Thank you for reading this post, and I hope you enjoyed the photos and found them interesting. See you next time, and have a great day!
Goodbye, see you soon!