VENICE INTRODUCTION, Introduction

Hi, my name’s James, and I’m your personal guide. Along with MyWoWo, I’d like to welcome you to one of the most widely admired wonders of the world: Venice.

There’s no city quite like Venice for whisking you off into the past. There are virtually no modern buildings, and there’s not a car in sight. Venice has no roads; only canals traversed by boats and by the famous gondolas.

Venice has no equal. The whole city is built on the sea, on wooden piles: the buildings, squares and streets rest on the piles, most of which have remained intact for centuries and which run down through water, mud and sand until they find support on rock, or on more compact ground.

The sea that meanders its way in through canals wide and narrow doubles the beauty of the city, reflecting the facades of its magnificent medieval buildings, which seem to rise up out of the water.

As you wander through the silent calli, as the little streets of Venice are known, where every house, stone and wall has a history stretching back centuries, or as you cross the Bridge of Sighs or any of the hundreds of other little bridges over the canals, you’ll be in awe, with the sensation that time has stood still.

You may be surprised at just how opulent the buildings and the churches are, but remember that – despite its modest size – Venice was once an incredibly rich city. It was one of the four maritime republics, and it ruled the Adriatic for more than two centuries, from 1100 to the middle of the 14th century. At the end of the 13th century, it was the richest city in the world, with a fleet that was considered invincible, comprising 3300 ships with 36,000 sailors aboard.

During that period, the port was also the gateway for goods from the Byzantine empire and later the Ottoman Empire, and – as you can see from the original architecture of many of the monuments, such as St Mark’s Cathedral – the city was heavily influenced by Oriental tastes; this gave Venice a style all of its own, which makes it even more unforgettable.

An interesting fact: do you know how many bridges there are in Venice? Wait for it…417! Seventy-two of them are private, 300 were built in stone, 60 in iron and the rest in wood.

So get ready to visit the wonders of this splendid city.

Enjoy your stay!