A City built on Water
In a lagoon located at the northeastern part of Italy, a group of 117 islands seperated by canals and linked by bridges, form the beautiful city of Venice. A city whose roads are made of water and the past is more apparent than the present.
The canals are surrounded by impressive and rich buildings called palazzi and churches built in Byzantine, Gothic, Renaissance or Liberty architectural orders adjusted to fit the particularities of the Venetian ground. Building a city in these conditions was no easy task, but the Venetians prooved very resourceful in turning an originally inhospitable environment into their greater advantage. It is this unique form that makes Venice so beautiful and interesting. Wooden piles and Istrian stone have been supporting the city since the begining of its inhabitation in the 5th century and many of the city’s buildings have been standing there for over 400 years. The city’s main boulevard is the Grand Canal. Other roads include smaller canals and countless pedestrian narrow streets called calli in the islands that create a maze like urban structure that has changed very little since the Middle Ages. All these mean that there can be no cars. Forms of transportation in Venice are boats and walking.
The main part of the city, the historical part of Venice is divided into six districts the sestieri: Cannaregio, Castello, Dorsoduro, San Marco, San Polo and Santa Croce. The city’s greater area also includes many nearby islands like Murano, Burano, Lido and Chioggia, and a part in the mainland behind the lagoon, in locations like Mestre and Marghera. Venice and it’s lagoon are considered an UNESCO world World Heritage site.
A cosmopolitan city, Venice attracts many artists, architects and students from all over the world. It has four universities, the Ca’Foscari University of Venice, Venice International University, the Higher Institute of Architecture of Venice and the European Inter-University Centre for Human Rights and Democratisation. Many cultural events, festivals and international conferences are held there every year, the most important of them being the Biennale of Venice , the Venice Film Festival and the Carnival of Venice.
During those events and also during the summer months the city is crowded with visitors that actually overcome by far the number of the residents. In other months things can get quieter though the crowds never entirely leave Venice. The fact that there are no car sounds changes everything and Venice has this otherworldly feeling to it, very different from the bustling cities of the Italian mainland. In this city you can actually walk at your own pace and even a common walk to the supermarket can be turned into sightseeing if you just take another corner.
