(Venice, Italy)

After leaving Cortina d’Ampezzo, I still had one day in Venice before returning to Canada.  One of my ski friends suggested that we visit the Palazzo Ducale (known in English as the Doge’s Palace), so we managed to squeeze that in before the palace closed for the day.

I hadn’t researched the Palazzo Ducale much, as I didn’t think I would have a chance to visit it…but I’m really glad that we did.  The palace was the headquarters of the Venetian Republic, which had influence and lands far beyond present-day Venice.   I had no idea that the Republic had so much wealth.

The palace tour started slowly, with some small but nice rooms in the Doge’s Apartment.  After viewing a few increasingly ornate rooms, we began to laugh as we entered each new one.  How could they possibly top the previous one?  But they did, in a dazzling spiral of opulence.  From the Apartment to the administrative “rooms”, the paintings, ceilings and carvings just kept getting bigger and bigger.  Finally, the largest hall was approximately the size of a hockey arena.  Looking from the street, we had no idea that such a space was inside the palace.  Sadly, photos are not permitted within the palace itself, so you’ll just have to take my word on this.  In addition to the building, there are some remarkable collections of maps, globes and antique weaponry.  I saw an old mural showing eastern North America; what is now Southern Ontario was described then simply as Iroquois lands.

Near the end of the tour, we also got to see the Venetian prison located adjacent to the palace and across a canal.  Leading from the palace courts to the dungeon-like prison was an enclosed arched bridge known as the Bridge of Sighs.   It was given this name because it is said that this was a prisoner’s final view of the splendours of Venice…which would cause the prisoner to sigh.

For our final dinner, we went to an enoteca (wine bar) in the Dorsoduro neighbourhood. Dorsoduro is slightly less touristy than the neighbourhoods around the Rialto Bridge and Piazza San Marco; there were even a number of Venetians out and about. The enoteca was very atmospheric and the menu is rewritten by hand every day, depending on what is in season and what inspires the chef.

This was when the rain started. I can’t complain, as I was in Italy for 2 full weeks before there was any inclement weather. Even so, it was nice to experience rain in Venice because of the city’s constant battle with water.   Thinking back to an earlier comment about the smell of the Sistine Chapel, I now know what Venice smells like in the rain. It’s not a great smell by any means; it’s rather pungent and boggy.  But at least it is a real smell.  Venice may be inching closer to Disneyland status every year, as Venetians migrate away from the inconveniences of the island city and hotels fill the former homes, but Disneyland would never carry the whiff of a re-emerging swamp.

Another thing about Venice that really struck me as we wandered off the beaten path: the absence of the sounds of motor vehicles. No cars are allowed in Venice itself. We’re so used to cars and trucks in cities that Venice sounded almost medieval as a result. There are some motorized boats on the Grand Canal, but even these dwindle markedly after 5:00 p.m. when most of the tourists leave. Other old cities in Europe (Prague, for example) look the part, but I’d have to say that only Venice still sounds old.  Italy is indeed a feast for the senses.