Venice

Venice is synonymous with water. So, imagine what it will be like in the rains. Reema Sisodia lands there during the Carnival

River Of Dreams

Imagine yourself in a place where there's water, more water and even more water everywhere. Where canals and waterways swirl their way through doorsteps. Now, picture yourself in this place when it's raining. If it's anything that Venice is not, it is dry. Eleven million tourists experience the Venetian summer annually but I was not expecting much of a crowd since I was there in February when the gods open up the skies there. It was however carnival season and not all the world's rains can dampen Venice's enthusiasm during this time. In fact, the trip, which I was part of, was organised by the ENIT (Italian State Tourism Board) office based in Mumbai and the idea was to get a glimpse, albeit briefly, of the Venetian Carnival held in February.

Our journey to Venice by train from Vicenza station took less than a hour and a half. Flipping open the umbrella, a few minutes walk from the train station brought me to the banks of Venice's Grand Canal where we hopped on to the Vaporetto, the water taxi which is Venice's popular and inexpensive rapid transit system. It wormed its way through the canal, providing the introduction to a city engulfed in old world charm, style and character, reflecting images that are unique only to the place. The Vaporetto or Ferrovia (ferryboat) was packed with people looking like kings, queens, witches, saints, animals, like characters straight out of fairy tales. Kaleidoscopic attires, flashy resplendent head gears, outlandish face masks were all part of the journey. Said Paula, a passenger on board who was a Venetian shopkeeper but a resident of a near-by region called Mastre, "This is just a prelude to the real action. You are in for a shock when you reach Piazza San Marco (St Mark's Square, the centre point of Venice). People from various nationalities and regions flock there to enjoy and experience the carnival spirit." But the gaiety was tempered with some sobering words about the state of the city. "Venice is getting fragile with time. It's like a living museum, sinking with the passage of time. We need to preserve it otherwise future generations would only be able to read about its rich art, architecture, history, grandeur and its unique location."

Our Vaporetto meanwhile journeyed over the meandering canal presenting a melange of fascinating views. There were palaces and Moorish mansions, baroque and Gothic churches adorned with frescos and paintings of Renaissance artists, everyday shops, markets and the banks of this unique maritime metropolis.

Our first halt was the Rialto station, which is close to the city's popular Rialto bridge. It is near this bridge that the Grand Canal is said to be widest at 76 yards and deepest at 13 feet. Incidentally, it is never less than 40 yards wide and maintains an average depth of nine feet. To get to St Mark's Square one needs to hop down at Rialto station. To my surprise, the scene at Rialto was like that of a Mumbai train station at peak hour - packed with people. We managed to manoeuvre our way to the bustling market area and boy, was that a market. From the local knickknacks to designer brands, it was all available in those bylanes. Murano glass artifacts, curios, time pieces, jewellery, tableware, shops selling Venetian masks, iItalian shoes and bag shops, designer jewellery stores, designer fashionware …this market area had a very exhaustive assortment.. Now was the time to splurge a bit and I made some good buys. Walking through the rain soaked bylanes whilst shopping does make one wish for pakodas and chai but the cappuccino works as a reasonable substitute.

Before we knew it, the morning was over and it was way past lunch time. The carnival spirit had converted the city into an audio-visual treat, flooding the place with music and colour but this was just a prelude to the real action at St Mark's Square. It was our stomachs that reminded us to shift focus to taste. We promptly abided, and took a break at a restaurant named Kori Grill that served some month watering pizzas. From the basic Margherita to the more complex vegetarian and non-vegetarian combinations, our team did some sensible ordering. Lovers of seafood will have something special to remember in the Venetian grilled fish preparation, Food in Venice is best combined with Italian wines and ending a meal with an Espresso works just right to take the journey further.

With our batteries recharged, we flipped open our umbrellas once again to enter the main arena of action. Just few metres away and we were right in the heart of Venice's St Mark's Square. The carnival spirit was spectacular and Paula's words came true. There were people who had gathered at the square in large numbers, dressed in fancy attires and living every moment of the famed carnival festival. We too got into the carnival spirit bang-on and like host of others, I too got my face painted by a Venetian face painting expert, in typical carnival style tatoos and designs.

Freezing every action, rare attractions and memories for posterity became my mission and my partially numb fingers braved against the rain kissed winter carnival. If photography is your passion, then don't forget to go up the "campanile" or clock tower for some unique shots. The Venetian panorama is truly captivating. Once you come down after experiencing biting cold coupled with lashes of rain, resting your soul at the oldest cafe in Italy, Caffe Florian (at St Mark's sqaure), which opened in 1720 for a cup of coffee is advisable. If time is not a constraint, then go around the corner to look at the prisons building, linked by the Bridge of Sighs to the Doge's Palace. The bridge is so named because prisoners sentenced to death sighed as they walked across it on their way to being executed. There is indeed a narrative in every region of the city. The majestic Basilica San Salvador on St Mark's square is also worth a visit.

A trip across to Lido, (a small township and the only motorable island of Venice) is also worth a visit. Cheap shopping, good hotels, special lace products are considered its USP. From the main island, Lido is 20 minutes away by the Vaporetto but it is more than an hours drive by road.

Since time was my constraint, I decided to take a short walk along the water front, which is just a few minutes away from the main St Mark's sqaure. One can catch a glimpse of the Bridge of Sighs and also come across some unique architectural structures. The waterside markets and shops also sell special Venetian products.

I picked up the icon of Venice, the 'gondola' since I could not experience a ride in one. Due to weather conditions, the gondolas were put out of action. This gives me every reason to come back to this city of canals to experience a different backdrop and a ride in the gondola.