Introduction to Venice.

VENICE is my favourite city- anywhere. This gallery & guide has been put together to give visitors an idea of what to do, where to go & what they will see when they get there. Venice is a woman's city- we see decaying elegance & old world charm, men just see crumbling buildings (well most men). Venice has very little modern architecture & no cars & you can really loose yourself in it- it's like stepping back in time. The city is also one of the safest in Europe & women are quite safe walking around, even in the early hours of the morning. The shopping in Venice is a woman's paradise- designer shoes, designer clothes, paper mache masks (everywhere), glass, hand made paper & lots of ornate/18th century-esque objects to decorate your home - statues, ornaments, Fortuny style lamps, Munano glass chandeliers, lush velvet cushions & throws etc.

It is also a city where you do not have to look for things to do - just go get lost in the narrow streets that meander around the city, there is always something beautiful or quaint just around the corner &, in Venice, you are never that lost!

MURANO, BURANO & THE LIDO: Unless you have plenty of time, I wouldn't bother going to Murano (unless you really want to see it & see glass being made) or Burano (unless you want to see brightly coloured houses & lace making). On Murano you have to fight off the sale's people who practically drag you into the showrooms & follow you around, pen in hand, to take your order & Burano is just like a sleepy Cornish fishing village (only with brighter houses). If you do the Islands you will be gone all day & they are so different to Venice, that if you feel at home in Venice, you will be bored on the other islands.

AQUA ALTA: High tides occur in Spring & Autumn & sometimes St. Marks Square & other parts of the city flood. People flock from all over Italy to see it & there is even a hotline you can call to find out when it will next happen. When it does flood- St. Marks Square looks fantastic! It is also not that big a deal to get around as temporary walkways are erected in the busiest areas to keep the tourists & the Venetians on the move- they even draft in traffic police, with whistles, to keep things moving! I have been lucky enough to see Venice flooded on two separate trips to the city. On the first trip, I took some stunning shots of the Basilica & square, bathed in sunlight & Venetians going about their usual routines- deliveries, reading a paper at an outdoor cafe in their wellies, Fed Ex making a delivery etc. On the second trip- I took photographs of the sea washing in, past the tethered Gondolas, into the square. It was dusk & the waves looked so cool breaking over the frontage to the city.

I also photographed the square at night, with the people on the walkways- everyday things in Venice that, unfortunately I do not get too see everyday. The sea also bubbles up through stone drains in the square & in the courtyard of the Doge's Palace & through the floors in some of the hotels etc. that line the Grand Canal & front- apparently the sea runs underneath the city as well as surrounding it. I have eaten breakfast with my feet in half an inch of water, when I stayed in a hotel on the front. A lot of the photographs in my album feature the Aqua Alta but, honestly, Venice is dry most of the time- it's just at it's best when it's under a foot of water!

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Take the narrow stairs on your right as you go into the church which lead to the roof (there is a small charge). The view from the top of the church over the square, Venice & the water are beautiful. If you have watched 'Wings of a Dove', you will want to do this.

http://www.doge.it/smarco/basi.htm

The breathtaking Doge's Palace. Your visit will include seeing some stunning interiors & the prison part of the palace from where you can walk over the Bridge of Sighs. TIP: Unless you are very into paintings, do not hire the audio guide. There is no fast forward option & there are many, many, many paintings in every room & it tells you about all of them!

http://www.doge.it/smarco/pali.htm

A very old Venetian coffee house in St. Marks Square. Between April & October, Caffe'Florian & several other cafes in the square, have open air concerts. I particularly like stopping by late in the evening & spending the last hour there before the clock, in the square, strikes midnight & the concerts end. It's always a really pleasent way to end an evening.

http://www.caffeflorian.com

The Danielli is a beautiful palace & luxury hotel. The interior is stunning with studded ceilings, Murano chandaliers & a marble staircase. Drop by in the evening & enjoy the coctails - it's like stepping back in time.

Take a virtual tour:
http://www.starwooditaly.com/hoteldetails.asp?ID=47

The 5 star, Hotel Bauer has a really ugly modern entrance from the street but has a gorgeous palace frontage on the grand canal with stunning views across the canal to the Santa Maria Della Salute. The terrace is on a corner between a small side canal & the main Grand Canal & it's a fabulous place to stop for coffee & watch the world / buses / gongolas / delivery boats go by.

http://www.bauervenezia.it/iflash.html