7 Facts About Venice

The Queen of the Adriatic, La Serenissima, City of Bridges – Venice is a never-ending sea of allure. British poet Arthur Symons once said “A realist, in Venice would become a romantic, by mere faithfulness to what he saw before him.”

Dating back over 1500 years ago, Venice has a long and diverse history. From the hustle and bustle of Rialto Bridge to the weaving and winding Grand Canal, travellers find a true escape in the romantic city break destination.  Here we have gathered some interesting facts about Venice:

Images via @ Paulo Bulbol, Dr. Savage

1. Although Venice appears to be a magical floating city, it is actually a series on wood pilings built upon the 118 submerged islands in the Northern end of the Adriatic Sea. Four hundred foot bridges and 170 boat canals connect the city to make it easily accessible to the local populace.
2. Many famous people in history were born in Venice including the playwright and famous lover Giacomo Casanova, the explorer Marco Polo, and composer Antonio Vivaldi.
3. The traditional and symbolic boats in Venice’s canals are known as Gondolas and have been used as transport around the narrow Venetian waterways for more than 10 centuries. Failing to ride one is like going to Egypt and not seeing the pyramids.
4. Only 3 to 4 Gondolier licenses are issued annually. To qualify, applicants must be able to finish an extensive training after passing a rigorous exam. Today, there are only 400 licensed Gondolas operating in Venice.
5. The Ca’Dario, a Palazzo with an attractive Venetian Renaissance architecture along Grand Canal, is home to a series of inexplicable deaths. The ‘curse’ started way back when the structure was built in 1847, affecting owners of the building.
6. Oddly, the last victim of the curse is John Entwistle, famed bass guitarist of The Who. John was leasing Ca’Dario during his untimely death in 2002.
7. Never ever touch the produce in the Rialto Market, or in the whole of Italy for that matter. Ask the vendor of what you want and they’d be more than happy to give their best products to you, but touching them is considered extremely rude.