Saturday Through My Lens: Venice, Italy

 Today’s Saturday Through My Lens features photos I took on a trip to Venice, Italy years ago.

Venice is a magical city of water, wine, gondolas, music, and great Italian food!

It is as though the entire city flooded, and the residents couldn’t be bothered to bail out.  So they just bought boats and carried on with life.

No bustling streets filled with cars, buses, taxis, cyclists and pedestrians.

Traffic consists of boats, water taxis, and the iconic gondolas.

Only the tourists ride in gondolas.  And they pay a hefty fee to do so.

But it wouldn’t be Venice without them, now would it?

The waterways are not the only beautiful view in Venice though.

The crowded rooftops cover the fingerlets of land amid the waterways.

And it is here that the influence of merchants from the Middle East left their mark on Venice’s history.

The cathedrals of Venice are not like those of her sister cities throughout Italy with their European architecture.

The gold leaf overlay and curved lines of Basilica San Marcos illustrate Venice’s rich history, so different than that of Florence or Rome.

Different they may be, but no less grand or awe-inspiring.

It is amazing to see these structures and realize how much labor went into their creation.  We do not have the skilled craftsmen today to create such masterpieces of art from stone.

The fact that they still exist is a testament to the quality of the work and the dedication of the artists.

But the waterways that make her famous may drown Venice as her buildings sink,  crumble, and sway underneath centuries of the water’s ever-erosive presence.

It is so sad to think that so much history and beauty may one day succumb to the water’s hypnotic and dangerous dance.

Long ago, gossip, secrets & accusations could be placed here anonymously for the officials to deal with.

I, for one, hope the sun never sets completely on the secrets and history of this mystical and magical place.  I am thankful I was able to navigate her waters at least once.