Tomorrow, 27 January 2018, is the official start of what is probably the most famous carnival in the world, the Carnevale di Venezia. Soon the calli and campi will be full of people, mostly tourists and mostly French, sporting costumes ranging from the outlandish to the opulent, and posing for photographs evocative of the final century of … Continue reading Carnival in Venice
When the Italian people got together to choose which of the many varieties of the language to adopt as the common and literary language, it boiled down to two: Tuscan and Venetian.
Yesterday, I heard what could be considered a textbook lesson in counting as a conversation between two gondoliers contained all the numbers up to ten as they discussed their work schedule for the coming ten days.
Today, 13 December, is the feast of Santa Lucia. Venerated all over the Christian world, Santa Lucia has special links with Venice that go far beyond the name of the train station.
Although you won't find this name written on any nizioeto—the characteristic black and white street signs you see all over the city—ask any Venetian directions to the Ponte dei Zogatoi and they will all oblige.
Marin Sanudo was a Venetian nobleman, born in 1466, who became a sort of Venetian Samuel Pepys; or should we say, as he was born earlier, that Samuel Pepys was a sort of English Marin Sanudo? Read all about him here.
Luca's Venice 