Virtual Travel

Ah, Venice. Been there, done that.

Venice is in Italy (see map). Population 270,000 on Jan 2004. The city stretches across numerous small islands. The Venetian Republic was a major sea power and a staging are for the Crusades, as well as a very important centre of commerce (especially the spice trade) and art in the Renaissance.

The Republic lost its independence when Napoleon Bonaparte conquered Venice on 12 May 1797. In 1866, Venice became part of Italy.
Venice is world-famous for its canals. It is built on an archipelago of 118 islands formed by about 150 canals in a shallow lagoon. The islands on which the city is built are connected by about 400 bridges. In the old centre, the canals serve the function of roads, and every form of transport is on water or on foot. In the 19th century a causeway to the mainland brought a railway station to Venice, and an automobile causeway and parking lot was added in the 20th century. Beyond these land entrances at the northern edge of the city, transportation within the city remains entirely on water or on foot. Venice is Europe's largest urban car-free area.

The classical Venetian boat is the gondola, although it is now mostly used for tourists, or for weddings, funerals, or other ceremonies. Most Venetians now travel by motorized waterbuses (vaporetto). The city also has many private boats. The only unmotorized gondolas still in common use by Venetians are the traghetti, foot passenger ferries crossing the Grand Canal at certain points without bridges.

Venice is served by the newly rebuilt Marco Polo International Airport, named in honour of its famous citizen. The airport is on the mainland and was rebuilt away from the coast so that visitors now need to get a bus to the pier, from which a water taxi or Alilaguna waterbus can be used.

The buildings of Venice are constructed on closely spaced wood piles (under water, in the absence of oxygen, wood does not decay) which penetrate alternating layers of clay and sand. Most of these piles are still intact after centuries of submersion. The foundations rest on the piles, and buildings of brick or stone sit above these footings. The buildings are often threatened by flood tides pushing in from the Adriatic between autumn and early spring.

During the 20th century, when many artesian wells were sunk into the periphery of the lagoon to draw water for local industry, Venice began to subside. It was realized that extraction of the aquifer was the cause. This sinking process has slowed markedly since artesian wells were banned in the 1960s. However, the city is still threatened by more frequent low-level floods (so-called Acqua alta, 'high water') that creep to a height of several centimetres over its quays, regularly following certain tides. In many old houses the former staircases used by people to unload goods are now flooded, rendering the former ground floor uninhabitable. Thus, many Venetians resorted to moving up to the upper floors and continue with their lives.

In May 2003, Silvio Berlusconi, the Italian Prime Minister, inaugurated the MOSE project (Modulo Sperimentale Elettromeccanico). An experimental model to lay a series of 79 inflatable pontoons across the sea bed at the three entrances to the lagoon. When tides are predicted to rise above 110 centimetres, the pontoons will be filled with air and block the incoming water from the Adriatic sea. This challenging engineering work is due to be completed by 2011. It is expected to protect Venice for 'only' 100 years. Some experts say that the best way to protect Venice is to physically lift the City to a greater height above sea level – by pumping water into the soil underneath the city.

Featured in 'From Russia With Love', 'Moonraker', 'Indiana Jones And The Last Crusade', 'The Italian Job' (2003) and 'The League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen'.

Saint Mark's Basilica is located on Piazza San Marco.

The Peggy Guggenheim Museum located on the Dorsoduro region of Venice.

The commonest local specialities are Carnival masks, glass, and marbled paper.

Local cuisine includes polenta (made of corn meal) and risotto with cuttlefish ink sauce.