When most people think about Venice, it’s probably water, canals, and gondolas that come to mind. But Venice isn’t just canals – it’s what’s in between the canals.
After spending some time in the Giudecca neighborhood and the Gallerie dell’Accademia, we’re back at our hotel in central Venice. We’re taking a walk through the Venetian back-streets to the Doge’s Palace.
After you arrive in Venice and get settled in, turn off your GPS and throw away your city map. The way to get around Venice is on foot, without a map. Pick where you want to go and then head off in that general direction. You’ll get there eventually, and you’ll see some neat things along the way.
Campi
When you walk around in Venice, you go down walk-streets and passageways, (calli), cross bridges, and sooner or later, pop out into an open area. These open areas are called “campi”. (If there’s just one, it’s a “campo”). “Campo” means “field” in Italian, and today’s campi used to be fields, gardens, or orchards.
The fields have long been paved over with stones, so now campi are like small town squares. Each campo is the focal point of a neighborhood. Some have their own neighborhood markets and most of them have their own church.
Each campo has at least one wellhead marking the outlet of the campo’s underground water supply. At some point, there must have been a contest to see which campo had the neatest wellhead. Some of them are works of art.
Water management was, (and is), a big deal to Venetians. Think about it – they’re surrounded by water, but have no source of water they can drink.
Water, Water, Everywhere, But Not a Drop to Drink
Back in the day, Venetians got their water from these “wells,” which aren’t really wells, but cisterns. A large part or maybe all of a campo was scraped out and then lined with clay so it was almost like a swimming pool. The clay was impervious to water.
Water collection ducts were installed, then the open pit was filled with sand and covered back up. Rainwater, filtered by the sand, would find its way to the center of the cistern where the wellhead was located.
Many Venetian roofs, particularly those around a campo, were designed with rainwater collection in mind. Water – the drinking kind – must have never been far from a Venetian’s mind back in the day.
Some campi are pretty basic, but others are really nice, with trees and park benches. Each one has its own character.
Restaurants and shops of all kinds are scattered around the campi and passageways. Along the way, we passed one of Venice’s many mask shops. Thanks to the big carnival that’s held in Venice each year, they do a thriving business selling masks to tourists and party-goers.
Carnival
The carnival started centuries ago when Venetians celebrated a victory over one of their enemies. Over the years, the celebration took on a life of its own until all the fun was outlawed by the Holy Roman Emperor in 1797.
Wearing masks was outlawed, too. I can see why. There’s bound to be mischief afoot when people can wander around with their identity concealed.
The carnival reappeared, though, and it’s bigger than ever now. Venetians have taken the art of mask-making to extremes. They can be wild, beautiful, and creepy all at the same time.
The campo we were in also had a neat little produce shop. You know you’re in the real Venice when you pass more produce shops than souvenir shops. The souvenir shops will take over as we get closer to St. Mark’s Square and the Doge’s Palace.
The Doge’s Palace
When people from the mainland settled in these islands and got themselves organized, they created the leadership position of “Doge.” (Sounds like “doh-jeh”). The word is related to the same word that “Duke” comes from.
Any self-respecting Doge had to have a palace. The Venetian Doge’s palace was built next to St. Mark’s Square. It’s a unique-looking building, even for Venice.
This is where the Doges of old resided. It also served as government offices and prison, among other things. As one might imagine, it’s pretty fancy inside.
To be continued…
