“Show and Tell”: Venice, Italy

Venice, often known as “La Serenissima”, is one of the most photographed cities in Italy, and this week, Suzanne Courtney, who writes and photographs at The Travelbunny, shares 6 of her favorite photos from a recent trip there.

6 Favorite Photos from Venice, Italy

Venice is an exquisite city; the richness of the waterside palazzos in the Grand Canal contrasting with the flaking paint and crumbling masonry of the smaller backwater canals give it a surreal feel.  Even in the grey autumn weather it looked enchanting; illuminated with a clear light which gave the pale turquoise water a luminous quality.

We took a boat tour with Walks of Italy which gave us a perspective of the city which really shouldn’t be missed – Venice from the Water.  There’s so much loveliness to see in Venice and much of it is in the small, finer detail; here I’m going to share some finer details as well as the bigger picture…

1. One of the iconic sights in Venice, and there are quite a few, is the Grand Canal.   This shot is taken from Academia Bridge looking towards The Basilica di Santa Maria della Salute in the background on the right.  It’s one of my favourite viewpoints in the city. 

The Grand Canal, Venice

2. Wandering through the alleyways and lanes we’d come upon scenes like this which have all the elements that make up a typical Venetian scene. There’s no doubting where in the world this photo was taken!

Rio del Bareteri, Venice

3. Pondering or Posing?  This is one cool Gondolier!

The Gondolier, Venice

4. Masks were originally worn during Venice carnival to disguise identity and difference in social standing.  Some were sinister in the form of animal heads and made of leather or paper mache.  These ones are handcrafted and, I thought, rather lovely.

Venetian Carnival Masks

 5. We passed this colourful Venetian Glass and Ironware shop as we made our way to the Vaparetto stop to get the boat to the Island of Burano.  I loved the textures of the rough brickwork, the curls of wrought iron and the colourful glass. A talented artisan at work here I think.

Venetian Glass Shop

6. St Mark’s Basilica is a wonder both inside and out. The story behind the corpse of St Mark, the architecture and the history of the mosaics inside and the bronze horses are all fascinating.  The curved domes of various heights and sizes caught my eye together with the tall spires and statues and gilded metal-work on top – these are just the tiniest detail of St Mark’s Basilica.

The Domes of St Mark’s Basilica, Venice

Thanks Suzanne for sharing these splendid photos of Venice! For more photos and stories from Suzanne, a shutterbug & foodie fiend with a lust for travel, cuisine and culture, follow her tweets on Twitter @TheTravelBunny