Venice

Venice, the city of canals, stretches across numerous small islands in a marshy lagoon along the Adriatic Sea in the northeast of Italy. The saltwater lagoon stretches along the shoreline between the mouths of the Po (south) and the Piave (north) Rivers.

Venice is notable for its elective, Republican form of government, with the Duke or Doge of Venice being elected by the Venetian Senate.

Tourist Notes

• Outside the Arsenale are four stone lions -- two were "appropriated" from Constantinople: one still bears a runic inscription on its shoulder, although this is now barely visible.
• The Basilica is named for Saint Mark, whose relics mysteriously "turned up" in Venice. This is the third Basilica: the first is on a detached island closer to the shore, and the second burned down (the only remaining picture of it being on a mosaic in one of the domed entrances to the present building).
• If you like the architecture, a craftsman called Giovanni Moro makes cast-resin miniature replicas which are widely on sale. Beware, however, of fakes, which are of inferior quality: Moro signs his on the rear, and has a workshop/gallery shop between San Polo and Dorsoduro quarters to the W of the Grand Canal

Famous Venetians

• Marco Polo

External Links

• http://www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venice