Finally I reach here, the city doomed to sink in the water. Just like Atlantis did, Venice is one day to disappear below the surface of the Mediterranean. Scientists have figured out that the bed that carries the town is too weak, and the town is constantly sinking, inch by inch. However, I’m willing to take the risk, I dare to go here no matter what happens.
I wake up in my coupe. I actually managed to sleep for a couple of hours on the night train from Nice. I shared coupe with a young girl from Brazil. She’s on her own on a trip around Europe. She was robbed in London, someone stole her purse. But still, she’s not afraid to continue. These things happens, she tells me. I’m impressed.
We decide to go and find the youth hostel together. I call the hostel, but he tells me to come there in the afternoon. We go there anyway.
When I arrive to a new city I have a certain ritual I follow. The first thing you need is a map of the city. Then you need somewhere to stay for the night. There you can put your bags while you’re exploring the city. You might want to look for something not so expensive; after all, when you travel you’re not supposed to stay in the room that much. That’s why I like the youth hostels. You not only get a room for a fair price, you also meet people from all over the world. In fact, it’s almost impossible to avoid meeting people there.
After you found a room, you’re free to do the whole sightseeing program, and if you have some time left, you can even get something to eat.
We leave the station. It’s a beautiful, sunny summer day in northern Italy. “La Bella Venezia” is out there, just waiting for us.
The young Brazilian girl wants breakfast. We walk a few blocks. There, on a building, is an amusing sign. Just one word is written in the arrow-sign. It says “ghetto”. Does it really mean “ghetto”? And if so, why would they have a sign here saying that this is the ghetto? The neighborhood doesn’t look that rough. There is nobody to ask about it, we drop the case.
Here in Venice you don’t take the bus when you’re going somewhere, nor do you take a car. Do I need to say that here’s no subway? In order to get somewhere you take the boat.
We take the boat to the hostel, taking a chance that there’s somewhere we can leave our bags. An old man opens the door. He’s almost yelling: ‘How am I supposed to work when people come here all the time, wanting to leave their bags here? I told you to come here in the afternoon.’ However, he lets us leave the bags there anyway.
Why is it such a big surprise for him that people want to come to the hostel during all times of the day? This is the only youth hostel in the city. A wealthy city. Why don’t they just hire another person to open the door? It doesn’t matter, I’m free to see the city now.
It doesn’t take very long to realize that Venice is not like any other city. Here are so many tourists! The only Italians I see are the ones working in the shops and the restaurants. English is the language spoken here. And Japanese. I could never imagine that so many of them went to Europe. And somehow, they all seem to know each other. They talk with each other as if they’ve known each other for years. The only thing that outnumbers the tourists are the pigeons. And they’re so stupid! It must be the most stupid animal ever created. Even if I step on them, they will not move. And if there was a flyers licence for birds, none of them would ever pass.
Besides the tourists and the birds, the structure of the city totally differs from all other cities. It can’t be described, it has to be seen. Its canals and its bridges are quite fantastic. There are bridges everywhere. One of the most famous is Ponte Rialto. It’s impressive, if you see it from the water, from the canal. But when you cross it, all you can see are tourists and people selling souvenirs.
I aim for Piazza San Marco. While in Venice, you go there, that’s just the way it is. I look at the map. It’s just a block away. I just cross that bridge over there, walk a block, and I’m there. Piece of a cake. I’ve been to many cities many times bigger than this one. I never get lost. But what is a block in Chicago, Paris or London isn’t a block in Venice. I’m lost.
I definitely need something to eat. The last week I’ve just been eating American food. McDonald’s and Burger King, that is. Now, in Italy, I’m having a pizza. The waiter is arrogant. Obviously, he’s more interested in serving the American girls at the other table. But the pizza is good.
I walk past a clothing shop. The music playing in there sounds familiar. It’s Eros Ramazzottis, “Piu Bella Cosa”. I stop by and I look inside. There she is! My official Venice face.
Each city I visit I associate with a person; someone who does something I can relate to. It doesn’t have to be anything special. It could be someone that reminds me of someone I know, someone who says or does something funny, it could be anyone. The young saleswoman in the shop is dancing and singing along to the song. She’s turned to a young salesman when she’s singing the line: ‘thank you for existing’. There are no customers in the shop. This is “La Bella Venezia”, beautiful Venice.
Finally I find Piazza San Marco. It’s impressive with all its amazing buildings surrounding it. And once again, here are millions of pigeons. I wonder what it was like here before it became a tourist attraction. This used to be a very powerful city in the Middle-Ages. It would have been interesting to listen to Marco Polo’s opinion of the commercialization of his city. He was a true traveller, when he went to the Far East 700 years ago. When he returned to Venice after several years of absence, he was sent to jail for what he told about his journey in the mighty kingdom. Too bad he didn’t have a camera. I have a camera, to catch all the beauty of this city, which can’t be described in words.
I’m back at the hostel. A man from Scotland tells me that the announced train strike is off. Great, one thing less to worry about. Now I can go to bed, just having to worry about whether Venice is sinking tonight or not. It didn’t. And even if it did, it would have been worth it.
Venice, Italy, June 1997
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