I have started the year as I hope to go on, fulfilling a long-held travel ambition! I have visited Venice a couple of times (once about 12 years ago when my kids were still quite young, and once when I was 18 and went inter-railing in Europe) and on both occasions it was mid-summer, very hot and very, very busy. Ever since, I have wanted to experience Venice in the winter season and last week, with no school term dates holding us back, my husband and I made the trip, spending 6 glorious days in this unique city. One of our favourite films is Nicholas Roeg’s Don’t Look Now (1973), starring Donald Sutherland and Julie Christie. It tells the story of a couple, grieving after the death of their young daughter, in a very grey wintry Venice, where Sutherland’s character is restoring a church. The setting is so atmospheric and ever since seeing it I have fantasised about being Julie Christie wandering along empty the alleyways and bridges over deserted canals!
Needless to say it wasn’t quite like that – it was still quite busy, although not nearly as much as spring through to autumn. But the Venetians were warm and friendly, less harassed perhaps than at other times of the year, there were no queues for the big tourist sights (by closing time at Basilica San Marco we had the place practically to ourselves) and good restaurants had plenty of tables. It was well worth compromising on the weather to get the more authentic experience (it was chilly but we did have some bright sunny days) and although Venice is never ‘cheap’ you can definitely get more hotel for your money out of season. Here are a few of my holiday snaps!
As well as beauty, culture, and fascinating history, Venice has a distinguished literary pedigree. Shakespeare set two plays in the city (Othello and The Merchant of Venice). He also set two plays in nearby Verona – Romeo and Juliet and The Two Gentlemen of Verona). We stopped for a night in Verona before heading to Venice – another truly beautiful and fascinating city – and you can visit ‘Juliet’s balcony’ (left). Scholars disagree on whether Shakespeare visited the Veneto but he certainly had a feel for the area and its stories.
A plaque in Verona commemorating Shakespeare’s connection to the city
Lord Byron, of course, famously spent a lot of time in Venice (he loved Italy), occupying a palazzo near San Marco, and referenced it in his poetry. In the nineteenth and early twentieth century American author Henry James wrote about his love of Venice, and John Ruskin wrote a three volume compendium on the art and architecture of Venice. More recently, the Russian American poet and philosopher Joseph Brodsky and American poet Ezra Pound are both buried in the island cemetery of San Michele in Venice. And finally one of my favourite books is set on the Lido – Death in Venice by Thomas Mann, also a brilliant film starring Dirk Bogarde.
So, a definite bucket list trip for me! I highly recommend Venice in the winter.
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