When an Italian discovers Venice for the first time

One of my New Year’s resolutions was to rediscover my homeland, one tiny, beautiful piece at a time. And Venice sure is one hell of a place to start…

A gondola near the Rialto bridge (picture from the Author)

I turned 40 last December and, despite being born and raised in Italy, I’ve only recently visited Venice for the very first time.

I hear you and agree: it’s an embarrassing state of affairs.

Hell, how come I’ve been to San Francisco (twice!) and Shanghai but have only ever seen Venice in pictures? (I mean no disrespect here, I greatly enjoyed my stay in both places)

But you know what happens with things that are figuratively on your doorstep: no matter how unique and beautiful they may be, you tend to take them for granted.

You think they’ll always be there for you to visit “someday,” whenever you’ll find the time.

But you never do.

That’s why one of my resolutions for 2023 is to finally dedicate some time to rediscover my homeland, one tiny, beautiful piece at a time.

And Venice sure is one hell of a place to start.

It seems Santa works as a gondoliere when it’s not Christmas (picture from the Author)

We’ve all seen it in countless pictures, movies, and documentaries. Moreover, art history was a subject I used to enjoy at school, so I thought I knew what I was in for, and I did.

But let me tell you, nothing quite prepares you for the sight that greets you the moment you step outside the Santa Lucia train station.

Over the roughly 30-minute walk through the city to reach my hotel from the station, taking in the view and atmosphere, I couldn’t help but marvel at the sheer fact that such a magical place exists at all.

Saint Mark’s Square (picture from the Author)

But let’s first tackle the elephant in the room or, in this case…