Ordering Coffee By: Victoria Le No comments

Every time I travel, I always try the city’s/country’s specialties whether it would be food or drinks. I guess it would only be normal for me to find a café in Venice that has a nice view to sip on some Italian made coffee. I was doing a bit of research on Venice the other day and seeing whether there are any culture shocks that people experienced. Little did I know that ordering coffee varies quite a bit from Melbourne.

What type of coffee do you order? I don’t know about you but I usually get a latte for a pick-me-up in the afternoon after getting minimal sleep the night before. Except, I can’t exactly do that in Venice, or Italy for that matter. People generally drink milky forms of coffee (like lattes or cappuccinos) in the morning because it said to be unsettling to have it after meals.

Credits: Premium Europe

So I can’t have my latte in the afternoon but I can still order it how I do in Melbourne right? Actually… I don’t think that’s the case. After doing some research, I found that a latte over there is just a glass of milk! I guess I am going to have to learn how to say ‘Latte Macchiato’ or ‘Caffè Latte’ so that I can get my morning (not afternoon) latte fix.

If you’re a cappuccino person, then you won’t have trouble ordering at all because it’s just Cappuccino! But if you want an expresso (one shot of coffee), then you’ll be ordering an ‘Un Caffè’!

Time to learn some new terminology! Also, did I mention that cafés are called ‘bars’ over there? I guess I’ll have to do double takes when someone tells me to go to a bar for coffee!

For More Information: 

Italian Coffee Culture

How to order an Italian Coffee in Italy

Moto Ondoso By: Victoria Le No comments

Like any other place, Venice also has its own concerns. Following on from my previous blog post, there is a big issue regarding the physical stability of Venice as a city. Millions of tourists visit Venice a year and yet Venetians are slowly moving out of Venice. You could say it’s partially due to the high flux of tourists but there are other problems that we are forgetting.

Moto Ondoso is a rising problem in Venice. It refers to the wave movements caused by motorboats or ships that result in the erosion of the canal walls. While other cities may be worried about land traffic causing pollution, Venice is on edge due to moto ondoso – it can compromise the city’s structure if left untreated. It is such a concern that they have even created a moto ondoso index!

Credits: Telegraph Uk

So, what can we do as a community to help? At the moment, a company called Insula has been contracted to restore these damage and complete ‘urban maintenance’. I quickly browsed their website to find that they do collaborative work with those who possess the appropriate skills – this includes restoring the embankments and dredging canals.

But what if you don’t possess the skills to help with the restoration process? Well I believe the best we can do is spread awareness about the situation. Spreading more awareness will eventually result in people wanting to help out through other means like contracting more companies to help with the restoration process or setting up a website where people can donate to the cause.

As tourists, we should avoid entering Venice via motorboats or ships that can cause havoc to the buildings and structures. It’s a city on water that is not going to last that much longer if we continue to abuse it like this!

A Sinking City By: Victoria Le No comments

Have you heard of the ‘essentialism’ of a place before? – I didn’t until now! It is basically when you focus on one key aspect of the place instead of looking beyond the surface level. For example, when I think of Germany, I think of beers! However, I know that Germany has more to offer than just beers and it’s not like you’re going see everyone holding a beer all the time!

This made me think about how I might have ‘essentialised’ Venice. I don’t know about you, but when I think of Venice, I think the ‘City on Water’. I imagine it to be this romantic city where you have the sun setting as you float down the Grand Canal in a gondola. But, what many people fail to realise is that it’s a sinking city.

Credits: 'Treyson's cool science stuff' Blogspot

A long time ago, people were escaping barbarian raids by moving to nearby islands. They soon discovered that they needed to build a strong foundation to make permanent houses so they drove wooden pilings into the mud, sand and clay, which has formed Venice to be what it is today! Wood seems to be weak structure to build upon compared to stone or brick, but it actually turns into a stone-like structure over time, as it is constantly submerged in salt water where there is minimal contact to oxygen.

With that being said, the city is starting to sink. Over time, more and more buildings have been built on this wooden foundation. It is only natural that the structures would give over time. But to add to this, there have been more frequent floods in Venice and the water levels are rising due to global warming.

It makes me worried that Venice doesn’t have long to live and we’ll be losing this beautiful city!

Gothic Architecture By: Victoria Le No comments

You know what I have discovered recently? I really have an appreciation for different types of architecture. I would be wondering around the city and just casually look up to see what’s around me. I am definitely not an expert in architecture in any form or manner but I just love looking at how each city’s architecture has evolved over time. So, why not explore Venetian architecture!   

While doing some research, I came across an interesting type of Architecture called Gothic Architecture. I know what you’re thinking – dark colours and haunted houses. But, it’s the complete opposite to that!

It originated from Paris in the 13^th Century before arriving in Venice by the 14^th Century. If you look at the windows of some of the buildings around Venice, they have an arch that comes to a tapered point – that’s Gothic Architecture! I believe a lot of these windows are elongated to bring in more light to the buildings. It has been said that may have been borrowed from Islamic architecture, which was inspired by the Moorish Spain.

Doge's Palace
Credit: Encyclopædia Britannica

Although you may spot these windows in other countries around Europe like France and Germany, the Venetian designs differ slightly in the sense that they tend to have an arch (a tear drop shape). One of the reasons in having this type of design is to elevate some of the thrust and in turn have thinner columns or piers to support these arches.

You can see this type of architecture at Doge’s Palace and St Mark's Basilica! Although they are popular tourist attractions, people can easily overlook their Architectural history. I think I might hunt around for tour about this when I do go!

Venetian Calli (Streets) By: Victoria Le No comments

Walking around Venice, there are a number of different symbols like the winged lions or the gondolas that tell you a bit about the city and its past. But what most people will probably miss are the street names! You’re probably thinking, street names are just street names – what more can there be? Except, that’s not the case in Venice!

Back in the 19^th Century, a train station was built and slowly, visitors stopped coming with their boats. This resulted in some canals being filled to make room for more pathways and now they are marked with street names that represent its past. For example, “Salizzada” means ‘paved’ and it marks the earliest canals that were filled in with more expensive gray stones called ‘Trachyte’, differing to later canals that were packed with earth.

Credits: Travel Adventure

There are a number of other streets that are named this way. Some of these street names give you a glimpse of what the space was previously used for:

•  “Ramo” – refers to an alleyway that was only used to access homes whose main entrances were canals. Nowadays, people tend to know them as a branch of a street

• “Fondamenta” – translates into ‘foundation’. These pathways were designed to help reinforce banks or form the foundations of the buildings beside them

• “Campo” – denotes an area that used to be a large square of a field. Similarly, the smaller fields were given names that had “Campiello” in them. Both of these originated the word “Campi” which means field or meadow! 

These everyday street signs appear to be so ordinary but they indicate what used to be – that is why I love exploring symbols like these! It makes me wonder what else has been named based on its past use or history.