Diario di Venezia.

The real impulse for this trip was the appeal of many friends, who reported how empty Venice on these special days is. Due to the global corona pandemic, the cruise ships’ numerous travel plans had literally gone overboard. The additional fact that Italy, as the first European hotspot of spread, would probably not be the first choice as a holiday destination for many people, made the statements about an empty Piazza san Marco absolutely understandable for me. It was certainly not my first adventure at this special place, but the temptation to have it all to myself led to the enthusiasm for the decision to start the photographic journey to the lagoon city again.

Once I got there, however, I was (for the time being) taught better about the arrival of tourists. The Piazza san Marco, the Rialto Bridge, restaurants, shops … at first glance everything seemed to be totally overrun – no “sign of life” from a pandemic. In addition, visibly surprised by the laissez-faire attitude of all fellow human beings with regard to face masks or other hygiene measures and in view of my wish to photograph an empty Venice, I first tried to flee into the smaller, secluded alleys and inquired about almost all the ways that are not in In the direction of a “piazza” or a “ponte”. In fact, I found what I was looking for here. The few locals who showed me the direction here, allowed a very special feeling, a special insight into the life of the real Venetians.

The more the day leaned towards the evening and the closer I got to my starting position, the Piazza san Marco, the more surprised I was to find that all the people were apparently just day tourist. As the evening reddened, the people disappeared and I was actually able to feel and experience the almost eerie silence of an empty Venice. The only thing that remained in the midst of this was an imposing city with its culinary experiences, a few bored gondoliers and a small number of locals who obviously enjoyed this quiet moment as much as I did. Looking at some of my photographs today, I feel a great admiration for this unique lagoon city, which has served as a backdrop for so many artists and creatives.

Ciao Venezia – a presto!
August, 2020

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