It might be winter, but passions are running hot in Venice.
Paris may claim be the capital of romance, complete with
smooching couples on every Gothic corner, but few places
are so totally and utterly devoted to all things amorous
as this watery city. Ever since it was founded, some time
around AD452, its winding, fairy-tale canals have played
host to hearts being broken, illicit trysts being arranged
and the muses inspiring the greatest of emotions.
That’s probably why 'La Serenissima' has featured
as a backdrop to some of the greatest love stories – and
ensuing tragedies – ever told, from the fictional
Othello,
to the real-life clinches of Lord Byron, Ernest Hemingway,
and the Victorian art critic John Ruskin and his teenage
bridge, Effie Gray. In fact,
Effie
,
a new film about them,
written by Emma Thompson, is set for release this spring,
bringing to the silver screen the backdrop of Renaissance
palaces that has captivated visitors for centuries.
In a month that’s so associated with lovers, it’s rather
put us in the mood to go on a romantic tour down Venice’s
Grand Canal, taking in some of the floating city’s greatest
tales of love. We start at the Rialto per San Marco waterbus
stop, where you can board the No 1 vaporetto for €7. Along
the black waters of the canal, huge old palaces loom up
like great carved marble blocks, their landing stages lit by
old electric lights or even flambeaux. Look first to the left-
hand bank, where two almost identical white buildings
OUT FROM THE
DARKNESS UNDER A
BRIDGE, A GONDOLA
EMERGES. LOVERS
LIE TOGETHER,
WRAPPED AGAINST
THE CHILL NIGHT AIR.
ABOVE THEM, TWO
FIGURES STAND ON A
BALCONY SIPPING
CHAMPAGNE AS
MOONLIGHT REVEALS
THE ROOFLINES
OF THE ENIGMATIC
MEDIEVAL
SKYSCAPE...
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