Essential Venice for Dummies

If you have just one day in Venice, which places should you visit? How do you make sure that you do not miss some important tourist hot-spot? Is it better to walk or to take a boat for sight-seeing in Venice? Often friends coming to Italy for a few days and hoping to visit all their favourite places in those few days, ask me such questions. If you have similar questions, please read on - this post is written for you. It is a result of innumerable trips that I have made to Venice over the past 30 years, to accompany friends and relatives.

I have been to Venice a lot of times, some times to accompany friends and relatives for a day tour and much more often, for my own pleasure - to discover new and unseen places in the wonderful water-world of Venice. Even after so many visits, Venice continues to be a magical place. It is considered as the ultimate romantic city, the city for the honeymooners. However, don't worry if you are alone - the city will still take your breath away - you will only wish that you can come back to visit it with your loved one!

Usually when you have heard so much about some place, finally when you get the chance to visit it, you may end up feeling a little disappointed! All the hyperbole creates some unrealistic expectations. But no hyperbole is really exaggerated for Venice - I have yet to meet someone who feels let down by it! So, fasten your seat belts and lets start.

Travelling to Venice

Venice is a group of islands, the main ones are connected to the city of Mestre on the mainland by a bridge. Mestre has an international airport connected to the major cities of Europe by daily flights.

You can also reach Venice by car. As you cross the bridge to Venice, you will be asked to park your car in one of the islands that is used as a multi-storey car park. In Venice, cars are not allowed, and all travel inside the city has to be on foot or by boats. You may also park your car in Mestre and then take the train for the 5 minutes journey to Venice.

The most common and convenient way to visit Venice is by train. The only problem is that there are no trains between 8 PM and early morning. Thus, if your dream is look at Venice in the romantic light of the night, you need to spend the night in Venice.

Once, I had missed the last evening train in Venice, and spent the night sitting on the stairs outside the railway station. I remember that night as a special experience. How ever, that was more than thirty years ago when I was considerably younger. If that happens today, I am sure that I will need to look for a hotel - Venice is full of hotels, though they cost a lot!

Starting a day tour in Venice

OK, so you have reached Venice by a taxi, car or a train, where do you go? Car and taxi will drop you at Piazzale Roma, from where you can walk to the railway station. If you are wise and have taken a train, you will reach Santa Lucia railway station. So I will start my day-tour from this station.

Venice is an end-station - this means that trains do not go any further, but they need to go back the way they have come. As you come out of the railway station, the steps will lead you down to a big canal - Canale Grande, the biggest canal of Venice. Across the canal you can see a church (image below) - that must be one of the most photographed churches in Venice because it is the first sight of magical Venice for most persons.

If you stand on the stairs of the railway station, on your left you will see a bridge, Ponte degli Scalzi (Bridge of the shoeless). To the left of the bridge, you will see a yellow sign board on the building, showing an arrow with the words "A San Marco" (To  San Marco square) as shown in the image below.  San Marco square, the most important landmark of Venice, is our destination for this one day visit.

All the way from the railway station to the San Marco square, keep looking up for these sign boards as you go up and down the pathways along the canals and bridges of Venice. This will ensure that you will not get lost. On this walk, hidden behind the buildings on your right side is the Grand Canal. So if curiosity takes you away from the main path into small calle (streets) and you get lost, ask persons for "Canale Grande" and soon you will be back on the right path.

Another easy way to reach San Marco square is to follow the crowds - Venice is usually so full of tourists, that you only need to follow them and they will lead you along my tour itinerary.

Take a look at the map below to see the general route of our walking tour (click on the image to open a bigger map). We start from Railway station (number 1), go  along the Grand Canal through Rialo bridge (number 2) and then turn left to our destintion San Marco square, marked as number 3 on this map.

(click on the image for a bigger view)

Daily life in Venice

The walk from the railway station to San Marco square is the most touristy part of Venice. Still along the way, you can get a few glimpses of the daily lives of people who live here, such as the fruit and vegetable stalls.

However, most shops and restaurants on this route are targeted at tourists. Remember to look up to see the Venetian style of renaissance architecture and old houses of Venice.

For a better look at the daily life of people who live in Venice, walk down any of the narrow pathways along the lateral canals near the bridges and you will find yourself in a calmer and a different world compared to the crowded paths used by the tourists.

Rialto bridge

Half-way to the San Marco square, you will find some sign boards pointing towards the Rialto bridge, the most famous bridge on the Grand Canal. If you walk towards Rialto bridge you will reach the rectangular San Bartolomeo square. From this square, on your right side will be Rialto bridge and on your left, different small streets going towards San Marco square. I suggest that you visit the Rialto bridge.

Like Ponte Vecchio in Florence, Rialto bridge also has shops selling gold and jewellery. However, the most important thing about this bridge is to look at the wonderful noble houses lining the two sides of the canals and the different boats including the narrow gondolas crossing the canal.

Rialto bridge is the place where Shylock, the Jew money-lender of William Shakespeare's celebrated play "Merchant of Venice", has his shop. It is an example of the usual stereo-typing of the Jews in the antisemitic Europe, how ever it is little late to make Mr. Shakespeare change his play now.

Among the boats, you will easily recognise the narrow black boats with boatmen (gondolieri) wearing striped t-shirts and hats with matching ribbons - these are the famous gondolas of Venice.

If you have time, you can cross the Rialto bridge and go down on the other side to visit the fish market area.

After spending some time admiring the grand canal and Rialto bridge, come back to the square (Campiello San Bartolomeo). Any of the side streets on the other side of this square, will take you through a maze of narrow streets to the San Marco square.

A Gondola Ride

Along the path from the railway station to the San Marco square, there are different places, usually near the bridges, for renting a Gondola for a short (and costly) romantic ride on the canal. You can easily see the gondolieri boatmen in their striped t-shirts waiting for the passengers for the gondola ride.

San Marco Square

As you come out in the San Marco square from one of the narrow winding side-streets, it is an "Ah-ha" moment. The large open space of the square, the richly decorated buildings, the sight of the sea and the islands, the carved columns with sculptures and hundreds of pigeons, together create an the unforgettable view of one of the most famous squares in the world.

The "L" shaped square has San Marco church with bronze horses, the bell-tower, the clock tower with two clock-men (Mori), the Doge's palace and the twin columns. Here you can visit the church for one of the most beautiful mosaics in the world (and many other wonderful paintings and sculptures), go up the bell tower and visit the Doge's (Prime minister of ancient Republic of Venice) Palace. You can also buy corn and feed the pigeons, making them sit on your hands and your head. Or you can just walk around, dazed with so much beauty surrounding you.

Finally do not forget to walk towards the twin columns and the sea, and turn left. From the first bridge, if you look at the canal passing behind the Doge's palace, you will see the famous Bridge of Sighs, where prisoners were taken to the jails in the underground cellars. Usually this place has groups of tourists huddling together to click pictures, so it is easy to identify.

Going back to the railway station

If you walk quickly and do not stop on the way, you can do the walk from the railway station to the San Marco square in about 30-40 minutes. If you wish to stop and admire the different buildings, click pictures, visit the Rialto bridge and the fish market on the other side, the same walk to San Marco may take up to 2-3 hours.

In San Marco square, if you do not visit the church, bell tower and the Doge's palace, but simply walk around, then you will still have lot of time. However, if wish to visit these places, another 3-4 hours can go away quickly. I personally recommend, the climb up the bell tower for beautiful views of the city from the top and at least a quick visit inside the church.

For going back to the railway station from the San Marco square, I suggest that you take the public transport - boats called Vaporetto. There is a Vaporetto line doing all the Grand Canal - it goes zig-zag, touching the two sides of the Grand Canal and stopping at every 200 metres.

Try to get a seat with a good view and you can have a close view of the beautiful palaces of Venice like the famous palace of Desdemona or the building of the Venice Casino. Journey from San Marco square to the Santa Lucia railway station on the Grand Canal vaporetto takes more than 1 hour, so remember to start in time for your train.

Shopping and curiosities

Most houses in Venice have a canal in the front or in the back. Thus, many residents of Venice have their own boats. From postmen to ambulances to the police and the fire brigade, everyone moves on boats. If you keep your eyes open, you can recognise many of them. I love looking for these kinds of boats in Venice.

For shopping, Venice is known for Venetian glass, masks and corals. I especially like buying souvenirs such as clocks and flowers made of Venetian glass.

Other places to see in Venice

If you have time, there are many other places to visit in Venice. Here is  brief list of things to do:

(1) Take a longer route to San Marco from Rialto bridge: Instead of taking one of the side-streets in San Bartolomeo square, go to the end of the square and take a round about route that comes back to San Marco square from the opposite end. This gives you an opportunity to see another less touristy (relatively) part of Venice and the San Moisè church.

Remember however to keep a map of Venice with you. It is easy to get lost and walk around in circles. It happens to me all the time since I think that I know the place and never carry maps with me, and do not like to ask people for directions! Outside the main tourist paths, signboards are few.

(2) Academia bridge and Sant Maria della Salute church: From Rialto bridge, you can follow the indications for Academia, cross this bridge and go on the other side of Canale Grande to visit the university area, Guggenheim museum and the Basilica of Santa Maria della Salute (with beautiful paintings by Tintoretto). Santa Maria dell Salute also gives you a different view of San Marco square across the Grand Canal (area 6 on the map).

(3) The Jewish Ghetto: Though Jews had lived in Venice since very old times, during different periods of history they were forced to live inside the "Ghetto". As you start your walk towards San Marco from the railway station, after crossing the first bridge, you can take any path going towards the left (towards San Leonardo or Cannaregio), and you will reach the ancient Jewish ghetto part of Venice (area 4 on the map).

(4) San Pietro island and Giardini: From the Bridge of Sighs, continue on the Riva (bank) to the public gardens and then turn left on Via Garibaldi, go along the canal called "Fondamenta Sant'Anna" and cross the bridge into San Pietro island for visiting the San Pietro church (area 5 on the map).

(5) Visit other islands - there are two islands famous for the Venetian glass - Murano and Burano. Visiting each of these requires, an additional 2-3 hours. You can get the public transport (vaporetti) to visit these from the San Marco square.

However, even with limited time, you can visit San Giorgio and Giudeca islands (areas 7 and 8 on the map), that you can see from San Marco square. You can also get vaporetti for any of these islands from San Marco.

Conclusions

The beauty of Venice lies in the unusual combination of canals and the beautiful buildings, rich in architecture, art and culture. Apart from visiting the famous sites like the Rialto bridge and the San Marco square, the joy of Venice lies in going around without a fixed plan, getting lost in the warren of pathways and canals, visiting local churches for architecture and art, and admiring the unexpected squares surrounded by old houses.

Summer is the tourist season in Venice, but I also love visiting it in winter, when tourists are few (except during the Christmas-New Year period) and especially with the snow. Another special period to visit Venice is during the carnival - but that will require a separate post.

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Bidar, India - At the crossroads of cultures

Bidar in north Karnataka (India) is rich in history and culture. However, it is not well known outside the region and gets relatively few tourists. Bidar is just 3 hours' drive away from Hyderabad. The most important tourist place of Bidar is its 15th century fort. However it has much more to offer. This post presents some of the main tourist attractions of Bidar.

Bidar has been selected on the World Monument Watch list  for 2014 for the preservation of its historical monuments. Hopefully, this fund will help the town in improving the tourist infrastructures and maintenance of its historical buildings.

Reaching Bidar

The nearest airport is in Hyderabad on the National Highway 9 (the Mumbai-Hyderabad highway). I had travelled on this road in 2009 and the quality of highway was good at that time. The journey had taken less than 3 hours. This year (2013), some stretches of the road were very bad and the journey took almost 4 hours.

Hyderabad and Bidar are also connected by trains (3.5 to 5 hours) and buses. You can also find buses for Bidar from Bangalore and other cities of Karnataka such as Hospet (near Hampi).

At the Crossroads of Culture - A Brief History of Bidar

Recorded history of Bidar begins with the Mauryan empire around 300 BC and was followed by different dynasties including the Chalukya (6 to 12 century AD) and Kalachuri empires (12 to 14th century). The capital of Chalukya and Kalachuri empires was in Kalyani (present day Basavakalyan) about 40 km from Bidar. Basveshwara or Basvanna, prime minister of Kalachuri kings in 12th century, was a key figure of the Hindu social reforms and is still a venerated figure in the region. Almost all the villages and towns of north Karnataka have the statue of Basvanna sitting on his horse at some prominent place. You can read more about Basavanna and his tradition of Hindu reformist poet-saints in my post.

Early 14th century saw the arrival of Turkish-Afghani rulers from Delhi, starting with Allauddin Khilji and Muhammed Bin Tughluq. An Afghani general of Tughluq, Bahman Shah initiated the Bahmani kingdom at Ahsanabad (present day Gulbarga, about 120 km from Bidar). In 15th century the Bahmani kings shifted their capital to Bidar and built the Bidar fort, at the site of a pre-existing fort.

In 1527 AD the Bhamani kingdom was taken over by Bareed Shahi, who started his own kingdom that ruled over Bidar and surrounding areas of Deccan for a century. Bidar then came under the Mughal empire, through the Nizam of Hyderabad. In 1948, the kingdom of Nizam of Hyderabad was merged in the Indian republic.

This brief overview of the history of the region explains the presence of different influences from different parts of the world in Bidar.

Bidar Fort

Bidar fort is a huge area surrounded by thick walls and a moat. Inside the citadel there are different buildings and ruins that can be visited. A narrow road enters the main entrance of the fort and leads to an open parking space. Before proceeding towards different buildings, take a walk back towards the entrance to see the external and internal walls and the overall structure of the fort. This is the best preserved part of the whole complex. You can climb up to the platform on the inner wall to admire the robust defensive structure of the building including the imposing Gumbaz Darwaza (Gate with the dome) with clear influence of Persian architecture.

The image below shows the Gagan Mahal (sky palace) with its garden and the fountain. This palace was used by the king for his harem. On the right side of the image you can also see the "Solah Khamb mosque", the mosque of 16 pillars, also called the "zenana mosque" (women's mosque) as it was close to the harem.

The low building in front of the Gagan Mahal is used as a museum. It hosts pieces of ceramics and armament from 15th century and some older Hindu sculptures. The museum is old fashioned with signs prohibiting photography or videos. Personally I feel that today such laws banning photography are not useful (if you really wish, you can "steal" pictures with your mobile) because today the world is all about sharing pictures about your visits through facebook and blogs, which help in creating awareness (and free publicity) about the places and bringing more visitors.

The image below shows a sculpture from the garden outside the fort museum.

In 2011, we had gone on car through the fort grounds to visit different buildings inside the fort. However now (2013) cars are not allowed to go inside and you need to walk, which is actually not bad since it allows you to spend more time to see the different buildings and ruins (like the one shown in the first image at the top of this post).

One of the most scenic places to visit inside the Bidar fort is the Boomgondeshwara lake surrounded by verdant fields. According to the person accompanying us, this lake is supposed to be very deep, though I had seen boys taking bath in it so probably parts of it are not so deep.

One of the most beautiful buildings inside the fort is the Rangeen Mahal (Palace of colours), that I had visited in 2011. Placed just after the main entrance, close to the parking, it is decorated with coloured tiles and beautifully sculptured stones, showing a mixture of different architectural styles. However, in 2013, I found that this building was closed to visitors. Hopefully the funds from the World Monument Watch will help in its restoration and it will be opened to public.

Papnash Linga temple

This is a small but old Shiva temple on the outskirts of Bidar, placed on a small hill inside a verdant valley close to a lake. Below the steps of the temple, covered with a small white chattri (dome) is a natural water spring. People believe that taking bath in the waters of this spring leads to pap nash (cleaning of the sins), giving this temple its name. Pilgrims come from far away to visit this temple.

The theme of sacred water-bodies, linked with some mythological story to explain their holiness and the ritual of taking bath in the sacred waters are recurring themes in most cities of India. If you want to understand more about this, I suggest you to read Diane Eck's wonderful book "India - a sacred geography". You can read Dalrymple's review of this book on The Guardian:

Hindu mythology consistently visualises India as a spiritually charged and "living landscape in which mountains, rivers, forests and villages are elaborately linked to the stories of the gods and heroes. The land bears traces of the gods and the footprints of the heroes. Every place has its story and, conversely, every story in the vast storehouse of myth and legend has its place … In this mental map, geography is overlaid with layer upon layer of story."... Just as the sacredness of the landscape percolated from pre-Vedic and tribal folk cults into classical "Great Tradition" Hinduism, so in the course of time the idea slowly trickled from Hinduism into Buddhism, Sikhism, Indian Islam and even Indian Christianity....

"The affirmation of the everywhere of the sacred – this is the peculiar genius of the theology given expression in the landscape of India." No one, she writes, "says it better than the poet saints of south India who praise the supreme lord who is right here where the rivers meet, right here where the herons wade, right here where the hillock rises, right here where the palms sway over the estuary, right here where the mango blossoms are fragrant. The places they praise are different. The taste of the lord is different in each. But each one is a 'beloved place', and each one enables the pilgrim soul to catch a glimpse of the vast reality of God."

Nanak Jhira Saheb Gurudwara

Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikh religion, came to Bidar in 15th century and his visit is linked to the discovery of a sweet water spring (Jhira). The sikh temple ("gurudwara" or the "door to the Guru") of Nanek Jhira Saheb stands at that place. The beautiful white building with a huge hostel for travellers and an amrit pond (nectar pond) with the spring water repeat the ideas of nature's sacredness as described above for the Papnash temple. However, compared to the temple, the Gurudwara is more imposing and better maintained.

A big picture in one of the Gurudwara buildings shows the journeys of Guru Nanek in India and in other countries. The biography of Nanek says that he had also visited "Turkey, Italy and Soviet Union". However, the map of his journeys does not show his visit to Turkey and Italy. On the other hand, now that Soviet Union is no more and places visited by Guru Nanak are independent countries (probably he had travelled through Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakistan and Kyrgyzstan), this list needs to be updated.

Bekanpalli Santoshi Ma temple

The small and unassuming temple to goddess Santoshi Ma in Bekanapalli, on the outskirts of Bidar, behind the Bidar fort, is an important pilgrimage place. Followers gather here on every Tuesday and Friday.

Jharani Narsimha Cave Temple

Downhill from Bidar, on the outskirts of the city is the Jharni Narsimha Cave temple (Narsimha  or the Man-tiger - an incarnation of Vishnu).

A walk down the stairs lined by shops selling trinkets and things needed for the temple prayers, leads you to an unassuming temple on one side and an open air bathroom on the other. Inside the temple, there is a small statue and behind it, steps lead to a cave with water flowing at its base. You need to wade through waist deep water for about 90 metres to reach the second temple, where a water spring comes out and on the rocky wall you can see the back of the deity Narsimha.

I did not want to get my clothes wet and I am afraid of narrow and dark closed spaces, so I did not get into the water to visit the inner temple. For persons like me, if you are keen to wash your sins and purify your soul in the sacred spring water, you can take a bath in the open-air bathroom on the other side of the temple.

Mahmud Gawan Madrassa

The 15th century Gawan university building is an example of Persian style Bahmani architecture. It was built in 1472 by Khawaja Mahmud Gawan,  minister of the Bahmani kings. It was a residential university. The three storey building housed a library, a mosque, lecture halls, houses of the professors and rooms for the students. It had two three-tiered minaars (turrets), one of which can still be seen. Multi-coloured tiles on its outer surface with arabesques and Koranic writings gave it a distinctive appearance.

Barid Shahi Park and Tombs

Few kilometres outside Bidar, at Ashtur there are 12 Bahmani tombs, that are worth a visit. However, we did not have time and limited our visit to the Barid Shahi tombs in the city. Barid Shah had replaced the Bahmani rulers and his dynasty had ruled Bidar till 1619 AD. The tombs in the Barid Shahi park are of the family of king Kasim Barid II (1587-91 AD).

According to the local legends one of these tombs is supposed to be of Chand bibi (Chand Sultana), the regent of Bijapur (1580-90 AD) and a warrior, who had fought against the forces of Mughal emperor Akbar. However, others believe that her tomb is in Ahmednagar, in a building known as "Chand Bibi ka Mahal".

The park also has some colourful (few are tacky) looking statues showing scenes from the local village life, like the man with his cows in the image below.

Clock tower of Chowbara

The clock tower of Chowbara (literally  a four-sided platform) is a 22 metres high defensive watch tower in the old city, near Mahmud Gawan Madrassa and the Jama Masjid mosque. The top of the tower is supposed to give you a panoramic view of the surroundings. However when we had visited, its stairs were closed.

This part of the old city is full of small workshops where traditional artisans make the ancient art of "Bidri", that is designs made on a metal by in-laying with silver or other materials. You can visit these shops to see these artisans at work, working patiently with silver wires and with very basic instruments, sitting on the ground.

Other Places In The District

Apart from Bidar city, there are some other important places to visit in the district of Bidar. These include the Basavanna shrine in Basvankalyan, about which I have written a separate post. Other important places are Manikprabhu Devasthan in Humnabad and the Madonna shrine in Bhalki.

Manik Prabhu Devasthan in the periphery of Humnabad  (about 30 km from Bidar) is devoted to an ascetic guru Manik Prabhu (1817-1865). His spiritual legacy is continued by the persons of his family who act as the guru of this sect.

The gurus are is shown like kings with a crowns, in the pictures above the shrine (very different looking compared to the usual Hindu ascetics and gurus). The present guru has a rich palace like house close to the temple, showing that his followers contribute generously.

On the other hand, the shrine to Madonna in Bhalki town (about 40 km from Bidar) is a pilgrimage site for Catholic christians of the region. In the first week of November, every year hundreds of followers of Madonna, walk to this shrine accompanied by floats, music, prayers and processions.

Conclusions

To conclude this picture essay, the last image is of a Gray langur monkey (Semnopithecus entellus) from Bidar - a gray coloured monkey with a black face. It is also known as Hanuman langur. It is just one example of large variety of birds and animals in the area.

If you have been to Bidar and know of other interesting places to visit that I have missed in my visit, do let me know.

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