Venice — Stage 1 in former Austria-Hungary

I don’t care what others say; I love flying with Ryanair. They are precise, punctual and never mess at the gate, unlike other carries who are even capable of directing you to the wrong spot and then shut the gate in your face, leaving you there.

A flight from Lisbon to Venice can be really long, but not if you don’t allow your mind to work against you. When I fly, I either sleep, or I think. I love thinking and even jotting down stuff on my phone (always in airplane mode). During a flight I can have some marvellous ideas. Some even become Medium articles.

Venice was going to be the first stage of a 2-week-long journey across former Austria-Hungary. I’ve always wanted to take this path. History is my hobby and I’ve always been fascinated and puzzled with Austria-Hungary, for me the weirdest nation ever existed in European history.

Why on earth Austria and Hungary became one? How did two crowns co-exist under a unique empire? Two monarchs, two capitals, two languages, multiple people and nationalities.

Books and Wikipedia come with lots of possible explanations, but I wanted to see first hand what this empire left and how the local people see it today.
Of course Venice cannot have a good memory of Austria Hungary, but Croatian people don’t have a good memory of the Venetian Republic either, while they are still fond of the Austrians. Such a mess! :-D
What a journey I was going to embark on!

When I landed in Venice

I will always defend Venice when it comes to prices. Many will tell you: “Oh Venice is so expensive!”
These are all bullshits. Those saying that are fools taking selfies in San Marco Square and then sitting at Cafe Floriana, paying 12 EUR for a cup of tea. You can’t complain when you play the Instagram tourist. You deserve to get ripped off.

A fool taking photos in San Marco and paying 15 EUR for a coffee

However, there is a huge trap when you land at the airport, a trap which I fell myself for, due to lack of research before hand. I’ve been to Venice in the past, but always by car, never by plane. I didn’t check the bloodbath ferries from the airport to the city are! And didn’t think to get a bus, go to the train station and hop on the train connecting Venice to the mainland.

Train: 1.35 EUR
Ferry: 27.00 EUR

If it’s only one way, the ferry is 15.00 EUR, but I was so foolish to get even the return, thinking that Flixbus station was there. I had planned indeed to reach Trieste (my next destination) by bus, and didn’t check that the pick-up point was actually at Venezia-Mestre train station. Yeah, 27 EUR literally thrown into the water! Don’t do this, do the following instead:

• Land at the airport
• Take a bus to Venezia-Mestre train station (it’s just few minutes away)
• Take the train to Venezia (literally 5 minutes train)
• Enjoy Venezia
• When coming back, take the train to Venezia-Mestre
• If you need to take the airplane, simply take a bus to the airport

Venezia-Mestre is nothing other than Venice’s mainland branch. It was built in the 1900s to industrialize the area and allow Venetians to live off something more than tourism and fishing.

Fuck the ferry! No, it’s nothing special, you won’t see much. You will just stay down, taking blows from the waves raised by other boats around.

Where to stay

My accommodation came by accident. Again, I was very lazy to plan my stay in Venice. I booked a hostel 3 months before, then forgot about it and planned the rest of the trip much later. The result was that, when I changed my flight by one day, the previous booking fell off schedule. I forgot completely that I booked already a hostel!

For the 15th of July I booked at Santa Fosca Hostel, but for the 16th of July I was booked at Anda Hostel! Imagine the embarassment when I showed up at the Santa Fosca reception!

“Alessandro, let’s see…. Ehm, it looks like your booking was for… yesterday… Here’s the receipt too.”

I managed to boil down my anger immediately (Thank you, mindfulness!), but the problem was still there. I nervously checked my emails and then I found the catch. Anda Hostel was the one I had booked for that day! Double booking, double mess!If that wasn’t enough, Anda Hostel was in Venezia-Mestre, meaning I had to go back to mainland. Was it worth it? Going to sleep on mainland to then return into the lagoon where I was standing in that very moment?

I asked if they had another last minute bed…

“Mmm, it looks like we’re fully booked for today. However, we have also a hotel and there should be a private room available for 49 EUR.”

And I lit up: “If it’s just 49 per night… Well, why not? I’d take it gladly!”

Private double bedroom in the heart of Venice for 49 bucks a night? That’s a huge deal! Consider that the other two hostels I booked were like 35 EUR per night, in a dorm… Last minute deals can be incredible!

OK, it was an old style hotel right off the 1960s, but it was clean, and the room was huge and comfy. What could I ask for more? And the money burnt with the other 2 accommodations? Ah, fuck money! Money comes and goes all the time. Experiences are what stays with you, forever. Don’t let money ruin your mood and take you away from the present moment!
The money I wasted won’t change my life. A good stay in Venice will though. If you startle at a hundred wasted on wrong bookings, you either need a good financial advisor or a good therapist.

I enjoyed Venice since the very first steps I took from Santa Fosca Hostel to Casa Accademia Hotel. I took my time without rush. Google Maps estimated 25 minutes to walk across whole Venice. I took something like 40 minutes. They knew I was coming.

Where’s the rush when you find spots like these?

The mesmerizing shops of Venice!

Venice has stunning shops! They are so original and picturesque that I was tempted to buy something even though I’m not into shopping at all.

This shop can scan/photograph your eyeball and turn it into an art work. Better than Worldcoin, isn’t it?

You will find carnival masks shops obviously, but they won’t look like tourist traps. These are authentic mask museums, run by families deeply entrenched in this traditional craftsmanship.

If you’re not into masks, you can still fancy about clocks, or maybe picturesque chessboards to impress your friends with. I instantly fell in love with this epic chess board depicting Venice vs Pisa. Of course I will always play for my hometown side, Pisa.

Let me explain. In the Middle Ages, Venice and Pisa used to be two city-states. They were fully independent, with their own laws and their own currencies. Italy didn’t exist yet, not even as a concept.

As city-states facing the sea, both Pisa and Venice quickly mastered the art of sailing and hence of trading across the whole Mediterranean sea. They became so powerful to the point of placing various colonies across the coasts of current Croatia and Greece (Venice) or the Balearic Islands, Sardinia and Tunisia (Pisa). And both used to have warehouses in Constantinopoles and Jerusalem, the Eldorado for every merchant of the Middle Ages. Having business in these two places meant you were settled for life! You hit the bingo!

It is obvious that two states sharing some portions of the Mediterranean and having similar economic interests couldn’t be friends. This rivalry included other city-states (Genoa, Amalfi, Noli, Gaeta, Ancona, and Ragusa/Dubrovink) which became known as the Maritime Republics. They were indeed republics, meaning the cities were not run by a prince or a family, but rather by an elective assembly and elected ruler, often called “Dodge”. These representative were elected by the most notable families of the city, not from the common peasants, obviously. So when you hear the term “Republic” applied to the ancient world, don’t mistake it for how we interpret it nowadays.

Yes, Ragusa is Dubrovnik, the most expensive and overtouristic place in the Mediterranean!

Yes, Ragusa is Dubrovnik, the most expensive and overtouristic place in the Mediterranean!

Well, Venice and Pisa rivalled for a good couple of centuries, until Pisa’s fleet was destroyed in an epic battle by Genoa. Soon Milan would have conquered the city via land, and sold it to Florence, a destiny way more humiliating than the one faced by Venice.

The San Marco Republic declined so slowly that the Venetians didn’t even notice. The decline though had a couple of turning points.

1. In 1453, the Roman Empire ceased to exist once for all. The Ottomans took Constantinople and all the European outposts still operating in the decadent, but still strategic capital, were wiped away. Soon, most of the Adriatic coast fell under Ottoman’s influence.
2. Henceforth, Venice was forced to convert from a maritime power into a land power. This required huge military effort to fight the powers ruling Norther Italian, above all Milan, not an easy client.
3. Shortly after this conversion, someone going by the name of Cristopher Columbus discovered a whole new continent. Trade began to move towards the Atlantic Ocean…
4. If that wasn’t enough, the Portuguese proved that you could reach Asia bypassing Africa from the South. Trade expanded towards the Indian Ocean too…
5. The last unique material still produced by Venice (glass) saw a new competitor rising from Bohemia by the 17th century.
6. And still from Bohemia, another threat rose: Austria. The Habsbourg could get the precious city of Venice shortly after it was conquered by the man who wanted to rule all over Europe: Napoleon. It was 1797 and the Republic of Venice ceased to exist.

The rest is recent history: after the Italian Independence Wars against Austria, Venice ended up being part of the new Kingdom of Italy, not without doubts. The initial goal was to form a new republic according to modern law, but the enthusiasm around building a unified Italian state was too strong in the 19th century to give room for a “new Republic of Venice”.

Let’s say that nowadays, Venice is an old, but beautiful lady which enjoys her last decades as the most magical tourist attraction in the world.

Venice is sinking!

Last decades, because you must know that Venice is sinking, faster and faster every year. While the city sank few cm in its first centuries of life, the pace in the last century has been over 30 cm! This is a combination of factors. The most impactful is the normal sinking of the beanth ground, being compressed by the heavy buildings of the city. The other is the rising of the sea level. Whether provoked by human industrial activities or not, the climate is changing, and fast.

Y axis is years, X axis is sea level increase in mm

Y axis is years, X axis is sea level increase in mm

Walking around now will allow you to notice how some buildings have their lower floors flooded for good, while water around the streets is becoming the norm.

Flooded Venice

Can something be done to reverse the trend? According to scientists, not much can be done. The process can only be slowed down a bit, but eventually, nature always wins over humankind. This is something that even President Corona taught us brutally.

What you can do is to take a plane and visit Venice before it’s too late, though the estimations say we still have a good 80 years to admire the lagoon as it is.

Later than that the typical Venetians will be seagulls and ducks… That’s why the Duck Shop is in Venice!

Venice, the perfect place to find inner peace

You might imagine Venice as the ultimate monumental city packed with tourists, tainted with pigeons shitting on everyone’s head, and queues to take pictures with the local landmarks. That’s true only for two areas: San Marco Square and Rialto Bridge. Just steer off from these spots and you will find peace!

Venice is much more than San Marco and Rialto. Fuck off those places! There are so many hidden gems in the lagoon. Just get lost across the small streets and cross as many bridges as you can!

Fuck off Instagram tourists!

When you leap off from the crowd and get lost in the tiny “calli” of Venice, you will start breathing the real magic of this city. Just stand there in silence, enjoying the calmness and serenity those channels can give you. Just you and Venice… Bliss!

But of course, it’s also possible to socialize in Venice, like at the Irish Pub. Yes, there is a nice Irish pub which serves any kind of good beer. I happened to be there right when Italy was facing Spain in the football Nations League. Useless to say that Italy lost, but nobody cared. Italy is a football nation and is fully aware of how useless the Nation League is; just another pathetic stunt by FIFA to further fill its coffins. Those pigs in Geneva are never content with their filthy money, jeez!

And after the pub, you can take a walk back to your hotel or take stunning night photos. I’m not so much into photography, but if you are, grab the best camera you have and get crazy with it!

I took these photos with a mere Redmi 8T phone. Imagine what you can do with your professional gear!
And when you’re done, just enjoy the silence, broken only by some delicate waves caressing the medieval buildings.Would you ever tell that Venice is the perfect place for meditating?

And if you’re on a romantic trip, well, you don’t need to waste your money on a “gondola”. Just find a random “campo” (square) after midnight and a good place to sit in. You, your love, Venice, and the silence that will make that moment eternal. What more do you need?

White Fairytale

My trip had nothing romantic; definitely I wasn’t in the mood. If I were, I’d have probably listened to the call of that half-naked lady who was returning to her hotel at 2 am.

I was lost, without internet, trying to remember where my hotel was. Then, I saw a woman walking in the distance. She was singing, clearly tipsy. I kept walking my way, when she turned slightly and after a few steps, took off her shirt. It was a hot night after all… Her hips were twisting happily, popping out of white trousers that blended elegantly with the surrounding marble buildings. Her torso wearing nothing but a bra.

The lady kept singing her unintelligible lyrics, while her hips were climbing the stairs of a bridge. The 19th century lamps lit up her elegant curves.

My brain was already fighting against me: “What do you think you’re doing, you creep??? Just speed up, overtake her, and find the freaking hotel! She’s not up for what you think!”

And I sped up. I reached White Fairytale quite quickly, but then I bumped into a group of South Americans, led by Black Venus.

“Approaching White Fairytale would be creepy, but hitting on Black Venus would be legit…”

The group asked me for a photo. They were Colombians using their gap year to explore Europe. I immediately understood the Colombian guys were very protective of Black Venus. There was no room to make my way to her, not even to exchange contacts and even if that would have been a possibility, I was too tired anyway.

I resumed my walk, thinking that I had lost Black Venus and White Fairytale all at once. However, after a few bridges, the mysterious White Fairytale was there again!

“Given her pace, she either took the wrong path and came back or… she waited for me…? No, that’s not possible. Don’t be silly! These things happen only in movies!”

I kept searching for my reference point: the Corner Pub. If I found that place, I could recall where my hotel was. And then, after few minutes, the Corner Pub was there!

Just when the pub was on sight, White Fairytale started (slowly) to climb the stairs of a bridge in front of it. She was still singing and now I was so close that I could hear she was uttering English words.

I was so close that I became agitated. I was excited and scared at the same time. My mind got divided in two. I won’t call them “angel vs devil”, rather “high self-esteem vs low self-esteem”.

She was holding a shirt in her hand, but Leonardo AI didn’t want to apply it, no matter what prompt. Dirty AI…

When the woman turned, the entities fighting in my brain sent me opposite interpretations…

High self-esteem: “Here she is! She wants you to speak to her! You’re the alien sex fiend she was waiting for!”
Low self-esteem: “She’s worried. She understood you’re trying to follow her. Just move on and don’t say anything. Let her feel safe, poor girl!”

This battle was kind of a draw. What do I mean by that? I mean that my brain chose to stall, pretending to check the phone and figure out the place through Google Maps. Smartphones are always a good last resort to solve embarrassing situations. This allowed me to gain enough time to cross the bridge after White Fairytale.

Now at least I could see which direction she was taking and… she was taking the same direction of mine! Turned left then continued 2 streets to turn on the right. At that point, the lady kept a steady pace, and turned to the left.

“Damn! That’s not possible! Is she staying at the same hotel of mine???”

I began to hope for that. Such a scenario could have defeated the judgmental part of mine. But nope… White Fairytale proceeded till the end of the street, then turned left, giving me a final, brief look… “Lalalala…” and then she disappeared. I sensed as if that “Lalala” was a gentle fuck you: “I was waiting for you, but you weren’t confident enough… I’ll have fun on my own… Bye…”

Low self-esteem won this time. Just to hurt myself a bit more, I reached the end of the street, as if White Fairytale could be so reckless to ambush me around the corner. The girl’s hotel was there, but no trace of her… and the voice in my head told me, with sarcasm: “Buddy… Your hotel is just back the street before… hihihi!”

Clearly my self-esteem is not healed yet, but at least, this time I didn’t make a tragedy out of it. Better, I turned this episode into an intriguing story for my Medium blog. I’m sure my therapist will be proud of this reaction! :-D

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I never post about my romantic life, but this instance, this night fantasy seemed like the perfect tale to tell through storyboarding. Here lies a humanistic way of using AI. Instead of replacing the human, AI can help him to tell his stories better, in a more vivid way. Here is how I could tell a real story, with the feelings that revolve around it, with AI as my storyboard assistant! Isn’t it great? :-)))
Let me know in the comments if you liked this experiment!

See you for the next chapter about Trieste! ;-)

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