Ciao, from Venice

Posted on September 4, 2017 by

14 Comments

Adventure, for me, takes many forms. If you’ve been following along for a while, you’ll know that it can certainly come from pushing physical limits, scrambling in the mountainous landscapes I love. But it means more than that for me. I want to see and to explore difference… life lived in contrasts brings out the sense of adventure, and a deeper appreciation of the experiences we have in this world.

On that note, I just want to say that I will be taking a brief break from the “usual” here, exploring (wonderfully historic & cultural) Venice, for now, and northern Italy and northern Slovenia, soon, as Bill and I venture forth, exploring the mountainous areas, the culture, the caves, and the amazing via ferratas that you can do in this part of the world. I will update you, only if I have down time (as in, most likely, inclement weather… so please be patient… I will be back! I’m writing here now, only because Bill is napping away that jet lag!)

So here is the briefest of posts… taken from one experience we had here yesterday.

One of the things we love to do, when in a new city, is do a walking tour. It helps orient us to the culture, the architecture and the history of the urban landscapes we explore. It sets the tone for our holiday, and gives us important take-aways of info that we can digest, at our leisure, as our experiences unfold.

IMG_7619.jpg
Bill, walking with our guide as she explains the stories behind the piazza we are walking through.

Having hired a guide to walk with us and orient us to the history, the stories and the architecture of Venice, we ended the “tour” by going up to the rooftop of a new, controversial, exceptionally high-end shopping mall, housed in what was the German trading warehouse. Its rooftop has the most incredible views of Venice, perched as it was at one of the tight curves of the Grand Canal.

IMG_5144
Panoramic views of the grand Canal that snakes through Venice.

But it wasn’t the panoramic views of the watery city that caught my eye. From there we could see a sculpture of gigantic hands rising up out of the water. Our guide said it was a new art installation, called “Support.” The sculptor, Lorenzo Quinn, recreated his 11 year old son’s hands, rising up out of the canal. The idea is that Venice is in the hands of the youth… it is in them to change our habits (climate change and its rising water levels and stronger storms and storm surges here), to preserve and support and maintain Venice into the future. It is in them to strive for action, to support the cultural life of this amazing place… and ultimately to inspire us all.

IMG_5146.jpg
Look carefully in this image, and you can see the hands, rising up out of the water by the gondola taxi station, off to the right.

So in the afternoon, we set out to find our way to those hands! It was no small feat as we started on the other side of the Grand Canal.

IMG_7776.jpg
We started, of course, with a brief refuel at our rented apartment (we have a little terrace that opens up onto the quietest of canals there)… pizza, Venice style: mine had only the slightest bit of sharp cheese, prosciutto, tomatoes, spicy rocket and grilled eggplant and was decidedly yummy… accompanied by some table wine, filled at a local store that siphons it from glass carboys into whatever bottle you have on hand! Delicious. A litre and a half for 4 Euros!
IMG_7867.jpg
Then off we went in search of those hands, on little foot bridges over picturesque canals.
IMG_7859
After much searching, we found them!
IMG_7841.jpg
The detail in the wrinkles and the fleshy shape of the hands is incredible.
IMG_7842.jpg
Seen from below, the fingers splay out, each bigger than a man’s body. Look at their size compared to the balcony of the hotel here!
IMG_7849.jpg
At their base is a gondola station.
IMG_7854.jpg
The fingers wrap around the corner of the hotel with such life-like ease.
IMG_7855.jpg
And the thumb is caught in a moment of action… about to press against and support the building.
IMG_7839
An info plaque at the base of the hands. For more info, go to www.supportatvenice.com.
 Ok… gotta run. It’s time to wake up Bill and find a few hidden gems in this incredible city!

Category: Adventure, Italy, TravelTags: , ,

14 Comments on “Ciao, from Venice”

  2. Sounds like you’re having a great time in Venice. My one visit there was many years ago, so I haven’t seen that sculpture.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    • Thanks, Caroline. Slovenia will be brief, so it might be enough to whet our appetites for another future visit… we’ll see. 😉 But that’s how we ended up here again… we tried via ferrata once (we were here at the same time as your sis in Arco) and loved it, and swore we’d be back for more. And here we are!

      Like

      Reply

Leave a Reply

Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in:

Gravatar
WordPress.com Logo

You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. ( Log Out /  Change )

Twitter picture

You are commenting using your Twitter account. ( Log Out /  Change )

Facebook photo

You are commenting using your Facebook account. ( Log Out /  Change )

Cancel

Connecting to %s

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Hey armchair travellers! Click this link to have new posts land right in your email inbox.

Join 294 other subscribers
Follow Trail to Peak: The Adventurous Path on WordPress.com
Translate
Resources & Information

Where do we get our information and inspiration? Come check out the resources we use & recommend for exploring the Canadian Rockies.

Do you know your ABCs?
My Favourite Bow Valley Area Hikes

Eventually I will post about each of these:
Guinn’s Pass
Buller Passes Circuit
Mount Allan + Centennial Ridge
Windtower
Cirque Peak
Iceline
Wenkchemna Pass
Mount Edith and Cory Passes
Wasootch Ridge
Heart Mountain Circuit
Aylmer Lookout
Old Goat Glacier
Sparrowhawk Tarns

Anything at Lake O’Hara
Tent Ridge

I have always loved BIG landscapes.

Trekking up a mountain’s shoulder, hiking through a flowering alpine meadow, snowshoeing through a dense pine forest, or taking in the 360 degree views from a ridge top vantage point make me feel alive. The experiences in these places give me a profound sense of space and place.

Travel does a similar thing, pushing me out of my comfort zone, exposing me to new experiences, new people and new ways of thinking; it also gives me that sense of space and place in this world.

I believe that life is lived in the contrasts: when you experience simplicity and complexity and life's ups and downs, whether they be physically in this world or mentally in your own personal inner landscape, you know that you are truly living.

Follow Trail to Peak: The Adventurous Path on WordPress.com

Hey armchair travellers! Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 294 other subscribers
%d bloggers like this: