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It just so happened that all my meetings with Venice began and ended with a walk along the Grand Canal. I sailed on it many times: from the station to San Marco and back. Often I went out to various places on the Canal, wandering through the labyrinths of Venetian streets. I happened to stand for a long time on the Rialto Bridge, watching the turbulent life of this unusual water street. You never get tired of looking at the Channel: you think that everything here has been familiar for a long time, and your eyes will definitely stop at some palace that has not been seen before, and freeze in admiration. I'm sure everyone will see something of their own here, something special that will be remembered forever.
You can hardly meet a person who has been to Venice and has never sailed along the Grand Canal, the main street of the famous city on the water. The "Canal of Palaces" (that's how it is roughly called here - "Canalazzo") is not only the main transport artery of the city, but also a museum under open sky. Ancient palazzos, the facades of which - one more beautiful than the other - go directly to the Canal, keep many secrets of the amazing Venetian history.
Grand Canal in the history of Venice
Strictly speaking, the Grand Canal is not a canal: this is how artificially created channels are called, and the Venetian Canalazzo was originally something like a small river winding between the islands of the lagoon. Some of the first settlements of the future city arose along the Canal, for example, in the area of \u200b\u200bthe present Rialto. Even then, the main function of the Canal was identified - transport, which has been preserved to this day. Even large ships can pass here, delivering the necessary goods to different parts of Venice. A wide channel runs through the entire city, curving in the shape of an inverted "S".
It is interesting that the main "street" and the transport artery of Venice - the Grand Canal, is not a canal in the full sense of the word, since it does not belong to artificially created structures.
The Grand Canal is a natural, initially shallower channel between the islands of the lagoon, among which is Rialto Island.
If you describe the main canal of Venice in numbers, then its length is 3.8 thousand meters, the width varies from 30 to 70 meters, and the depth is about 5 meters. The Grand Canal runs through the entire famous Italian city. It starts from the lagoon at the station, stretches through the whole of Venice, connects with the La Giudecca and San Marco canals at the customs building. From above, the Grand Canal most of all looks like an inverted Latin letter S, dividing the city exactly in half.
The Grand Canal was glorified by the buildings, the facades of which replace the embankments of this waterway - the most famous and beautiful palaces of Venice are concentrated here, thanks to which the "street" received its second name - the Canal Palace ( Canalazzo). In general, there are more than 100 majestic palaces along the banks of the Grand Canal, among which Ca’ Rezzonico, Ca’ Foscari, Ca’ d’Oro and Palazzo Barbarigo are especially popular with tourists. Usually such palaces were built on piles, they have two exits - to the water surface of the canal and to land.
Despite its outstanding length, only 4 bridges cross the canal - the Rialto Bridge, the Scalzi Bridge, the Accademia Bridge and the Constitution Bridge, which is located between Piazalle Roma and the station.
You can see all the beauties of the Grand Canal while walking on a water bus (vaporetto), which is not at all expensive, but there are always a lot of tourists on such transport and it is quite difficult to “win back” a seat at the side. More expensive and convenient way take a ride along the main Venetian street - a gondola or a river taxi.
Grand Canal in Venice photo.
Address: Italy, Venice
Length: 3800 m
Depth: 5 m
Coordinates: 45°26"21.6"N 12°20"09.0"E
When talking about the main transport artery of any city, in almost all cases they mean a wide road with high capacity, along which a large number of cars and public transport can move at the same time.
Vaporetto ( river tram) on the Grand Canal
This generally accepted definition is completely inappropriate for a unique Italian city Venice, where the main transport artery is the water channel. It has several names at once: the Grand Canal, the Grand Canal and even the Canal of Palaces. No, it was not built by human hands, like, for example, the famous Panama Canal. Canale Grande is the most common, naturally formed channel, through which you can easily get to almost anywhere in the city and the islands of the picturesque Venetian lagoon. A distinctive feature of the Grand Canal is a huge number of magnificent buildings erected by famous architects on its "shores".
Grand Canal in Venice: "dry" data
According to the results of studies carried out by sociological services, at least more than 3,500,000 people visit Venice every year. Almost all tourists and people who have arrived in this city on a business trip, even with all their desire, will be able to take a walk along its main transport artery. Speaking of the Grand Canal, it should be noted that many art historians also call it an open-air museum. There is nothing surprising in this: on both sides of it there are a huge number of sights, monuments of history and architecture.
View of the Grand Canal from the Rialto Bridge
All the luxurious palaces and houses that can be seen while traveling along the Grand Canal of Venice, and built in various architectural styles, stretch for almost 4 kilometers (the length of the main transport artery of the city). The width of this, one might say, a miracle of nature, decorated with human hands, in some places reaches up to 70 meters, and in the narrowest part of the strait it does not exceed 30 meters. The greatest depth of the Grand Canal, which seems to “cut” the city into two parts of different sizes, is 5 meters.
You can get to any of its districts along the main transport artery of Venice, but you should not forget that it is divided into another 45 (!) small canals (rio). Through these small waterways, indigenous people visit their places of work and shops, and return home. By the way, despite the fact that it is impossible to get from one end of the city to the other bypassing the Grand Canal, the builders built only four bridges across it. This is despite the fact that in total in Venice you can count over 400 (!) Bridges connecting streets and alleys.
View of the Grand Canal from the Scalzi Bridge
The grandeur of the Canal Palaces in Venice
If in this material it was not about a Venetian sight, but about some metropolis, then it would be possible to cite “dry” statistics for an infinitely long time. They don’t talk about Venice like that, not only admired tourists and guides, but even scientists: this city is amazing and unique, every building and canal in it is unique and has its own history, legend. One has only to imagine that on both sides of the Grand Canal there are a little more than a hundred palaces, each of which is a real architectural masterpiece, as an irresistible desire arises to sit in one of the luxurious gondolas and go on a leisurely excursion.
You can arrange a walk along the canal and its numerous branches with the gondolier at the gondola pier. It is located right behind station square, where most tourists buy colorful souvenirs and gifts for relatives and close friends as a keepsake. By the way, the prices in this largest and noisiest bazaar in Venice are extraordinarily expensive. Do not forget that Serene is considered one of the most expensive cities in the world, so if the budget is limited, it is best to buy fridge magnets, downy shawls and jumpers elsewhere.
Grand canal overlooking the Basilica of Santa Maria della Salute
After arriving at the pier, almost all tourists sit in amazing beauty gondolas with a gondolier at the stern. From this moment, for the happy guests of the city, a real journey into a fairy tale begins: many people light special lanterns and slowly go to their hotels or on an excursion to numerous attractions. It would not be an exaggeration to say that a gondola ride along the Grand Canal to the most popular Doge's Palace (if you do not take into account the Golden Palace) is already a close acquaintance with Venice, because during it you can see a lot of sights and get a certain idea of \u200b\u200bthe architectural styles characteristic of "Serene".
Many guides who conduct tours of the city on the water call the largest canal of the city a huge hall of the museum, in which the entire exposition consists of beautiful palaces and other equally magnificent buildings. Surprisingly, all the buildings on both sides of the main transport artery of Venice were built no later than the middle of the 17th century.
Parking gondolas on the Grand Canal
Since those distant times, palaces and houses have not been rebuilt, moreover, it was forbidden even to change the decoration of their facades. For people who arrived in the city on the water on a business trip and are not planning excursions, it will be useful to know that you can cross the canal not only on a slow gondola, but also on a special ferry and high-speed motor boat called vaporetto. By the way, most of the Venetians use these boats: they are forbidden to travel only in especially narrow channels, where a wave from the side of the ship can flood the first floor of the building.
On both sides of the Canal of Palaces, near each building, you can see brightly colored striped poles, to which the gondoliers tie their luxurious ships decorated with gold figures. Especially many of these poles were placed at the most significant sights of the Grand Canal and at the hotel with the name Splendid Suise. The entrance to this expensive and comfortable hotel and many palaces is a balcony, which tourists enter directly from the boat.
Gondolas on the Grand Canal
Do not be surprised if one of the historic buildings located on the Grand Canal offers its services to the Spa, a restaurant or a state-of-the-art casino: despite the fact that all monuments are the property of
Venice is a city of great opportunities. Here you can have a good time, meet beautiful girls and guys, you can also meet the indigenous people of the city, and of course see a lot of sights. One of these attractions is called the Grand Canal, and there will be an article about it.
The Grand Canal is one of the main attractions of Venice
Arriving in Venice, you will immediately see it, as it passes right through the whole city. This is a large canal starting from the city station and ending at the customs building.
It is generally accepted that this channel is the main street. True, it does not have embankments, and the role of the banks is played by the facades of houses. After visiting the Grand Canal, you will have only delight and pleasant memories, because it is along it that the most beautiful buildings Venice. Great amount palaces (more than a hundred). Various old houses, beautiful churches, and when you see them, it seems as if you have fallen into another reality.
You should move along the Grand Canal along, as there are not many bridges, only four. Used for movement water transport: public - vaporetto and traditional, which is also called the "gondola". The bridges are made in an excellent architectural style, and also have historical significance. In general, Venice is historical city with a rich history and culture.
People who are not only fond of architecture and ancient buildings, but also everyone else should visit the Grand Canal, because the spectacle is simply gorgeous, and even more so the photo.
grand canal it is one of the favorite attractions of both tourists and residents of Venice. In the morning and afternoon you can look at beautiful houses and church, and in the evening to participate in nightlife city, which is full of walks and various festivals.
Well, there is also the opportunity to ride a gondola and spend time even more pleasantly (although the prices bite, 80-100 €). If finances allow, do not miss this opportunity.
The length of the channel is more than three thousand eight hundred meters, and the width is up to seventy meters. It is also very deep, because the depth is more than five meters.
Here you can not only see ancient architectural monuments, but also to meet hospitable Italians who certainly love to talk with an unfamiliar tourist about the beauty of their city.
And Venice itself is very beautiful city, which wants to visit any person at any age. The main thing is the desire and desire to travel, as well as the availability of financial resources, because now we live in a time when even a flight from one country to another is not cheap. But thanks to travel, you can see what you will not see sitting at home.
Have a nice trip to Venice!
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