On a recent family trip to Venice, Italy, Vacations & Travel magazine designer and photographer Trish Graf, captured the City of Canals in all its glory. Here, she shares some of her favourite moments and places.
The 16th-century Benedictine church of San Giorgio Maggiore, on the island of the same name in Venice
One hundred and seventy-seven canals break up the island city of Venice into its various neighbourhoods, connected by just over 400 bridges, with locals and tourists transported by ‘vaporetti’ (water buses/taxis), water taxis, gondolas and private boats. With the sound of lapping waters, the bustle of boat traffic over road traffic, or the hush of no traffic, I’ve often had the sense that the whole city is encased in a dome or firmament, separated from the rest of the world.
Take a vaporetto along the Grand Canal from Venice’s main entry points – Piazzale Roma or Santa Lucia Railway Station – for the classic view of the ‘palazzo’ facades, churches, galleries and museums lining this main thoroughfare; spying into canals branching off the Grand which make their way through the island.
Life along The Grand Canal, the dome of the Basilica di Santa Maria della Salute reaching above the canal’s palazzos and apartments
Be it summer or winter, there will always be crowds in St Mark’s Square, Venice’s principle and grandest square, where tourists are corralled by souvenir vendors into the main piazza towards some of the main attractions – St Mark’s Basilica, The Doge’s Palace or to climb the Campanile for views over Venice.
Lose the crowds by taking in the back streets; winding your way through lanes, discovering canals with gondolas, over small bridges and through shop-lined streets. Wandering off the main drag always presents local colour and textures – classic doorways, shuttered windows, gothic details, peeling paintwork and stucco, old brickwork, restored facades, hanging laundry, dead ends and curving alleyways.
Wander through any Venetian neighbourhood, get lost, find your way again or hop on a vaporetto back to base
Take a break in a local café for a quick coffee or gelato with the locals who nip in from their adjoining shops. Many cafés are standing room only with high tables to take your caffeine hit or glass of wine, before heading back out or back to work. Or there’s always a little slice of cake or biscuit, before making your way through the island where you can end up at another vaporetto stop for the trip back up the Grand Canal, to stop at many of Venice’s beautiful churches or museums or out to the islands of Murano, Burano or Lido.
Trish used a Canon EOS-80D DSLR Camera + EF-S 18-135mm NANO IS USM Len
Dusk views from across the Grand Canal to the Basilica di Santa Maria della Salute
Architectural detail along the top of St Marks Basilica, St Marks bell tower in the background and the moon in between
One of the main waterways on the island of Murano, lined with store after store of Murano glass, colourful apartments and palazzos
Venetian gothic architecture lining the Grand Canal
The Doge’s Palace in St Mark’s Square; the colours of the façade peaking in the late afternoon light
St Marks Basilica in St Marks Square, the Roman Catholic cathedral of Venice, featuring gold mosaics and the symbol of the venetian empire, the winged lion
Sunset along the Grand Canal from the Rialto Bridge
Gondola views from one of Venice’s 416 bridges
