Throughout its many centuries as a city or city-state (before it became part of Italy proper in 1866), Venice has enjoyed and endured many forms of government. At one extended point in its history, it was ruled by the Doge (pronounced Dough-zsh), a “royal consanguinity” leader. This rule came to an end for good at the time of the Napoleonic occupation of Venice in 1797.
This ornate, Italian Gothic building is as detailed inside as out, and served to house the Doge(s) and his family in glorious apartments, as well as host various government offices. It is connected directly to Saint Mark’s Cathedral, for ease of family worship (and privacy), and leads out to the spacious Piazza San Marco. It straddles the Grand Canal.
Built in 1340, it took years to complete, and has been refurbished and reconstructed many times, due to structural failure and frequent fires over the last 700 years. Since 1934, it has operated as a museum, of one 11 in the city. Such a lavish and lovely building, the Doge’s Palace has been mimicked in building designs in the United Kingdom and the U.S.A.
In about 1063, a group of Venetian statesmen and religious leaders decided to build a cathedral on the existing grounds of an even older church, the...
The Grand Canal in Venice is indeed grand; it is wide and deep enough to take ocean-going vessels, but these have become a local issue...
The plaza, or open courtyard, that envelopes the entrance to Saint Mark’s Cathedral in Venice is wide and long, and serves as much more...
Throughout its many centuries as a city or city-state (before it became part of Italy proper in 1866), Venice has enjoyed and endured many forms of...
The Rialto Bridge that spans the Grand Canal in Venice is famous for several things. First, you can shop there as it is lined with...
Given the propensity of Venice to suffer flooding, the Dorsoduro, which translates as “high ridge”, is ioncomparatively high, solid ground and impervious to the whims...
Murano Glassworks is world-renowned for its colourful glass objects, works of beautiful but practical art, hand-crafted on this island of Venice often referred to as...
This island, just south of the main area of Venice, and on the Venetian Lagoon, is virtually all church and churchyard. It once housed a...
The Bridge of Sighs, in Venice, Italy, is assuredly one of the most famous bridges in the world, but people who initially hear its name...
Gran Teatro la Fenice, called simply, La Fenice, is the main theatre in Venice that supports opera. Like its sister venue, La Scala, in Milan...
After the better-known St. Mark’s Cathedral, Santa Maria Glorioso dei Frari is a significant minor basilica in the Venetian ecclesiastical landscape, one of the...
Like many of the churches and minor basilicas in Venice (and Italy), Santa Maria della Salute, more commonly called, just “Salute”, is a treasure trove...
The first time we floated past San Trovaso Roman Catholic Church, we thought it was an old, rather rundown, two-storey warehouse in the Dorodura area...
London, England. The words still evoke an era, probably the 1960s and 19670s of mods and rockers, Carnaby Street, youth culture, Princess Margaret, the Beatles...
What more can be written about Paris that has not already been scribed, spoken or filmed? It’s one of the foremost cities of the...
Athens, Greece, has been the city of cultural imagination and classical history for over three millennia. The largest city in Greece, Athens, the namesake of...
Where is your sacred place? What is a sacred place to you? For those of us living in modern times, a sacred place might literally...
From sea (Pacific) to sea (Atlantic) to sea (Arctic), every province and territory in Canada boasts designated national parks for visitors from around the world...
The United Sates of America is vast, and not only contiguous; it has offshore islands and territories in faraway locales. Its large northern peninsula, the...
Part of the Netherlands Antilles group of Caribbean islands — the “A” in the “ABC” (Aruba, Bonaire, Curaçao) — Aruba is surprisingly affordable. It lacks the...
We humans work hard and when we play, we celebrate. The array and variety of amazing world festivals is an example of how lavishly we...
In the global battle for most romantic city in the world, the Venice versus Paris finals often switch winners, but here at Affordable Travel, we...