“And I swore that if I could escape from my native empire, the first thing I would do is go to Venice, rent a room on the first floor of some palazzo, so that the waves from passing boats splash against the window, I would write a couple of elegies, extinguishing cigarettes on the damp stone floor, I would cough and drink, and when my money runs out instead of a train ticket I would buy a small Browning and without leaving my place blow my brains out, unable to die in Venice from natural causes.”
Joseph Brodsky – ‘The Embankment of the Incurables’ 1989.
Venice is a city that cannot be not loved and admired.
The legendary foundation of Venice dates back to March 25, 421. Although the name of the city has preserved the name of the ancient tribe of Veneti or Eneti, who inhabited the Northern Adriatic even before the birth of Christ.
In the 5th century, after the fall of the Roman Empire, during the barbarian invasions, part of the local population fled in horror to the islands of the lagoon. Thus, Venice gradually came into being.
Of course, first of all, the name of the city is associated with the holy apostle and evangelist Mark. According to divine tradition, the saint visited the Venetian lagoon in 52 AD. This explains the Venetians’ love for the saint and why they chose Saint Mark as the heavenly patron of the city. In 828, the relics of the saint were cunningly transported from Alexandria by Venetian merchants. Thus, on the site of the modern cathedral that we see today, the first chapel arises.
Since its founding, Venice has never been rebuilt. It has preserved all its medieval charm, sprawling over 118 islands, wonderfully connected by a network of canals.
“The Crusades,” aimed at seizing the Holy Sepulchre and establishing a Western Christian state in Palestine, became Venice’s “hour of glory.” The city was flooded with immense wealth, contributing to its development and prosperity. In terms of Christian relics, Venice is the second city after Rome. All the brought relics of saints are kept in Venetian churches.
There are many churches in Venice. It is impossible to visit them all in a short period of time, so our route is designed to see the main relics of the city and get a first impression of the city.
