The Grand Canal is the major thoroughfare for water traffic in Venice and there is lots going on. This is a must see and do when you visit. We took vaporetto No.1 which stops at every stop and takes about 45 minutes from Piazza San Marco to Piazzale Roma. Make sure to take it in both directions as in when you arrive at Piazzale Roma hop off and get on the next one making the return journey. No, you can’t stay on the same boat! Be bold and grab a seat outside at the front of the boat to have the best views and photo opportunities. This may take some work as this is prime real estate for tourists however if you use Italian and push in the Americans and Brits will make room. As we travelled the canal on a cloudy (read a big storm is brewing and will drench us soon) day we managed three seats together up front. The trip costs 6 euros 50 one way however by now you have bought your vaporetto pass for the week and it will cost you nothing.
What a spectacle! You will see gondolas full of happy, photo snapping and champagne drinking tourists (90 euros per hour), and traghetti (gondolas that cross the Grand Canal from one side to the other (100 meters for 50 centimes). If you try a traghetto do it standing up as the locals do. I hope you can swim. You will also see water taxis, other vaporetti of all sizes, water ambulances, water police, water hearses, and a variety of barges ferrying goods into Venice and removing waste. I even saw a barge transporting a cement truck to a renovation site. I also heard that some intrepid Canadians had rented kayaks for the journey. That is a death wish! With all this activity (I am sure there are rules) the water gets churned up creating waves and whirlpools.
Lining the banks are numerous palazzi that belonged to wealthy venetian families of the 14th to 16th centuries. In fact most of the members, the men I mean, would often form the parliament running the city (the Doges). Several of these elegant residences now serve as museums. We visited Ca’Rezzonico. If you want to know more about the Grand Canal you will find lots of stuff on the Internet.
I found the Rick Steve’s travel books informative and written for the curious traveller, not for travellers who want to do a thesis on the renaissance. You can download mp3 files and maps from the following site free of charge. You should however buy the books or ask to borrow them from Paul.
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