Floating in Venice

 Liquid, and Venice; a delicate timeless bubble floating on it. Only one way to see it. Floating, too. And not on some tour boat with garish pointing and breathless monologue.

The thing to do is slip onto a waterbus (vaporetti), with the people, early when they’re starting out for jobs on the mainland and the light is still morning on the water and cannot be subdued even by people in suits with black briefcases.

Now is when the city is young and not sinking, boisterous ochre, gold and russet in the fresh of day. Try, but you wont succeed, to hide your camera, to slide your eyes along slit lids to see the view, draped languid against the railing, wind in your hair. Yes, I live here. Yes, I see this everyday.

Get off where? Wherever you want. Buy a day ticket and hop off and on everywhere.

And what’s more fun than the way travel books tell you to ‘do’ Venice? To wander. Allow yourself to do this. Aimlessly. Waterbuses come so often you’ll never need to run for one. Take your time, let Venice steal up on you, seep through your skin into your blood. You can still find deserted alleys, stunned into sun-silence piazzas, nothing but the distant sound of water lapping wood and stone.

Wander past the crowds of people on the Grande Canal, the pavement cafes buzzing with tourists. Slip down a twisted alley. Find a little place on a street corner slow and sleepy and full of locals. Buy something light and flaky draped in chocolate that will destroy your innocence and stain your fingers. Grab a small white cup of sinister coffee to wash it down. Good. That’s breakfast.

Now pause on the apex of an arched footbridge, look down and wonder at the limpid turquoise of the water. Don’t rush. There is nothing better to see. This is it, you’re staring into it; the liquid essence of the city.

Later grab a casual homemade lasagne from another unfamous place. Wet it with a long, chilled beer or some house red. Sit among the regular people. Talk quietly and sparingly so you can hear the music of their conversation.

When your plate is clean hop on the vaporetti again. Repeat all day until the liquid world goes silver with sunset. Now head home somewhere with shutters that open to the terracotta reds of rooftops. Sleep to dream.