„The devil take my reputation!
I need a job!
I need an income!
I burst with envy when I see your beautiful women, your fine automobiles and your expensive country houses.“
G.B. Shaw
„The Doctor at the Crossroads“, 1
(Dr Ridgeon)
Carnevale di Venezia – erotic and exotic, mysterious and melancholic, a feast for the senses…
The lagoon city has many faces: on the one hand it is bursting with lust for life, eroticism and exoticism, but on the other hand it appears mysterious, morbid, sometimes even melancholic to the unbiased visitor.
Nuremberg (gsn) – It is the proverbial synonym for joy of life, desire, eroticism and sensuality. There is hardly any other place in the world where people can live out their most secret desires and most daring fantasies – without having to fear losing face, being persecuted or even coming into conflict with the law. Whether emperor or king, bishop or cardinal, beggar or mistress, goddess or respected citizen’s daughter, they all conquer their city year after year in the first weeks of February, celebrate the most intoxicating balls, play the eternally young game of love, falling in love and To be loved – and this has been the case for around nine hundred years.
Because it’s been around for so long, the Venice Carnival and then for a few weeks the enchanting lagoon city is under the sign of the great illusion.
The city is as mysterious as its citizens. The repertoire of their mutual ability to transform ranges from melancholic, mysterious, lively and cheeky to daring. They are always erotic and exotic. This literally doesn’t need any special mention.
On over a hundred islands, the city and the people who live and work in it have come to terms with the sea. It’s a bit like an old and experienced married couple who, over the decades of living together, have rubbed, honed or, to put it better, agreed to a certain status quo.
People know well enough that this sea is unpredictable, capricious – even dangerous. More than once in the last few years her houses were under water, livelihoods were lost, she had to move on swaying wooden walkways – and the floods did not stop at her beloved St. Mark’s Square and the Doge’s Palace.
The dramatic television images that spread around the world at lightning speed in the last few weeks of last year are still a bitter reality.
And with every flood, alarm bells ring not only in the Roman capital, but also at UNESCO in faraway New York:
How much irreplaceable cultural heritage will be lost this time?
The great Corsican Napoleon called St. Mark’s Square the „antechamber of Europe“ and as a key shaper of Europe – for better or for worse – he knew what he was talking about, which, however, did not prevent him from drawing a rigorous conclusion in 1797:
He occupied Venice and banned Carnival. The most powerful man in the world at the time was simply afraid that an assassin could be hiding under the gorgeous Venetian masks.
The great general didn’t cause too much damage, because the tradition of the Venetian carnival had already lasted seven hundred years. In any case, carnival experienced its heyday in the eighteenth century, i.e. in the Renaissance.
The Napoleonic dictate was to have an impact well into the twentieth century:
The famous carnival was not celebrated again until 1978.
And as if Napoleon and his ban had never existed, the Venice Carnival has enjoyed pan-European attention since the late 1970s.
Thousands of tourists come from all over the world. They come from water, land and air. From the end of January to mid-February there are no rooms available in the lagoon city. The restaurants and cafes are fully booked almost around the clock – in short, chaos reigns in Venice.
And they all just want one thing:
To be there and take part in the eternally young game of love and being in love, of discovering and hiding, undressing and disguising, they want to see and be seen, loved and admired. To be the center of attention for once in your life, to stand out from the great mass of people – to almost literally shout it out:
look – here I am.
What does it matter who is behind one of the telling masks? Regardless of whether they are a prostitute, a noblewoman, of course a man, a beggar or a bourgeois daughter, they all represent the wonderful characters of the Venetian carnival, form the unique and sophisticated ensemble of an international impromptu theater and the world-famous backdrop is there as an added bonus, so to speak.
And in the middle of it all, the astonished and fascinated international crowd of tourists. Europe sends greetings:
The applause echoes across Europe at the Campanile:
The somewhat hard palate of the Germanic peoples compete with the slightly cooing ones of the hosts, although the melodic tones of the Francophile-speaking area know how to assert themselves as bravely as they are persistent.
No wonder, since the Venetian demons, goddesses, harlequins, emperors and cocottes have been facing fierce competition for several years – here too, Europe sends its regards:
Theater groups from European nations have long since discovered the unique backdrop of the Venetian lagoon city and are vying for the audience’s favor together with local actors.
And the viewer is you, dear reader:
But you have the famous choice:
Yes or no.
Decide yes and immerse yourself in a world long gone, forget the here and now, today and tomorrow. No matter whether as a somewhat brittle “Arlecchino” or as a sweet, perhaps even somewhat sassy “Colombina” or even as the evil swindler “Pulcinella”, because as the saying goes:
Only those who play can win. And you will definitely win at the Venetian Carnival.
Maybe a classy Venetian woman will conquer your heart – it could also be a male pedant – or you would like to tell an „old love“ that „you still love her as much as you did on the first day?“ Any time of the year is in season for lovers in Venice. And if you believe the mischievous Venetian hoteliers, then many lovers are said to be drawn to Venice, especially in the mild weeks of early spring.
Many enchanting and more or less truthful love stories can be found in the relevant literature about Venice, such as the following one – where a world-famous American writer from the 1920s, married of course, takes his beloved to Venice for a few days every February meets. The lady in question was of course also married – to another gentleman, of course.
And to stay with language and images, another famous Venetian has conquered his place in history and literature:
Casanova.
The highly educated and worldly Italian bon vivant and diplomat did not just spend pleasant hours in the lagoon city. In the memory of people, especially men, he has his Olympus securely:
As an immortal womanizer. In women’s hearts, however, Casanova lives on as probably the greatest lover of all time.
And if at the very end, exhausted and tired, but still excited about what you have experienced and seen, you only want one thing – namely a place where you can sit down, rest and stretch your feet – then you should try the legendary cafe Florian to get a chair at St. Mark’s Square.
Then close your eyes and imagine yourself back in time a hundred or even two hundred years ago – and you will definitely recognize the great crowned and uncrowned heads, the members of the European nobility, the poets, thinkers and leaders, the secular and ecclesiastical dignitaries – all of them in their own time – just as you have sat in this cafe now, drinking your cappuccino and probably dreaming of a dashing Cavalier or a sweet and classy Venetian Colombina. So be curious about your dreams.
Because as Casanova so aptly said in his memoirs:
“Love is three-quarters curiosity.”
Author note:
COPYRIGHT © 2020 GERHARD-STEFAN NEUMANN MEDIA TV BLOG
Copyright and all rights exclusively with the author.
Reproduction, even in extracts, is only permitted against a receipt and a fee „and only with prior permission.“
CURRENT INFO ON THE ARTICLE “CARNIVAL IN VENICE”
Almost all renowned tour operators offer city trips to the Venice Carnival in a wide variety of categories. A price example from Dertour: Overnight stay per person, two overnight stays and scheduled flight from Stuttgart 400 EURO. The extra day or an additional overnight stay costs 70 EURO.
There are also special offers from Lufthansa, Alitalia and Deutsche Bahn AG.
Budget-conscious travelers should also check with their local coach company. Naturally, the arrival and departure takes longer, but the costs can be reduced by up to thirty percentage points. Especially in central and southern Germany, a number of coach companies organize so-called „day trips“ with a stay of „eight to twelve hours“ at pure travel prices between 60 and 80 euros. Larger bus companies even have Venice trips lasting several days in their program; the costs per person for travel, accommodation in a double room and half board start from around two hundred euros.
Literature and travel guides about Venice are a dime a dozen. What stands out are:
The Venice travel guides from DuMont and Polyglott, as well as the HB art guide and the „Venice Special“ from the ADAC publishing house.
If you like things moving, you’ll be well served by the travel videos from Falken and Polyglott publishing houses. The prices are around thirty euros.
Further information is available from the Italian State Tourist Office ENIT at 6O329 Frankfurt am Main, Kaiserstraße 65, telephone O69 23 74 3O, fax 23 28 94, in 8O336 Munich, Goethestrasse 2O, telephone O89 53 13 17 + 53 31 63, fax O89 53 45 27. In Berlin, the ENIT is at Karl-Liebknecht-Straße 34, telephone O3O 2 47 83 97-98, fax 2 47 83-99.
To get to the city or your hotel from Marco Polo Airport in Tessera, the train station, the Tronchetto Park Island, you can use regular public transport or take a taxi.
The taxis, including water taxis, are identified by a yellow stripe with a black city coat of arms and the vehicle’s license number.
The travel costs can be checked using the taximeter or the tariff table, which must be displayed in the vehicle.
In the event of a complaint about the requested fare, it is advisable to note down the number of the taxi, the time of the journey and, above all, to ask for a receipt stating the price and the route.
VERY IMPORTANT:
It is strongly advised not to use unauthorized carriers who are at the city’s access points, at the train station, on the park islands or at the airport!
For hotel reservations, we recommend contacting the hotel association offices at the airport, train station, Pizzale Roma or Tronchetto Park Island. Please do not trust all unauthorized persons who pose as representatives of the Tourist Association (A.P.T.) outside of these offices and who offer you various services.
The exact calendar of events will only be published at very short notice, around a week before the start of the season. If you have any questions, please contact your travel agency.
The absolute highlight of the Venetian Carnival are its famous balls. Naturally, it is very difficult for tourists to get the highly sought-after tickets. We will therefore give you two addresses that you can contact in advance. Entrance fees per ball and person start at around 100 EURO.
The Doge’s Ballo
San Marco 1232, 3O124 Venice
Tel.: 0039-041/5233851
Fax: 0039-041/5287543
ACIT – Associazione Culturale Italo Tedesca Venezia (German-Italian Society)
Palazzo Albrizzi, Cannaregio 4118, 3O131 Venezia
Tel.: 0039-041/5232544
Fax: 0039-041/5245275
