Blog posts
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Farewell to Twitter and Facebook
The old social media sites are by now useless for sharing information, so I will post no further articles there. Posts will still be shared on Mastodon and Bluesky.
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Small satisfactions
Getting a review like this the morning after a pleasant walk around Venice is always a satisfaction. This is precisely what I’d like to achieve with my tours.
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Vogalonga
The Vogalonga is a major event in Venice, but the problem it was a protest against, remains unsolved half a century later
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Superintendents for the avoidance of superfluous expenses
The Republic of Venice had a magistracy of “Superintendents and regulators for the avoidance and regulation of superfluous expenses.”
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Venetian Patent law — 1474
The first patent law ever was Venetian, issued by the Pregadi (Senate) on March 19th, 1474.
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Archaeological digs in St. Mark’s square
Archaeological digs in the Piazza San Marco have uncovered parts of the ancient church of San Giminiano and a grave of four persons
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Visit the abandoned islands
It is not easy to visit the many abandoned islands in the Venetian Lagoon, but it is possible. I’ve been to almost all of them.
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Stumbling stones
Today several stumbling stones were placed in Venice, one of them in memory of Elia Gino Musatti in Salizada dei Greci in Venice
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The testament of Marco Polo
We don’t know the exact date of the death of Marco Polo, but his last will and testament is dated January 9th, 1323 M.V.
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St Nicholas — protector of sailors, virgins and reindeer
St Nicholas is celebrated on December 6th in much of Christianity. Associated with sailors and gift-giving, he is the origin of Santa Claus.