Winter in Venice - Discover the Magic

Venice, lost in the winter mists we set out to explore. Venice felt old, it was easy to imagine you'd stepped out into 1721. No people... a thousand stories around every corner - the ghosts of a Venice past. Churches wrapped in grey, the palaces wrapped in mystery: who lives there, who lived there? if only those ancients stones called talk.

Get up early enough during the lonely months, as I call December, January and March, and you'll find a Venice emptied of tourists. A Venice where the magic of centuries past seems to have returned. 

The silence always amazes me, often there's not a sound, apart from the soft, occasional splish splash of one of the early morning gondolas.  I'll watch them glide by; the gondolier standing tall and impervious to the chill. The early-risers aboard warmed only by love, their embrace... and a thick blanket or two.

Something about the light, as dawn starts exploring the first canals is special too. The last golden glow of the streetlamps combines with the sunrise to truly enchant; ten minutes of this is enough to raise the spirits for months and linger in memories forever.

It is kind of hard to capture the atmosphere in words and sometimes it's even harder to do so in photos would you believe. That's why I was so excited when Juliet Earth, one of our Facebook "village" community, shared her photos with me. They capture exactly what I was trying to explain.

I particularly love the the last three, near the end of the page, with the boys trying to recover their ball from the canal. To me, those boys and their ball are a perfect little cameo of real life in Venice, something you often don't see in summer when real life Venice is overwhelmed by tourists.

Which one do you like the most? You can leave a comment at the bottom of the page. Both Juliet and I would love to hear from you.

Perhaps they'll tempt you to discover a Venice few ever do. If you've found a little joy or inspiration in the photos or even simply liked them please show Juliet your appreciation by clicking like below.

By the way, If you do decide to visit Venice  during the "lonely months" or even in the height of summer then you can click here to get going.

This is the photo I mentioned liking most.  It capture exactly what early morning Venice is about. Occasionally you'll find a soft mist enveloping everything and making the atmosphere more mystical still.

The view from St Marks looking across to Giudecca island. 

 A gondola makes its lonely way down a side canal. Somehow Venice looks completely different in winter, not sure what it is, maybe the light? Anyway it's gorgeous!

The beautiful church of Santa Maria della Salute, this truly is a church for our times. It was built in the 17th century, in thanks to  God for helping Venice to overcome a plague that killed many. It is one of the most beautiful churches in all of Italy: click here for our list of the 12 most beautiful churches and cathedrals in Italy.

Winter in Venice, a lone gondola heads out with two passengers, well wrapped against the winter chill.

Wrapped up against the February cold these boatmen seem to belong an age many centuries past.

The Ball Falls in the Canal

With no cars and virtually no serious crime Venice is a great city for kids. Trouble is those canals can really mess up a game of soccer (football).

More Winter in Venice

Since adding the photos above I've received a couple of other lovely ones taken in January by Leigh Alba. You can see them below.

For more of Juliet's photos visit her page on Flickr