"water" streets of the city on the water. The most unusual cities on the water

13.03.2022

If you look at the map of Northern Italy, then Venice seems to be an ordinary coastal locality. In fact, this is an island. More precisely, a group of islands in the Adriatic Sea, located close to the mainland of the country. Here, instead of streets, there are canals, so the main transport in Venice is river trams and slightly more expensive river taxis. Gondola services will cost even more. This type of transport has been preserved since ancient times and is still in demand. It is mainly used by tourists who so want to get in touch with the history of the city, get acquainted with its sights, numerous museums, and see the life of the Venetians today.

Most Serene "Queen of the Adriatic"

Venice is one of the oldest cities on our planet. It owes its name to the Veneti tribe, who inhabited this area even before our era, during the existence of the Roman Empire. It was the Romans who enslaved the Veneti in the 3rd century BC, founding here the colony of Aquileia, which later became the center of the province of Venetia and Istria. Actually, Venice was founded in 421 AD by the inhabitants of the region, who sought salvation from the warlike Goths and found refuge here, on the Rialto Islands. So says the legend, in which the exact date is also called: March 25, the day of the Annunciation of the Virgin Mary. A document has been preserved confirming the veracity of the legend: according to it, the settlement was officially founded by three consuls - immigrants from Padua.

In 452 Venetia and Istria were invaded by warlike tribes of the Huns led by Attila. Main city- Aquileia - was destroyed. Some of the inhabitants, seeking salvation, also fled to the islands. The harsh conditions taught the settlers a lot, and above all the art of survival. They built houses on stilts, fished, ran a household. In total there were twelve village settlements, and in order not to live apart, they decided to form a common local government - the Venetian government (an agreement on this came into force in 466). But, despite the actual independence, the settlements were formally subordinate to the Eastern Roman Empire (Byzantium). In 539-551, the Venetians openly supported the Byzantine emperor Justinian in the war with the Ostrogothic kingdom, providing him with their own fleet, the most powerful at that time in the Adriatic. The Eastern Roman Empire did not remain in debt and granted Venice many privileges in trade.

At the end of the 7th century, the Most Serene Venetian Republic, or the Republic of St. Mark, was formed - a state with its capital in Venice, located in the northeast of modern Italy and having colonies in a number of Adriatic countries and basins of three seas - the Aegean, Marmara and Black. Since 697, Venice began to elect the highest official - the doge (king), who was endowed with broad powers. Its heyday fell on the period of the Crusades (XI-XV centuries). The state had extensive trade relations, in fact, controlling the trade between East and West. Meanwhile, internal political struggle did not subside within the state. Disputes, in particular, went around the idea of transforming the republic into a de facto monarchy, so that the doges who ruled for life would not be elected, but would receive power by inheritance. There were even uprisings. During one of them, one of the doges, Vitaly II, died. After that, in 1172, elections were announced for the deputies of the Great Council (something like a parliament). He became the highest representative and advisory body, whose powers significantly curtailed the power of the doges.

The Venetian Republic reached its peak of power under Doge Enrico Dandolo (XIII century). Relying on the French crusaders, she conquered Constantinople in 1204, and ruled this city for a short time. When the Byzantine lands were divided, three-eighths of this territory, including the island of Crete, went to the “Queen of the Adriatic”. In 1256, Venice began to fight with the Republic of Genoa. The fighting was long and gave the advantage to one side or the other. In 1381, Genoa was defeated and the territory of Venice began to gradually grow with new possessions. In the second half of the 15th century, they conquered ionian islands, and already in 1489 the island of Cyprus was annexed to the republic.

The end of the 15th century was notable for the Most Serene "Queen of the Adriatic" in many ways. The state was very rich. It was strong from the inside and inspired respect in the international arena. The enemies of Venice were frankly afraid of her. Ordinary people also lived very prosperously, since trade and industrial production flourished, and taxation was not burdensome. By modern standards, governance was generally democratic. True, political crimes were still punished.

Difficult times for the Republic of St. Mark came, starting from the 16th century. And for objective reasons. Just before that Portuguese navigator Vasco de Gama opened the sea route to the East Indies (1498), which gradually deprived Venice of its monopoly on this trade route. Then the militant Ottomans captured Constantinople, and step by step began to take away from the Venetians their former territorial acquisitions. In 1571, Venice had to cede Cyprus to the Turks, and in 1669 Crete. The republic's relations with the Catholic Church were also cool. Pope Paul V at that time founded the League, which encroached on the independence of the maritime republic. Defending its right to exist, it survived this struggle and swept aside all claims.

However, the Venetian Republic nevertheless lost its independence. Napoleon Bonaparte, then still commander of the Italian army, entered the territory of Styria in 1797. After the invasion, Terraferma remained in the rear of his troops (as the mainland possessions of Venice were called), the population of which rebelled against the invaders. In response, the future emperor of France declared war on the republic, the government of which tried in every possible way to maneuver, but in vain. On May 12, 1797, Doge Lodovico Manin, together with the Great Council, signed an act of abdication. And already on May 16, the victorious troops entered Venice, which they occupied without resistance. On October 17 of the same year, a peace treaty was concluded in Campo Formio, according to which part of the territory of the former republic went to Austria, part to the Cisalpine Republic, which later became the Kingdom of Italy. France got the Ionian Islands.

Famous people and Venice

The life and fate of many famous people, personalities of world renown - artists, composers, writers, travelers, scientists - was connected with Venice. Some of them were born in this wonderful city, others developed their creativity here, and others lived in it for their last years. We will briefly introduce you to some of these eminent personalities.

Tomaso Giovanni Albinoni. He was born on June 8, 1671 in Venice, where he died on January 17, 1751. Famous composer and violinist, contemporary of the Baroque era. He won fame by writing about fifty operas. In his hometown, between 1723 and 1740, 28 of them were delivered. Today, instrumental music written by him, which is regularly performed in many halls, enjoys popularity.

Giacomo Girolamo Casanova. Born April 2, 1725 in Venice, died June 4, 1798 in Bohemia. He went down in history with his many adventures in the love field, which he himself described in his autobiographical book “The Story of My Life”. Known as a traveler and adventurer. His spicy memoirs made him a household name and now every female seducer is called "Casana".

Clement XIII(in the world - Carlo della Tore Rezzonico). Pope of Rome from 1758 to 1769 (for life). Born March 7, 1693 in Venice. During his pontificate, persecution of the Jesuits began, since the growth of their influence in the royal courts of Europe caused alarm among the Catholic clergy. But the head of the church himself took a wait-and-see attitude. He went down in history as an opponent of the Enlightenment.

Marco Polo. Famous Italian traveler, merchant. Born September 15, 1254 in Venice, died there on January 8, 1324. The author of the famous work "The Book of the Diversity of the World", which he wrote after his trip to Asia. To this day, it serves as an invaluable source of information on the history and geography of such countries as China, Mongolia, Iran, India, Armenia, Indonesia of the Middle Ages.

Richard Wagner. Born May 22, 1813 in Leipzig, died February 13, 1883 in Venice. Famous German composer and outstanding art theorist. He is also known for his reformations in the field of opera. With his work, he had a significant impact not only on German, but also on the musical culture of the Old World in general. He was also known for his anti-Semitic views.

Titian(Tizian Vecellio). Born around 1488-1490 in Pieve di Cadore, Republic of Venice. He died in Venice on August 27, 1576. The famous Italian painter, the personification of the Renaissance. The author of paintings on biblical and mythological themes. He also gained fame as a portrait painter, whose customers were kings, popes and other august persons.

Christian Doppler. Austrian scientist, physicist. Born in Salzburg on November 29, 1803, died in Venice on March 17, 1853. He established and substantiated such a phenomenon as the dependence of the frequency of wave oscillations perceived by the observer on the speed and direction of their source and observer in relation to each other, called the "Doppler effect". Now used in ultrasound diagnostics.

Venice today

Venice today is one of the largest tourist, cultural and industrial centers Italy. The population of the city, which is the administrative center of the Veneto region and the Venice region, is 270.4 thousand people according to the 2009 census. As before, it occupies the territory of 118 islands in the Adriatic. Between themselves, they are connected by channels - "streets" branching off from the Grande Canal (Grand Canal). It is considered here the main "street" and one of the main attractions. It impresses with its “dimensions”: the length is 3.8 km, the width is from 0.3 to 0.7 m, the depth is about 5 m. It seems to divide Venice into two parts, but not equal in size. On both sides of it are picturesque palace buildings and houses, which creates a unique panorama.

Group Venetian Islands it is fenced off from the bay of the same name by islands-spits, long and narrow (Lido, Alberoni, Malamocco, etc.). They are connected to the mainland of Italy by two- and four-kilometer bridges. Highways and railways run parallel to each other along them, breaking off at the borders of the city. In Venice itself there are no buses, no trolleybuses, no trams, no taxis, no metro, and this circumstance makes it one of a kind and inimitable.

Modern Venice is an open-air museum. To name just a few of the highlights ancient city. This central square San Marco , the cathedral of the same name, golden house , Doge's Palace , city Museum corner, Bridge of Sighs, Campanile (Bell tower), Rialto Bridge, Clock Tower, church Santa Maria della Salute , gothic church Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari (the second most important after the Cathedral of San Marco), Naval Museum and others.

Every year, the famous Venice Carnival takes place here - a costume festival that precedes the forty-day fast before Catholic Easter. The first mention of the carnival dates back to 1094. It also hosts the Venice International Film Festival, which is the oldest in the world: it was founded in 1932 by the Italian Duce Benito Mussolini.

Another interesting fact about Venice. In the city is Cathedral George the Victorious. It is he who is the repository of the right hand of St. Basil the Great. This Orthodox shrine was acquired in Constantinople in 1528 by Father Gabriel, who later became the first Metropolitan of Venice.

We present to your attention ten picturesque cities surrounded by water. These places are famous not only for standing on the water, but they are also rich in history, sights and full of romance!

Amsterdam, Netherlands

Amsterdam is multinational, vibrant and very civilized city. If you spend a weekend or vacation here, you will get everything you want: boat trips along the numerous channels, private parties on yachts, visits to museums with unique works of art, a vibrant nightlife, friendly people, restaurants and bars for all tastes.

Hamburg, Germany

The second largest city in Germany and the seventh in the European Union. There are more than 2 million inhabitants, and the port of Hamburg is the 20th largest in the world. It is also called the city of bridges. This is a great holiday destination to enjoy the elegant German architecture. In addition, it is one of the cities with the highest standard of living in Europe.

Suzhou, China

Suzhou is called the Venice of China. This old City located in Jiangsu province, near Shanghai. The old districts are crossed by numerous canals and buildings, although everything here is located quite differently from Venice. However, the local canals and architecture are just as old and beautiful. The Suzhou Grand Canal is the widest "street" that crosses the city's most important landmarks.

Udaipur, India

Most honeymooners in India go on a romantic trip to Udaipur. This one is amazing beautiful city is located between four lakes and is rich in ancient temples and sights associated with oriental myths. locals they call the city the Venice of the East, and the most popular area among tourists is the Palace on the Lake.

Giethoorn, The Netherlands

The Netherlands is crossed by a network of waterways, but some of the most beautiful are in the east of the country, in the city of Giethoorn. Here tourists can walk along fabulous places with wooden bridges and traditional houses. But the best part is that there are absolutely no cars in the city, people here only ride bicycles or boats.

Alleppey, India

Alleppey is a famous Indian canal city in the southern state of Kerala. Tourists here can rent wooden boats transformed into houses and discover all the beauty of this amazing places. The length of all channels of Kerala in the southwestern part of India is more than 1400 km.

Bangkok, Thailand

In the capital of Thailand, water channels are called klonguri and are used instead of roads every day. On these "floating taxis" you can get to almost anywhere in the city, enjoying the sights along the way and at the same time avoiding traffic jams.

Saint-Petersburg, Russia

St. Petersburg "spread its wings" on the Neva River at the place of its confluence with the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea. This huge city with over 5 million inhabitants is included in the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites. The city was built at the cost of the lives of tens of thousands of Russian peasants. Winters here are cold and dank, but it is in winter that the city is especially beautiful. The Hermitage, parks, boats on the Neva, the Kunstkamera, concert halls, streets described by Dostoevsky in books, a unique metro and many other attractions await you in this incredibly beautiful and diverse city.

Bruges, Belgium

Bruges is one of the most popular tourist cities in Belgium. This small town rivals Venice in terms of historic preservation, and clean waterways intersect against a backdrop of medieval buildings, making you feel like you've stepped back centuries.

Stockholm, Sweden

More than a million people live in the capital of Sweden. It is located on 14 islands and is the 10th most visited city in Europe. Stockholm is known for its beauty, rich architecture, clear waters that give the city its color, and beautiful parks. In December and January, temperatures drop to -5 and 0, but the beauty and grandeur of this city will make you forget about the cold.

When you hear the phrase "city on the water", you first of all remember Venice. exquisite architecture, rich story and the romance of this place have turned the main water attraction of Italy into a real pearl of the tourist world. However, there are still many cities in the world that stand on the water. In this issue I will talk about ten of the most popular of them.

Amsterdam, Netherlands

Amsterdam is a multinational, vibrant and very civilized city. If you spend a weekend or vacation here, you will get everything you want: boat trips along the many channels, private parties on yachts, visits to museums with unique works of art, vibrant nightlife, friendly people, restaurants and bars for all tastes.

Hamburg, Germany

Suzhou, China

Suzhou is called the Venice of China. This ancient city is located in Jiangsu province, near Shanghai. The old districts are crossed by numerous canals and buildings, although everything here is located quite differently from Venice. However, the local canals and architecture are just as old and beautiful. The Suzhou Grand Canal is the widest "street" that crosses the city's most important landmarks.

Udaipur, India

Most honeymooners in India go on a romantic trip to Udaipur. This amazingly beautiful city is located between four lakes and is rich in ancient temples and sights associated with oriental myths. Locals call the city the Venice of the East, and the most popular area among tourists is the Palace on the Lake.

Giethoorn, The Netherlands

The Netherlands is crossed by a network of waterways, but some of the most beautiful are in the east of the country, in the city of Giethoorn. Here, tourists can stroll through fabulous places with wooden bridges and traditional-style houses. But the best part is that there are absolutely no cars in the city, people here only ride bicycles or boats.

Alleppey, India

Alleppey is a famous Indian canal city in the southern state of Kerala. Tourists here can rent wooden boats transformed into houses and discover the beauty of this amazing place. The length of all channels of Kerala in the southwestern part of India is more than 1400 km.

Bangkok, Thailand

Saint-Petersburg, Russia

Bruges, Belgium

Stockholm, Sweden

Russia's second largest city, St. Petersburg, has its own system of over 100 canals built along the Neva River. St. Petersburg occupies one of the leading places in terms of the number of bridges, of which there are as many as 800 pieces. The famous European writer Goethe Johann Wolfgant said more than once: "St. Petersburg is the Venice of the North"

#2 Amsterdam is one of the largest cities in the Netherlands.

Maybe Amsterdam is not Venice, but the whole city is simply riddled with canals that make up a quarter of the entire city. According to the conservative estimates of the boat companies, the numerous transport boats, which are one of the main means of transportation around the city, carry an average of up to 3 million passengers a year.

#3 Stockholm, the capital and largest city of Sweden.

The capital of Sweden is not just a city, it is a whole network of islands, interconnected not only by numerous water channels of natural and man-made origin, the oldest of which date back to the beginning of the 19th century, along which water routes, but also by numerous bridges laid across these channels.

#4 Ko Panyi is a small village in Phang Nga Province, Thailand.

A small fishing village built entirely on stilts. The village consists of 360 families and has more than 1700 inhabitants. (Coordinates 8.335556, 98.503056)

#5 Xochimilco, one of the regions of Mexico City, the capital of Mexico.

The Xochimilco region, which is one of the 16 regions of Mexico City, located 18 kilometers from the city center and in 1987 which was declared a "Object World Heritage UNESCO" consists of many channels flowing between artificially created islands, called "Chinamps".

#6 Uros, a village on Lake Titacaca, Republic of Peru.

In this floating village, the inhabitants live on small islands of reeds. The leaves and stalks of reeds are woven together, giving the primary basis for the future part of the island, then with the help of other leaves and stalks of reeds collected from other places, the resulting part of the island is strengthened, and such a difficult, painstaking and long process is repeated several times to obtain at least a meter of a new parts of the lake.
In addition to everything else, the floating island is not only built up from the stalks of reeds, but boats, houses, dishes and various decorations and souvenirs for tourists visiting this island are also made.

#7 Kerala, a state located on the Malabar Coast in southwestern India.

This state has many rice fields and man-made canals that were created specifically for the more convenient and faster transportation of coconut husks, known as "Coir" *

*coir - obtained from the intercarp (between the peel and the nut) of a young coconut. White and soft fibers are soaked in running water for 10 months, then combed. Long fibers are used in the production of waterproof ropes and ropes. Short fibers go to the production of non-sinking mats. And tangled fibers go like stuffing material. This is not the whole list of materials made from this raw material.

#8 Santa Cruz del Islote, an island in northern Colombia.

On this small coral island, which served as the basis for the construction of a pile foundation to expand the area of the island, 90 houses were erected in which 1200 people live. This island is the most densely populated island in the world.

#9 Wuzhen or Wuzhen Township is a city in southeast China.

Wuzhen City, one of the oldest cities in China and one of the six ancient water cities south of the Yangtze River, was founded in Zhejiang Province over 1300 years ago. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, bridges and canals were built in this city.

#10 Venice, Neighborhood in Los Angeles, California.

Venice is famous not only for its beaches, but also for its canals, which in some areas of Venice have replaced the bypassed road between houses.