When we started to have six sestieri?

Which are ? These and other curiosities!

We call Venice: a fish! Taking a look to the map you can recognize the head, the tail….

Almost everyone knows the most popular sights that make Venice so unique, what we called the highlights of Venice: St. Mark’s square, the Rialto bridge, or the Grand Canal with its gondole. But there are hundreds of sites to see and things do in Venice. 

Just walking around Venice you can find an unique courtyard, crossing a bridge or walking down a calle you can find yourself in front of a more secluded church, an unusual museum, an ancient cloister or a secret garden (I love running the secret gardens tour!)

You can find hundreds of hidden gems scattered throghout Venice six districts!

Let's start with the basics. For those who like exploring Venice on foot, it's essential to know that the historic centre of Venice still maintains its original division into sestieri (districts), the six parts into which ancient Venice was divided for tax and administrative purposes.

This division probably took place as early as 1171, during the reign of Doge Vitale II Michiel.

 The sestieri are three on either side of the Grand Canal: San Marco, Castello, Cannaregio on the left side (de citra, on this side); Dorsoduro, San Polo and Santa Croce on the right side (de ultra, on the other side).

 Each of Venice’s neighbourhoods has its own characteristics, offering you something a little different and distinctive wherever you wander.

San Marco: this is the political center of Venice and the ancient Serenissima Repubblica where is located San Marco square. There are many monuments and beautiful palazzi here including not too high buildings. The small district includes many of Venice's most famous sights, including St Mark's Square, Saint Mark's Basilica, the Doge's Palace, Harry's Bar, the Palazzo Dandolo, Palazzo D'Anna Viaro Martinengo Volpi di Misurata, San Moisè, the La Fenice theatre, the Palazzo Grassi and Palazzo Bellavite, and the churches of San Beneto, San Fantin, Santa Maria del Giglio, San Maurizio, San Moisè, Santo Stefano, San Salvador, San Zulian and San Samuele.

The area is densely built and was the location of Venice's government. It is now heavily touristed and there are many hotels, banks and expensive shops.

San Marco is also a place which is used in several video games such as in Tekken, Assassin's Creed II, and Venetica.

Cannaregio: It is the second largest sestiere by land area and the largest by population.

Isola di San Michele, the historic cemetery island, is associated with the district. It is where is located the first Jewish Ghetto of Venice and where you can find many typical venetian bacari.

In the 19th century, civil engineers built a street named Strada Nuova through Cannaregio, and a railway bridge and road bridge were constructed to connect Venice directly to Mestre.

Castello: Castello is the largest of the six sestieri of Venice, Italy. There had been, since at least the 8th-century, small settlements of the islands of San Pietro di Castello (for which the sestiere is named). This island was also called Isola d'Olivolo.

From the thirteenth century onward, the district grew around a naval dockyard on what was originally the Isole Gemini. The land in the district was dominated by the Arsenale of the Republic of Venice, then the largest naval complex in Europe. A Greek Mercantile community numbering around 5,000 in the Renaissance and late Middle ages was based in this district, with the Flanginian School and the Greek Orthodox Church of San Giorgio dei Greci being located here, of which the former comprises the Hellenic Institute of Byzantine and post-Byzantine Studies in Venice^[1] and the latter is now the seat of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Italy.

Other significant structures were by the monasteries in the north of the quarter.

Napoleon closed the Arsenal and planned what are now the Bienniale Gardens. More recently the island of Sant'Elena has been created, and more land drained at other extremities of Castello.

Dorsoduro: It is the artistic district of Venice, where many museums are located: Gallerie dell’Accademia, Ca’Rezzonico, Peggy Guggenheim collection, Punta della Dogana..

Dorsoduro includes the highest land areas of the city and also Giudecca island and Isola Sacca Fisola. Its name derives from the Italian for "hard ridge", due to its comparatively high, stable land. The original heart of the area was the Giudecca Canal, along which buildings were constructed from the sixth century.^{[citation needed]} By the eleventh century, settlement had spread across to the Grand Canal, while later religious buildings including the Basilica of Santa Maria della Salute and the Zattere quay are now its main landmarks.

In the nineteenth century the Accademia was set up in Dorsoduro and the Ponte dell'Accademia linked it to San Marco, making it an expensive area, popular with foreign residents. The western quarter end and the Giudecca, became industrialised around this time.

San Polo: the name it is taking place from the San Polo church. San Polo is home to the Rialto Market, which used to be the centre of trade and commerce for the Venetian Empire. Today, from Tuesday to Saturday in the morning hours there is still a major market here beside the Rialto bridge. The Fish market offers remarkably good value for money for those of you renting apartments.

As you walk through the narrow and meandering streets of San Polo you'll be passing by some of the oldest buildings in Venice. Also, along these narrow passageways you'll walk through the old artisan quarters of Venice, and the red-light district of Venice in ancient times.

The Scuola Grande Di San Rocco, is a 16th Century Renaissance building dedicated to Saint Roch the protector of the sick and plague stricken people. The building is still active as a popular venue for Classical Concerts in the evenings. It contains an extraordinary collection of works by Tintoretto.

Campo San Polo, is one of the largest squares of Venice, and is at the heart of the San Polo district.

Santa Croce: The area was once part of the Luprio swamp, but has been steadily reclaimed.

It is the area of the city most affected by the opening of the lagoon road in April 1933.

can be divided into two areas: the eastern area being largely mediaeval, and the western - including the main port and the Tronchetto - mostly lying on land reclaimed in the 20th century.

The district includes the Piazzale Roma, home to Venice's bus station and car parks, and around which is the only area of the city in which cars can travel. The tourist attractions lie mostly in the eastern part of the quarter, and include the churches of San Nicolo da Tolentino, San Giacomo dell'Orio, and San Zan Degola; the Fondaco dei Turchi; the Museum of the History of Fabric and Costume at Palazzo Mocenigo; the Patrician Palace; and Ca' Corner della Regina.

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My free walk in Venice tours:

Free Walk in Venice tours - Cannaregio and the Jewish Ghetto tour

Free Walk in Venice tours - The heart and soul of Venice: Carampane and Rialto tour 

Free Walk in Venice tours - the hidden secrets of Venice and Dorsoduro: Venice off the beaten tracks

***Please, keep in mind that this is not a daily walk, contact me leaving your email to have the updated calendar or for requesting a special date!*** This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Oggi è il 15 aprile ed è necessario parlare di un uomo straordinario anche se dalla storia macchiata da una congiura e uno scandalo. Nel 1423 venne eletto a 49 anni Francesco Foscari (sì, proprio come l'Università Ca' Foscari). Francesco vivrà ben 84 anni! Perchè  è così importante ricordarlo? Il suo Dogado è stato il più lungo della storia di Venezia: 34 anni, 6 mesi e 8 giorni (sì è bene essere precisi) ! Se vi sembrano pochi ricordate che i dogi venivano eletti in età avanzata (sinonimo di saggezza e per evitare desideri di potere troppo pronunciati). Francesco Foscari ,se non contiamo i primi secoli particolarmente "vivaci", è stato l'unico doge a essere costretto ad abdicare il 22 ottobre 1457 a seguito di un incredibile scandalo legato a suo figlio. Il giorno dell’abdicazione, a Palazzo Ducale, Francesco Foscari  fu privato del corno e dell’anello col sigillo, che fu subito spezzato.  Sotto di lui lo Stato da Terra raggiunse la sua massima espansione ma il suo non fu proprio un dogado facile: si attraversarono guerre, carestie, alte maree straordinarie ( e noi ne sappiamo qualcosa), la glaciazione della laguna e una pestilenza (la terribile peste che gli portò via quattro dei suoi undici figli, lasciandogli un solo figlio maschio, Jacopo) e perfino un terremoto.

Viva San Marco, Viva il Doge!

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I tour sono solitamente in lingua inglese, scrivimi per tempo per organizzare un tour in italiano (sono possibili anche tour privati)! This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

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Facebook: Free walk in Venice tours

Our Italian net: www.freewalkingtouritalia.com

I miei free walk in Venice tours:

Free Walk in Venice tours - Cannaregio e il ghetto ebraico

Free Walk in Venice tours - Anima e cuore di Venezia : Carampane and Rialto 

Free Walk in Venice tours - Dorsoduro e i segreti di Venezia 

For the classic free walking tours in Venice: Free Walk in Venice ***Please, keep in mind that this is not a daily walk, contact me leaving your email to have the updated calendar or for requesting a special date!*** This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.