Punta della Dogana Venice
Where land ends waters meet
Gioele from Venice
The two most iconic canals of Venice are the Grand Canal and Canale della Giudecca. The former cuts its way through the very centre of the island, forming a reverse S shape. The latter separates Venice from the Giudecca, an important island still part of Venice but detached from it, reachable only by boat.
As if beauty followed the water streams, along these two majestic waterways unfold countless churches, historic buildings and palaces of noble families. It is magical to sit on a vaporetto and let hundreds of years of history manifest effortlessly before our eyes. And yet, the real magic is yet to happen. Both the canals begin on the western side of Venice and then flow independently for roughly four kilometres each. But then they meet. And they meet nothing less than in Punta della Dogana, right in front of St. Marc Square.
Once one of Venice’s customs centres, Punta della Dogana is now an art museum, restored in 2008-09 by the famous architect Tadao Ando. The beauty of this place, though, is not to be found only inside the museum or in the Chiesa della Salute, an enormous and magnificent church just a few steps from it, but rather outside in the open.
Placing your feet at the very point where the two canals meet, enjoying the cold breeze the winds are likely to blow in such an exposed location, and being surrounded by art, tradition, culture, and beauty is definitely something I recommend you experience.
Venice Spotter Gioele
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Dorsoduro, 2
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