Carnival of Venice. Model: Florine Houee
There are good reasons that 30 million tourists visit Venice every year. But one can avoid the masses by staying away from the Rialto Bridge and Piazza San Marco, visiting in winter, or strolling around between 4:30 and 8:00 in early June, before the monstrous cruise ships disgorge up to 40 thousand people into the city.
On a morning in the Cannaregio, Dorsoduro, and Giudecca, neighbourhoods remote from the congested areas, one can still catch a glimpse of the authentic way Venetian’s go about their business. But the expectation of serious overcrowding had kept me away from visiting the place during Carnival.