Venice today is a beautiful city, but many are unaware of its history as an early republic, and a centuries-long maritime foe of the great Ottoman Empire.
Aristocratic owners of Venice s historic palaces say city authorities are trying to ruin them
Owners of centuries-old palazzi say they are hugely expensive to maintain and other income streams are needed
19 May 2021 • 5:00pm
Gondoliers resume their service on the Grand Canal as Italy eases more of the lockdown measures put in place during the pandemic
Credit: Reuters
They boast some of the most sublime architecture in the world, from Byzantine flamboyance to tapered Gothic windows, but they are ruinously expensive to maintain.
The aristocratic owners of Venice’s historic palaces have long been able to rent out their homes for exhibitions and soirees as a way of raising a bit of cash, but that is now being blocked – and they are furious.
By KAREN BRADBURY | Stars and Stripes | Published: April 23, 2021 Happy birthday, Wills! William Shakespeare came into the world in Stratford-upon-Avon, England, in April 1564. Although his exact date of birth is disputed, April 23 is the day on which the world rejoices in the gift of his words that continue to inspire and delight. The setting of Shakespearean plays against the most evocative of European backdrops could lead readers to believe he was a well-traveled gentleman; however, from most accounts of the Bard’s life, it is assumed he never set foot outside of England. His use of foreign cities as locales appears as a literary device to inject exoticism and perhaps even to avoid appearances of critiquing politics and society close to home.