If you’re planning a visit to Venice, Italy in the coming days, and expecting to see this:
you might want to rethink your travels.
Unfortunately, due to a gravely serious drought in northeastern Italy, many of the famed canals of Venice have seriously low water levels. Some are at the point where I could — I mean, shouldn’t — march in them with an outfit more appropriate for a fly fisherman. That would be a unique walking tour of Venice, no?
In fact, there has been a water crisis in the Alpine and Venice regions since last summer; due to much less snowfall during the prior winter, regional lakes and rivers — the Po River and Lake Garda are two of the more well-known victims — have had very low water levels for months.
Typically, this time of year is known for flooding throughout Venice. But a combination of factors, including the abovementioned lack of snowfall, mild temperatures, and unusual sea currents have all contributed to the muddiness in the normally bustling waterways.
Although I haven’t walked Venice’s canals (yet), I’m sure that would be a memorable if bizarre way to see the city. Still, if you were in Italy now, and feel unmotivated to visit because of this news, you my want to visit the relatively nearby city of Bologna.
They’ve got their own little Venice, hidden behind a piccola finestra (little window); it might cheer you up:
you might want to rethink your travels.