As all you know, the majority of the world is under lock down, due to the covid-19 emergency. We would not probably have ever imagine a situation like that, but something was on my mind in these last days: we are all in this together.
A lot of us have suffered from the loss of a beloved one, we all struggle because we can’t see our friends, partners, parents or relatives, our home has became our prison in order to survive. Our life is basically in pause, and even if a sign of hope is starting to be spotted and the light at the end of the tunnel is luckily near (in Italy, at least), it’s undeniable that our lifestyles will always be marked by this event. During quarantine, I think that, sooner or later, we all have thought how we took for granted the smallest and simplest things, which we are no more allowed to do. And personally I started to think about Venice, where I used to go every single day to attend lessons at the university.
Venice, my second home.
Oh , Venice. How much I miss you. I even miss the masses of tourists that I daily have to avoid quickly in order to arrive on time in class. I miss your morning-routine, in which I walk in front of shops, about to open, and bakery shops, with their inviting bread and pastry smell. I miss the sight of your waters and your boat traffic, which is now so absent that canals have never been so clean and new animals are appearing in the lagoon, like octopuses and dolphins. I miss complaining because your calli are so narrow and tight-fitting, because I have to walk kilometers in order to reach the train station. I even miss the delays of trains and the journey, more like odyssey, to return home. I miss your trees in Rio Terà dei pensieri, that are probably flourishing in this period. I miss the horrible sensation of being all sweaty and hot, when I had to cross Calatrava bridge under the sun of May and June, and I miss her majesty, Saint Mark Square. I miss Dolcevita, near Calle Foscari, I miss Fondamenta Zattere and its fantastic sunset. I miss you, Venice, I miss everything about you.
I can’t wait to come back to you. Because if I know something for sure, is that Venice will always be there to welcome you home.
