The Venetian Way to Summer

Venice, bustling with day-trippers.

But few know where the locals go.

They head to the beach by boat, cooler bags in hand.

Towards the end of July, something happens in Venice that you’ll never find in a guidebook.

The city empties out as people disappear.

But it’s not the tourists who disappear; it’s the Venetians.

They don't go very far, though.

About 20 minutes by boat, they head to a long sandy beach on the outer edge of the lagoon, where they stay until September.

Their destination is the Lido.

About 20 minutes by boat from the main island of Venice, this island with its long sandy beaches is a classic summer retreat for locals.

This tradition is old, and many families have rented the same beach cabins for generations. In summer, many Venetians enjoy swimming here and spending their time as they please.

Knowing this scene makes August in Venice seem a little different.

For residents, Venice is not a city of World Heritage sites and museums. It's a "city for living" with beautiful beaches right next door.

With a towel-packed bag slung over their shoulder, they board a vaporetto (water bus) and head to the sea. The sight is just like a daily commute.

"We live in the only place in the world where you can go to a real beach just 20 minutes from historical streets."

With such proud words, the people of Venice share their unique summer pleasures in this city.

Inherited Cabins and Life on the Lido

The wooden cabins, or "capanne," lined up along the Lido coastline, are Venice's most understated status symbol.

Small, unpretentious, and painted in faded stripes, these cabins are passed down through generations, carrying more customs and traditions than typical real estate.

Each cabin has a number, fixed neighbors, and its own routine.

For example, families arriving at the same time every day.

Grandmothers securing their shady spot.

Card games resuming exactly where they left off last September.

The Lido is steeped in traditional dignity.

The film festival is held here every September,

and the island's "Hotel des Bains" was once the setting for Thomas Mann's novel "Death in Venice."

But for Venetians in the height of summer, none of that matters.

What matters is the vast sandy beach, the warm and shallow Adriatic Sea, and being able to return to the city for dinner without needing a car.

In fact, it's notable that cars don't exist here.

And that's precisely what Venice is all about.

"Ombre" and "Cicchetti" – The 6 PM Ritual

As day-trippers begin to leave and the water's surface glows amber in the sunset, a special time to enjoy the end of the day begins in Venice.

People head to "bacari," standing bars loved by locals. They stand at the counter and enjoy a glass of wine called "Ombra," generously poured into a small glass.

"Ombra" means "shadow" in Italian. The name is said to originate from a time when wine merchants moved their stalls to follow the shadow cast by St. Mark's Campanile to keep their wine cool.

An essential accompaniment to wine is small dishes called "Cicchetti." Similar to Spanish tapas, enjoying wine with these light snacks is the Venetian way.

A representative dish is "Baccalà Mantecato." Salted dried cod is carefully kneaded with olive oil to create a fluffy cream, served on fragrant grilled polenta.

Other dishes include boiled eggs with anchovies, fried sardines, marinated baby octopuses, and sandwiches generously filled with various ingredients, all of which pair well with wine.

At bacari, people rarely sit down for a long meal. Instead of lingering at one place, they have one drink and move on to the next. This enjoyment is called "giro di ombre," where it's customary to visit three to four bacari, savoring a glass of wine at each.

In summer, wine is served well chilled. Commonly enjoyed wines include Prosecco from Valdobbiadene, the increasingly popular unfiltered, bottle-fermented "Col Fondo," Lugana from Lake Garda, and the delicate Soave.

Although the serving size is small, visiting several places naturally adds up. Nevertheless, walking through the city with the evening breeze and enjoying wine as you please is a luxury unique to summer in Venice.

A Dish That Tells the City's History

If one dish could encapsulate all of summer in Venice?

—It would surely be "Sarde in saor."

Sarde in saor is a dish of fried sardines layered with slowly cooked onions, vinegar, raisins, and pine nuts, left to rest for one to two days before eating, and served cold.

Originally created as a preserved food for sailors who needed to survive long voyages, it evolved through the spice trade that brought wealth to Venice.

Raisins and pine nuts.

This dish, containing these two ingredients, is said to preserve the memory of the Eastern (Levant) trade once built by the Venetian Republic.

Moreover, this dish, prepared in advance and eaten cold, is ideal for a hot city.

Every Venetian household makes Sarde in saor in July, but the taste varies slightly from home to home.

And this dish is also a traditional food for the "Festa del Redentore" held on the third Sunday of July.

On the festival night, the lagoon is filled with decorated boats, and people enjoy meals on the water, watching fireworks launched over the Giudecca Canal from the decks of their boats.

To the Islands of the Lagoon

In the 550 square kilometer shallow lagoon, the main island of Venice is just one of its most famous islands.

In summer, Venetians get on boats and disperse to other islands.

One of them, Burano Island, features brightly painted houses so that fishermen can find their way home even in the fog.

It is an island where the tradition of lace making still remains and where you can enjoy excellent fish dishes.

Adjacent to Burano Island, Mazzorbo Island has a walled vineyard.

It's a vineyard that cultivates "Dorona," golden grapes that nearly died out in the great flood of 1966, revived from a few surviving native vines.

Torcello Island, once the birthplace of Venice.

Only churches with Byzantine mosaics, overgrown fields, and an eternal silence remain.

And then there's Sant'Erasmo Island. It's the largest island in the lagoon, yet no tourists ever visit.

This is the "vegetable garden of the lagoon," where the saline soil produces vegetables with concentrated umami.

In particular, Sant'Erasmo's purple artichokes. The tender first shoots are very famous, also known as castraure.

Artichokes harvested here have been transported by boat to the Rialto Market every morning for about 1000 years.

Venetian Pickiness about Spritz

This cocktail, now ordered worldwide, was born in this city.

That’s why Venetians have a strong preference for its "proper" preparation.

The name "spritz" comes from the Austrian occupation era, when soldiers found local wines too strong and asked for them to be "sprayed" (spritzen) with water.

Eventually, this evolved into a combination of wine, sparkling water, and liqueur (bitters).

In Venice, the liqueur of choice is not Aperol.

It's often "Select," a deeper, more herbaceous, and more stimulating liqueur produced in this city since 1920.

When you order a spritz at a bacaro, you might simply be asked:

"Aperol? Or Select?"

Your answer reveals who you are.

Where Does the Fish Come From?

Venetian cuisine is "lagoon cuisine."

It features dishes far stranger and more delicious than those found on tourist menus.

Moeche, soft-shell crabs caught during their molting period that only lasts a few days a year and deep-fried whole, is a truly seasonal dish available for only a few weeks.

There's Schie, small gray shrimp served atop soft white polenta,

or Bigoli in salsa, a thick whole wheat pasta dish with an anchovy sauce infused with melted onions.

And Risotto di gò, made with goby fish that inhabit the lagoon.

Lagoon gobies don't make it to market stalls due to their appearance, but instead provide a rich flavor.

Their taste is so profound that they produce some of the best risotto in the Veneto region.

And the place to enjoy all of this is the Rialto Fish Market at 7 AM.

Under stone arches, merchants still shout in Venetian dialect, and ice water flows over the cobblestones.

However, after 9 AM, the hustle and bustle miraculously subsides.

Perhaps that's why most tourists visiting Venice never witness this sight.

Long Summer Nights

Summer nights in Venice have a special charm.

The water gently carries sounds, cooling the air, and there is no car noise to obstruct it.

In the small squares (campi), which also serve as "city living rooms" for locals, families enjoy late dinners,

teenagers sit on bridge steps,

and faintly, from behind open shutters, the sound of someone watching TV can be heard.

In the last few weeks of August, the evening light turns golden earlier, the cabins on the Lido begin to close, and the city prepares for September, for the hustle and bustle of the film festival and "everyday life."

This is the lesson August in Venice teaches.

A city that welcomes people from all over the world, then quietly returns to its true self for a few weeks during the hottest time of the year.

Taking a boat to the beach, eating cold sardines prepared the day before, enjoying a standing drink at 6 PM, and watching fireworks over the water.

Anyone can experience it.

As long as you stay in the city until dinner, take a vaporetto (water bus) in the "wrong direction" — away from St. Mark's Square — and head towards the sandy beaches where Venetians spend their summer.

Text／ITALIAKARA

※This article has been supervised by an Italian culture specialist.