Libreria Acqua Alta bookshop is a mix between a flea market and a serious library. It’s a definite must for book lovers (without dust allergies I might add). It’s spread out through various rambling rooms; one room with a gondola stacked with books, other rooms are packed with rowing boats & bath tubs full of old second hand atlases, dictionaries, art books, biographies and history books. There’s something for every one, you just have to look long enough. In the back room you can look out to one of the channels, which makes this place even more special.

The bookshop is called Libreria Acqua Alta, which literally means “library of high water” … And if you know Venice, you also know that Acqua Alta happens every year and if this is the case, the bookshop is completely flooded. But, all books are safe because the gondola simply floats. Not a bad idea, huh?!

A visit to this bookshop when in Venice is almost compulsory, because it’s clearly one of the most interesting ones you’ll ever come across.

• Address: Calle Longa Santa Maria Formosa (Corte Senza Nome) | 5176/B – Castello, 30122 Venice, Italy – it’s close to Piazza San Giovanni e Paolo, but every local in the area knows the place and will show you the direction.

P.S. The owner also has some cats that frequently roam through the books and love to be patted.

Libreria Acqua Alta is one of the most original libraries in the world.

With thousands of books on every subject, most look like used, spread out in several rooms, placed on shelves, in boats and a gondola, one could spend hours browsing through the treasure of Libreria Acqua Alta!

Libreria Acqua Alta is definitely the only place where you will find booked piled up in a special shelving.

One could spend hours and hours looking through all the material at Libreria Acqua Alta.

It might look messy inside Libreria Acqua Alta, but there is a system behind it. It’s best to just look through the books because you’ll come across something interesting for sure.

Bath tub & boats filled with books can be found here at Libreria Acqua Alta.

The owner of Libreria Acqua Alta, Luigi Frizzo opened this place over ten years ago. Apart from books, he also loves cats.

This is why I love living in Europe: We only decided to visit Venice two days before boarding the overnight train from Vienna. With a sleeper compartment you arrive relaxed at 8.00 am in the morning. We were greeted with warm sun-rays and immediately enjoyed our first Italian cappuccino. After leaving our luggage at the hotel, we started our “workout-weekend”.

“Workout-weekend” because unless you take the Vaporetto around the Canale Grande, (one-way 7 €, a day-ticket something like 25 €), you have to walk. We quickly noticed a lot of good looking, trim locals … no wonder; after speaking to an Italian shop owner we were told that the average Venetian walks 2.5 hours per day (!) through the city. Everything in Venice needs to be delivered through the canals and after that, one has to continue by foot with all the goods. So it seems, the Venetians are in pretty good shape.

Let’s start.

We started at Santa Lucia, where the train arrives, down to the easternmost point in Castello. Quite a walk. It’s all cobblestone down the way with lots of bridges over the channels that need to be crossed, so make sure to bring your best walking shoes. Walking is definitely the best choice to really discover Venice the right way; every turn holds a new discovery, may it be a little Plaza, an inviting looking Trattoria or another famous Pallazzo.

Don’t be put off by reports of tourist hordes; once you venture into the side alleys you’re almost on your own, even during peak times. Of course Piazza San Marco, Rialto Bridge, Guggenheim Museum and the sights around the Grand Canal are packed during high season. But it’s your choice whether or not to flow with the masses or venture into a small lane that you’ll have for yourself…

One place that we came across this time really caught our attention: The book store Libreria Acqua Alta. A bookshop that will impress you even if you’re not a book worm. It’s really unique and we’ve never seen anything like it before.

The Grand Canal in Venice forms one of the major water-traffic corridors in the city. Public transport is provided by water buses and private water taxis.

The bookstore “Libreria Acqua Alta” in Venice makes quite the impression.

Venice is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture, and its artworks. The city in its entirety is listed as a World Heritage Site, along with its lagoon.

The history of the Piazza San Marco can be conveniently covered in four periods, but the only pre-renaissance buildings and monuments still standing there are St Marks, the Doges Palace and the two great columns in the Piazzetta.

The Rialto Bridge in Venice is one of the four bridges spanning the Grand Canal in Venice, Italy. It is the oldest bridge across the canal, and was the dividing line for the districts of San Marco and San Polo.

Venice’s popularity as a major worldwide tourist destination has caused several problems, including the fact that the city can be very overcrowded at some points of the year. It is regarded by some as a tourist trap, and by others as a “living museum”.

For centuries gondolas were the chief means of transportation and most common watercraft within Venice. It’s driven by a gondolier. In modern times the iconic boats still have a role in public transport in the city, serving as ferries over the Grand Canal.

Venice is just around the corner from the Austrian border, so a weekend away can easily be arranged. Yet there’s no need to live near by – just hope onto a plane or train and head on a lovely weekend trip to the “City of Canals”. We did exactly that last fall during Aqua Alta.

We’re not the planning kind of people; of course there are certain sights one has to see in every city, but we usually just go with the flow. This way, you’ll visit places you’d never come across in the first place. Plus it’s much more hassle free. In Venice, there are lots of sights that shouldn’t be missed. Naturally, a 48-hour holiday isn’t enough to do it all, but definitely enough to get the full on Venice experience.

Day 1 – By Foot.

Piazza San Marco & La basilica di San Marco.

No surprise here. These two sights are probably the most well known in Venice. The Piazza San Marco is not only impressive due to its size, but also because of the adjoining landmarks like Doge’s Palace or St Mark’s Campanile. Saint Mark’s Basilica is the most famous church in Venice, one of the great examples of Byzantine architecture and well worth a visit. But, be sure to calculate enough time, because crowds of people will want to enter the Basilica as well.

Basilica San Marco in Venice is the most famous of the city’s churches and one of the best known examples of Italo-Byzantine architecture.

Ponte dei Sospiri.

Commonly known as the “Bridge of Sighs”, it lies between the Doge’s Palace with the New Prison. Not a romantic sight one might think, yet a local legend says that lovers will be granted eternal love and bliss if they kiss on a gondola at sunset under the bridge.

Ponte dei Sospiri “Bridge of Sights” in Venice connects the New Prison to the interrogation rooms in the Doge’s Palace.

The Palazzo Contarini del Bovolo.

The Palazzo Contarini del Bovolo is a small palace near the Rialto bridge, which we actually just came across by accident (see, no planning does work). It’s hard to find but definitely worth the effort. The palace itself is nothing special from the outside, yet it’s best known for the spiral staircase & white arches in the inner courtyard, known as the Scala Contarini del Bovolo (which somehow reminded us of the Leaning Tower of Pisa). From up the staircase, you have a really nice panoramic view over the roof-tops of the city.

Scala Contarini del Bovolo in Venice is best known for the external spiral staircase, with a plethora of arches.

Rialto Bridge.

The Rialto Bridge is the oldest of the four bridges across the Grand Canal. It’s definitely one of the sights you should see at least once in your live, yet unfortunately it’s totally overrun by tourists and vendors who just want to make a quick dollar. Still, it’s an impressive structure and I hope that the government orders to restore it in the near future.

is the oldest bridge across the Grand Canal, and was the dividing line for the districts of San Marco and San Polo.

San Giorgio Maggiore.

This sight is for everyone who likes to see Venice from above. You’ll have a fantastic view over the lagoon and city, but be sure to get there earlier, because otherwise you might just have to wait for more than two hours to get up to the top.

Today, San Giorgio Maggiore is the headquarters of the Cini Foundation arts centre, known for its library and is also home to the Teatro Verde open-air theatre.

Day 2 – By Waterway.

A Kayak Ride through the canals.

In Venice boats mean more than cars, canals more than roads. The only way one can really say to have experienced the ‘real’ Venice, is to experience the city and the lagoon by boat, gondola or – even better – by kayak. It’s best to book the entire day to make the most out of the experience. But be sure about one thing: Try to find a private guide or a small group because some of your fellow accompanies might not be very experienced and this can really ruin your day.

A Kayak Ride through the canals of Venice, Italy.

Venezia, veniamo!

After arriving at the train station in Venice (we took the overnight train), we felt the action right away. The “Canale” in front of the station was full with boats. Water taxis, garbage freighters, post boats and “Vaporettos” – the public transport boats. It really gets pretty busy on the channels on certain times of the day.

We started the day well rested and therefore walked to our hotel. The hotel was quite nice and in a great area but we usually prefer renting apartments during our weekend trips.

So anyway, before heading out to explore the city, we stopped at a lovely “Cafeteria” for the first of many Cappuccinos … Italian coffee just tastes so good! Just shortly after we started walking further on, we realized that it was “Acqua Alta” time in Venice. During this, the city is almost completely flooded … So we bought ourselves rubber boots and continued exploring.

A little History before we head on.

Lesson 1: Venice was founded around 400 a.C. as a trading post by authorities in Padua. In the beginning, it was a collection of lagoon communities. Around 800 a.C., the first leader of Venice – the “Doge” named Ursus – was elected and between 900 a.C. and 1200 a.C. it developed into a city state. It soon later became a center of commerce and art, as well as an important trading point.

Lesson 2: The world-famous St. Mark’s Basilica was built around 800 a.C. but burnt down with a large part of the city around 950 a.C. It was rebuilt but only finished around 100 years later. It is the most famous of the city’s churches and one of the best known examples of Byzantine architecture.

Lesson 3: Venice was also a magnet for lots of celebrities: Titian, Giacomo Casanova, Thomas Mann, Richard Wagner lived here; Antonio Vivaldi and Marco Polo were born here.

History really does follow you at every turn.

Some buildings are absolutely unique, like for example the snail staircase of “Scala Contarini del Bovolo” – the only round shaped stairway of the Renaissance era, which is hidden at the end of a small alley, not far from Rialto bridge. But it’s not only history for which Venice is known for: Cultural events are happening all the time; the most prominent ones are the Carnival of Venice and of course the Venice International Film Festival – the oldest international film festival in the world.

Almost at every corner you’ll find a gallery where you can admire paintings, sculptures and other creative art. If you have enough time, a visit to the “Peggy Guggenheim” Museum in a beautiful palace along Canale Grande is a must! And for the real romantic ones, hiring a “Gondola” and rowing down the Grande Canale is definitely a highlight.

Yes, Venice has a lot to offer and it’s one of these cities you can never get enough of …

The canals in Venice are simply breathtaking and one could get lost walking in-between them.

Venice is a city in northeastern Italy sited on a group of 117 small islands separated by canals and linked by bridges.

A water taxi along the lagoon in Venice.

“Street Art” can also be found along the canals in Venice.

Water taxis along the Grand Canal in Venice.

Exploring Venice in a Gondola is a great way to get around the city – it’s one of those things tourist from all over the world love to do.

The view of the Grand Canal from the Rialto Bridge in Venice.

But this is future talk and for now, autumn is the time when you better come prepared. That means if you’re planning a weekend trip, check the weather forecast beforehand; if it looks a bit undecided/grim, be sure to pack up your rubber boots, an umbrella and a raincoat because this means “Acqua Alta” time in Venice. We arrived unprepared and looked pretty stupid when we wanted to leave the hotel after breakfast and the street was knee deep full of water. Our hotel was a really nice one (nothing fancy but who needs that anyway if you’re just planning on sleeping there), not far away from the train station but unfortunately they had no rubber boots to borrow.

But, as we’re all not made out of sugar, we took off our shoes and socks, rolled up the trousers and walked down fifty meters to the next shoe shop. Lots of people were already lining up get a pair rubber boots – imagine winter sale at Macy’s … people start doing anything for a last pair of those new trendy shows … As the place was not directly in the city center, the boots were on 16 € per pair – not too bad for a quick solution of the problem. In the city center we saw people paying up to 40 € for a pair of rubber boots. Depending on your negotiation skills you can get them for 30 – 35 € when buying them from one of the “flying merchants”. They were the obviously winners of the day!

The thing that worried us a bit was the electricity issue. So much water and high voltage is not the best combination. But Venice is prepared for these occurrences. Even the shop owners were pretty unimpressed by the situation, so we didn’t give it that much more of a thought.

So we were on our way and got to see how other visitors handled the weather conditions. We came across some funny sights indeed. Some simply walked barefoot, not worrying about catching a cold (it was pretty cold that day), others had a garbage bad wrapped around their feet to keep the water our of the shows. This method might work for a little while but in the long run, they usually give up – that’s why you see lots of garbage bags floating around in the streets.

Anyway, so we walked all day long without getting any blisters. The walking itself was a bit tough though; we weren’t able to run or walk pretty fast because we needed to avoid an overflow of water into the boots. Then at around 3 pm the tide turned and it was “business as usual” again…

“Acqua Alta” on Piazza San Marco in Venice, Italy.

The walkways are flooded during “Acqua Alta” in Venice, Italy.

High water in the streets of Venice, Italy.

“One time” Rubber boots are a must during “Acqua Alta” in Venice, Italy.

Uncle Chrisi enjoyed the trip to Venice, Italy.

Interesting show styles during “Acqua Alta” in Venice, Italy.

Some people simply give up during “Acqua Alta” …

… others try to save money by wrapping plastic bags around their shoes.