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Photographer Spends A Whole Day In Flooded Venice, Captures Just How Different The City Looks (19 Pics)
When we think of Venice, we think of water. But have you ever thought that there could be too much water in the historic European city?
When photographer Natalia Elena Massi found out there was a flood in Venice, she immediately packed her bags and decided to explore it firsthand by taking some interesting photos. And even though it wasn’t the first time she went to see this beautiful city, the whole experience still took her by surprise.
“I heard about the flood from the news,” she told Bored Panda. “I live in Italy, in Brescia, a city 100 kilometers (62 miles) away from Venice. We know there are floodings in Venezia. The Venetians are used to it, but this time extreme weather created an exceptionally high tide.”
More info: nataliaelenamassi.com | Facebook | Instagram
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“I love Venice, and I visit it whenever I can. This time, I decided to go and photograph the city with the hope of finding it beautiful anyway”
“I thought, ‘I’m so close to Venice, and there’s such an extraordinary event (the water reached 187 centimeters (6 feet 1 inch)), I have to see it with my own eyes”
“I was also curious to understand how it’s possible to live with the constant concern of being flooded. So, on November 16th, I decided to go”
Natalia spent the entire day there. The biggest challenge for her was simply getting around in so much water
“I hadn’t thought about how difficult it could be. Imagine walking for hours with water well above your knees”
At first, she wore the high galoshes that she purchased after arriving at the lagoon. “My rain boots only reached the knee: they were not enough to cover me. The high galoshes would have had to protect me until the middle of the thigh, but in reality, they got pierced only half an hour into the walk and the water started instantly filling them.” Because of that, the photographer had to constantly stop to empty the galoshes until she finally decided to take them off completely. “After all, I was already so, so wet.”
“I worked in manual mode, I didn’t want to leave anything to chance”
“I had to change settings often based on the scene but also in situations with less light (narrow alleys) or more light (bigger alleys or squares with water reflection)”
In the end, everything paid off and we can see it in her beautiful photos. “I have met incredible people, proud and courageous men who were not defeated by the flood. Even though most shops were closed, the few that were open were happily letting in people just to protect them from the weather. Some of them were preparing to re-open, others were … pumping out water and keeping the growing tide under control. Many men remained at the entrance to constantly check the tide level. They were expecting 160 centimeters (5 feet 2 inches) and everyone was alerted.”
“The atmosphere was surreal,” Natalia said. “There was silence, empty historical sites, I have never seen before. The most interesting part of the journey was being able to see the majesty of the old city and how its beauty was amplified by all those overflown Venice canals.
“When I arrived at Piazza San Marco, it was closed to the public, and the water was really very high. The wind blew strongly and loudly but the view in front of me was incredible – this huge empty space, filled with water was so solemn and great that it didn’t seem real.”
“Even in tragedy, I found Venice more beautiful than ever. The water that threatened it made it even more fascinating.”
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What do you think ?
Ol ti 4 years ago
Please stop with all this bullshits, the extraordinary high water here in Venezia is something that happens really rarely and the water remains high for at last 2 hours, not all the day, this time wasn't the first time it happens and will not be the last, for us is just a boring thing that happens rarely, but anyway isn't the end of the city, is part of our life and we know it from a lot of centuries of living here, so stop saying Venice is destroyed and shits like this, you are ruining Venice with this bad publicity not the water, the water is part of us
Ol ti 4 years ago
Ps: for all the people who don't know Venice, the 187 cm wasn't 187 from the floor level but from the water level, so 30-50 cm from the floor level
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Jon Klestadt 4 years ago
THIS WAS NOT A FLOOD!!! Venice is built on hundreds of islands in a lagoon open to the sea. The Tide comes in and goes out twice every day. Novembers extreme event was as a result of days of rain on the mainland, days of Southerly winds pushing water up to the Northern end of the Lagoon and the Adriatic sea, and a full moon. The tide was not as high as in 1984 or 1962 but was still the highest for 35 years, and because of the weather it didn't go down in the ensuing 6 hours as much as was expected. So, yes it was a major weather event, but it was NOT the Apocalyptic event most outsiders seem to believe. The biggest problem for most Venetians now is that it seems to have scared away many tourists, leaving the cities businesses bereft of customers. So the best thing to do to save Venice is to go, now, and spend some money in the place that has been the worlds most fascinating tourist destination for 400 years!
fainasKeturatis 4 years ago (edited)
flood is when the water rises - no matter the reason or frequency, it's still flooded. You may or may not believe in global warming or other s**t and say ''Amerika is great again'' but that does not change the subject and water level is still higher than half year ago.
Load More Replies...
Dark Half 4 years ago
The water looks like from the ocean though, from the picture it looks clean lol.
Daria B 4 years ago
I immagine somewhere in the Venice underground sewers, surrounded with water, there lies a water element summon for you to conquer and obtain! I know, it's a bit off topic, but it's cute. ♥ Wish you, and everyone else, a happy New Year!
Load More Replies... Ol ti 4 years ago
Please stop with all this bullshits, the extraordinary high water here in Venezia is something that happens really rarely and the water remains high for at last 2 hours, not all the day, this time wasn't the first time it happens and will not be the last, for us is just a boring thing that happens rarely, but anyway isn't the end of the city, is part of our life and we know it from a lot of centuries of living here, so stop saying Venice is destroyed and shits like this, you are ruining Venice with this bad publicity not the water, the water is part of us
Ol ti 4 years ago
Ps: for all the people who don't know Venice, the 187 cm wasn't 187 from the floor level but from the water level, so 30-50 cm from the floor level
Load More Replies... Jon Klestadt 4 years ago
THIS WAS NOT A FLOOD!!! Venice is built on hundreds of islands in a lagoon open to the sea. The Tide comes in and goes out twice every day. Novembers extreme event was as a result of days of rain on the mainland, days of Southerly winds pushing water up to the Northern end of the Lagoon and the Adriatic sea, and a full moon. The tide was not as high as in 1984 or 1962 but was still the highest for 35 years, and because of the weather it didn't go down in the ensuing 6 hours as much as was expected. So, yes it was a major weather event, but it was NOT the Apocalyptic event most outsiders seem to believe. The biggest problem for most Venetians now is that it seems to have scared away many tourists, leaving the cities businesses bereft of customers. So the best thing to do to save Venice is to go, now, and spend some money in the place that has been the worlds most fascinating tourist destination for 400 years!
fainasKeturatis 4 years ago (edited)
flood is when the water rises - no matter the reason or frequency, it's still flooded. You may or may not believe in global warming or other s**t and say ''Amerika is great again'' but that does not change the subject and water level is still higher than half year ago.
Load More Replies... Dark Half 4 years ago
The water looks like from the ocean though, from the picture it looks clean lol.
Daria B 4 years ago
I immagine somewhere in the Venice underground sewers, surrounded with water, there lies a water element summon for you to conquer and obtain! I know, it's a bit off topic, but it's cute. ♥ Wish you, and everyone else, a happy New Year!
Load More Replies...
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