Newspapers are reporting that today the residents of Venice will protest the procession of over a dozen cruise ships which will sail through St Mark’s Basin. The Guardian states that a canal-bank protest is scheduled "over an invasion of up to 13 cruise ships in the space of 24 hours which . . . will turn St Mark’s Basin into a motorway."
The protest will raise awareness of the negative effect of the cruise industry on Venice and its citizens.
The newspaper quotes 75 year-old Italian singer, Adriano Celentano, who took out a page in the country’s biggest-selling daily newspaper to proclaim:
"Tomorrow will not be a nice day for our city, even if the sun is out . . . With the ignoble procession of 13 ships in the Venice lagoon comes the Eternal Funeral of the world’s beauties."
The newspaper also quoted Silvio Testa, spokesperson for the No Grandi Navi committee:
"We want to say ‘enough’ to this situation . . . St Mark’s Basin is like a motorway. Soon we’ll have to put traffic lights up."
A month ago, a Carnival cruise ship, the Carnival Sunshine, was alleged to have come within 20 meters of the shore in Venice. Carnival denied the incident, claiming photographs distorted the distance between the ship and shore. You can watch a video of the incident below. Seems congested to me . . .
You can read my article about my personal feelings about cruise ships and Venice here.
An Italian blog listed the following cruise ships will sail into Venice today: Azamara Journey, Azamara Quest, MSC Divina, Queen Victoria, Royal Clipper, Norwegian Spirit, Norwegian Jade, Queen Elizabeth, Seabourn Odissey, Ruby Princess, Splendour of the Seas, and the Harmony G.
Follow the discussion about cruise ships and Venice on our Facebook page.
See images of the MSC Divina leaving Venice today.
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Photo Credit: Pazzoperilmare Blog