The Italian Ministry of Heritage and Culture opens for ten days lots of monuments, museums, archaeological sites, archives, libraries with large popular events throughout the whole country.
Thousands of events: exhibitions, conferences, special openings, workshops, guided tours and concerts that will make more special the experience for all the visitors.
This year, the 12th edition of the “Culture Week” will take place from  April 16th to 25th.
The main purpose of this initiative is to promote culture awareness and to transmit the love of art to an ever wider audience of citizens that, for seven days, can choose from exhibitions, conferences, workshops, guided tours, concerts, shows , film showings and special openings in all regions of Italy.
Museums and Palaces in Venice will open their doors to experts and enthusiasts, through the organization of free guided tours and themed itineraries.

The main attractions that will open their doors free to the public are:
• The “Ca d’Oro” and the tour exhibition of Flemish tapestries of the 16th century.
• The Museum of Oriental Art and the opportunity to see some masks representative of traditional Japanese Noh theater.
• The  “Gallerie dell’Accademia”, where for the first time there will be organized the show of two drawings by Jacopo Tintoretto and Francesco Guardi, acquired in 2009.
• The “Palazzo Foscari”, last residence of the Doge Francesco Foscari and now seat of the Venice University, which hosted illustriouscharacters such as Henry III of Valois, King of France and Poland.
• The “Palazzo Grimani”, a noble residence in Venice of the sixteenth century.
• The “Libreria Sansoviniana”, with the inauguration of the exhibition ” Tesori della musica veneta del Cinquecento. La policolarità Giovanni Matteo Asola e Giovanni Croce”.
• The Provincial Museum of Torcello - Archaeological Section and Section Medieval and Modern, which includes ruins and artifacts related to the island and lagoon.
• The “Arsenale”, whose visit will be preceded by an introductory lesson by the architect Claudio Menichelli in cooperation with the Maritime Research Center.
• The house of the famous Venetian painter Jacopo Tintoretto.
• The National Archaeological Museum of Venice.

For more information or details regarding specific dates and opening hours, please visit the website: www.beniculturali.it

Mark the Evangelist is the patron of Venice: his feast day is celebrated on April 25, and his symbol is the lion. Tradition identifies him with author of the Gospel of Mark, said to be the disciple and interpreter of Saint Peter, and the follower and Apostle of Jesus Christ. About 10 to 20 years after the ascension of Christ, Saint Mark traveled to Alexandria and formed what is now known as the Coptic Orthodox Church. Aspects of the Coptic liturgy can be traced back to Saint Mark. He became its first bishop and founder of Christianity in Africa.
What is the connection between St. Mark and Venice? We have to look for it in the Medieval history. Actually,  in 828, some relics believed to be the body of St. Mark were stolen from Alexandria by two Venetian merchants and taken to Venice, where the Byzantine Theodore of Amasea had previously been the patron saint. Therefore a basilica was built there to house the relics: the unique and famous St. Mark Basilica, which has become the symbol of Venice.

There is a mosaic on the basilica showing how the sailors covered the relics with a layer of pork. Since Muslims are not allowed to touch pork, this action was done to prevent Muslim intervention in the relics removal. Moreover, according to tradition, in 1094 the saint himself revealed the location of his remains by extending an arm from a pillar. The newfound remains were placed in a sarcophagus in the basilica.
Nevertheless, the destiny of  the relics of the Saint is vexed: copts believe that his head remained in Alexandria. Every year, on the 30th day of the month of Babah, the Coptic Orthodox Church celebrates the commemoration of the consecration of the church of St. Mark, and the appearance of the head of the saint in the city of Alexandria. This takes place inside St. Mark Coptic Orthodox Cathedral in Alexandria, where the saint’s head is preserved.

Shrove Tuesday is the day before Lent starts on Ash Wednesday. The name Shrove comes from the old middle English word ‘Shriven’ meaning to go to confession to say sorry for the wrong things you’ve done. Lent always starts on a Wednesday, so people went to confessions on the day before. This became known as Shriven Tuesday and then Shrove Tuesday.

In other countries, like Italy, Shrove Tuesday is known as ‘Martedì Grasso’, This means ‘Fat Tuesday’ in Italian and also comes from the idea of using up food before Lent.

Many countries round the world have ‘Martedì Grasso’ celebrations and carnivals. Some of the most famous are in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, New Orleans in the U.S.A., and Venice in Italy.
One of the most exquisite, unique and typical  Venice Carnival specialty is the home made ‘frittella’ (‘fritoleri’ in Venetian dialect) that you can find in every coffee and pastry shops of the city. These ‘frittelle’are one of the symbol of the Venetian Carnival.
Here you have the traditional recipe to make your own traditional sweets…

Ingredients for 4 people:

12 g of beer yeast
200 g of flour
40 g of raisans
40 g of pinoli nuts
40 g di candied fruits
ca. 350 g of seed oil
40 g of sugar
16 g of icing sugar
ca. 0,5  of grappa or rum

Preparation:

Dissolve yeast with a little warm water and sugar.  Add grappa and then flour adding water when needed.  Mix well until there are no air bubbles on the surface.  Cover and leave to rise in a warm place.  When the mix has doubled in size, add raisans, candied fruits and pinoli.  Heat oil and cook draining each doughnut on paper towels.  Arrange in a pyramid form and sprinkle with icing sugar.  Serve hot and enjoy your “frittelle”.

The term “Acqua Alta” is commonly used in Venice for the exceptional tide peaks that occur periodically in the Venetian Lagoon. This unique and spectacular phenomenon occurs mainly between autumn and spring, when the astronomical tides are reinforced by the prevailing seasonal winds which hamper the usual reflux. The main winds involved are the scirocco, which blows northbound along the Adriatic Sea, and the bora, which has a specific local effect due to the shape and location of the Venetian lagoon.

The phenomenon largely depends on three main factors:
• an astronomical component, which results from the movement and alignment of celestial bodies, principally the Moon; this component is dependent upon the laws of the astronomical mechanics and can be accurately predicted for the long run;
• a geophysical component, primarily dependent upon the geometric shape of the basin, which amplifies or reduces the astronomical component and, because it is dependent upon the laws of the physical mechanics, can be also computed and accurately predicted for the long run;
• a meteorological component, linked to a large set of variables, such as the direction and strength of winds, the location of barometric pressure fields and their gradients, precipitation. This component can only be forecast for the very short run and is probably the principal determinant of acqua alta emergencies.

 
This “Acqua Alta” spreads particularly in the St. Mark’s basin and in the lower areas of the city next to the Grand Canal. Despite some diseases to the local population, it has become a significant attraction for tourists from all over the world who come to Venice. Anyway, if you decide to come to our Best Western Premier Hotel Sant’Elena, don’t worry, our hotel is in a quiet area, higher than the St. Mark’s basin and not interested by this unique and particular phenomenon.