Saturday night was one I’ll remember for a long time. It was the Festa del Redentore, an annual feast and celebration in July of the end of a plague that killed almost 50,000 Venetians in the span of three years back in the 1570s. Suffering tremendous losses from the disease, citizens promised to build a church to honor Christ the Redeemer (Il Redentore) if he spared them from the plague. Sure enough, the plague ended shortly thereafter, and the church was constructed and an annual day of celebration declared.

Nowadays, of course it has been transformed into as much a party for tourists as a religious celebration for Venetians (if not more). Nevertheless, as with daily life in Venice, where the lives and physical presence of Venetians and tourists rarely intersect, the locals have found ways to celebrate the Redentore their way, without having to deal with the busiest tourism day in Venice each year (with the exception of Carnival).

Our night began with a quiet dinner along the Fondamente Nove, where we watched the sun set against the island of San Michele. We had a wonderful panoramic view of the Alps, too, which have been visible recently thanks to the lifting of the oppressive humidity that has kept Venice in an unpleasant haze in recent weeks. After dinner, we went and retrieved our caorlina from its parking space and headed for the Bacino di San Marco.

Rowing down the Grand Canal at night, in the presence of hundreds of other boats, was quite the experience. Everybody had installed decorative lanterns and stereos in their vessels, and there was much merriment as we we rowed towards San Marco. Coming around the corner of the Grand Canal by the Accademia, things began to get a bit crazy, with thousands of tourists pushing their way across the bridge to get to the Zattere, the waterfront promenade that overlooks the Giudecca Canal where the fireworks were to take place. On the water, we could see a solid wall of boats up ahead, so dense that Fabio, on a whim one year, was able to actually walk from the Piazza San Marco to the island of San Giorgio Maggiore.

After a shouting match with some stubborn policemen who were denying us access to the rowboat-only parking area, we finally found a place to tie up and enjoy the fireworks. As luck would have it, our view was perfectly centered on the middle of the eleven fireworks barges, and when the show started at 11:45pm, we discovered that we were so close that the fireworks were actually larger than our field of vision.

The six of us had a wonderful time watching the show, which lasted more than half an hour and involved 6,000 fireworks. Afterwards, you can imagine the chaos involved in the dispersion of thousands of boats in all directions – it took us close to two hours to get from Punta della Salute to the Ca’ d’Oro, even with a shortcut. The Grand Canal, normally placid at night, became a tangle of boats of all shapes and sizes, with their occupants playing music and dancing and singing. By the time we had secured the boat, said our good-byes, and Fabio and I stopped for a beer and made our way back to Sant’Elena, it was after 4am and the sky was beginning to brighten. Along the way back, we saw a large fishing boat from Chioggia, tied up along the Biennale gardens, that had been taken by surprise by some low tides and was resting on the lagoon bottom at a decidely unnatural angle. Chioggians come to Venice and party all day long during the Redentore, but I guess these ones didn’t make it out in time. The slant didn’t keep them from partying, though.

What a spectacular night! I have resolved to bring Ori here for next year’s Redentore. For many tourists, who crowd the city’s pavements and fight for a good view, it’s a great fireworks show and nothing more. But to experience it as a Venetian, in a rowboat with prosecco and the company of thousands of others all celebrating in their own boats, is really an opportunity not to be missed.

You can see the rest of my Redentore photos here.