Venice once again welcomes its prestigious Biennial, the oldest and largest gathering in the art world, from April 23, after a three-year absence. From that day on, vaporetto n° 1 vaporetto, which goes up the Grand Canal and passes Piazza San Marco, will be crowded with art lovers, who will disembark at the Giardini boat stop for the Giardini della Biennale, where 30 international pavilions present the latest cutting-edge creations.
But one stop further, just before the vaporetto crosses the lagoon to the Lido, is Sant’Elena, a little-known little island, separated just by a canal from the rest of the Castello district. Forgotten by most people, it’s a peaceful oasis at a time when the number of weekend visitors to the city center tops 130,000, far more than before the pandemic.
It’s quite a surprise to get off the vaporetto in the middle of a vast grassy public park, a green lung in the middle of the stone town of Ruskin. The Parco delle Rimembranze is the largest green space in Venice, majestically landscaped with towering umbrella pines. Families with children, joggers, and dog walkers come from all over town to make the most of the playgrounds, play basketball, soccer, and Frisbee or tennis, or ride bikes on the bike paths. Not what you would expect to find in Venice. Sant’Elena is home to a prestigious naval academy, whose cadets stroll around in their splendid uniforms at the weekend, and the Pier Luigi Penzo stadium, the second oldest in Italy, which houses Venezia F.C.who are enjoying their 15 minutes of fame playing in Serie A against clubs like Juventus and AC Milan, despite a peak attendance of just 11,500 fans.
There are no Baroque palaces or Renaissance churches here, although the cloister Chiesa di Sant’Elena, facing east towards the mouth of the lagoon, dates back to the 10th century. Today’s buildings are mostly 1920s apartment buildings, built after the end of World War I to house refugees and military families from the surrounding regions of Veneto and Friuli, where Some of the bloodiest battles took place: these are remembered in street names like Calle Oslavia and Campo Monte Grappa. There are war memorials all over the island, and even some of the pines are named after Italian generals. These apartments were all popular case, social housing, but today the population of Sant’Elena is changing, as many Venetian families, especially with children, leave the historic center to enjoy the green spaces and beaches of the Lido. British author and university professor Gregory Dowling chose to live here 35 years ago. “I would never leave,” he said. “There’s still a real community spirit, amazing open spaces, and some of the most breathtaking sunsets in the world.”
On weekdays, the lack of crowds and tourists in Sant’Elena comes as a shock compared to the rest of the city. At family Osteria de la Pampo, owner Martina Gianfranceschi says: “Sant’Elena is becoming a lifeboat for the last real Venetians. We have a butcher, a greengrocer and a bakery. What else do you need? Guess we must be the last part of Venice that doesn’t have a supermarket. Bar Vincent is where everyone meets for an aperitif, while Vecia Gina has been making fabulous pizzas for three generations.”
Martina and her mother Paola, who cooks in Pampo, are from Genoa. “We really wanted to settle in Venice, but outside the center, and our small family restaurant attracts loyal locals, biennials and curious tourists,” says Martina. Pampo’s cuisine is certainly a surprise after the classic menu turistic around Piazza San Marco, with Genoese specialties such as seppie in ziminocuttlefish with chard, alongside the classic Vongole Spaghetti.
On a Sunday afternoon when Venice play at home, Sant’Elena feels like a funfair, with Venetian families from all walks of life – gondoliers, Murano glassblowers, chefs and bar staff – making the pilgrimage. Where else in the world do fans arrive by vaporetto at a stadium overlooking the sparkling waters of the Venice lagoon? Rising Chelsea star and Welsh international Ethan Ampadu, 21, is on loan here and has quickly fallen in love with La Serenissima. “I still can’t get used to the fact that there really aren’t any cars,” he told me. “I could hardly believe on game day that we were sailing through the water in a boat and being inside the ground in two minutes. I think whatever stadium I play in in the world, nothing will not be comparable to this experience.
The small Paludo Sant’Antonio bridge connects Sant’Elena to the Giardini della Biennale. Head through the gardens to Via Garibaldi, and you’re back in bustling Venice, which looks like another world from Sant’Elena.
Stay While some residents of Sant’Elena offer Airbnb Hostingthere is only one hotel on the island, the designer Indigo (double from €150), restored former convent.
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