18/05/2007

Fascination and Peril

Rachel Spence, Financial Times

Born in South Africa and educated in London, environmental scientist Contessa Jane Da Mosto moved to Venice in 1995. In collaboration with Venice in Peril and Cambridge University, she has published a book, 'The Science of Saving Venice', and is now working on a sequel. She lives with her husband, the TV presenter Conte Francesco Da Mosto and her three children.

Even before I lived here permanently, I was in love with the city. My mother had a house here and I used to stay at weekends while I was on a research scholarship with a scientific foundation in Milan. I met my husband at a party here. It wasn't a coup de foudre but the first time we went for dinner, he came straight from his job as an architect, wearing a tie and glasses, and I thought: "Well, he must be a serious person." That was the first and last time I ever saw him looking like that.

My first years in Venice were a gentle, euphoric dream. I found it all so beautiful. Not just the palaces and churches but little details like the algae growing along the buildings fascinated me. Indeed, they still do. Just walking the children to school or going to the post office are moments to savour.

I live in an apartment in a 16th-century palazzo that belongs to my husband's family. I marvel at how well constructed the building is compared to many modern apartment blocks. It's 400 years old and it's still a robust, elegant solution to domestic life. There are rooms with low ceilings where you can be warm in winter and airier rooms that are perfect for summer. Our sitting room is luminous thanks to tall windows and high ceilings.

Working on my book opened my eyes and made me more concerned for the future of the city. When you analyse it in detail, you realise how much isn't functioning properly. Take the lagoon. The presence of deep navigational channels for tankers and cruise ships has caused strong currents that wash away vital sediments. Huge tracts of salt marsh are disappearing very fast. And it's impossible to remain oblivious to the impact of tourism and the precipitous reduction in permanent residents. One month you go and visit someone in their office here and the next, you find they have moved to the mainland.

You can determine the pace of life you want to lead here. People say this is a slow city but in fact it gives you energy because you are in control of your destiny. You don't lose time stuck in traffic or waiting for a bus that doesn't come. Nowhere is longer than a brisk 20-minute walk and you can set your watch by the vaporetti.
 
When I go shopping, I only buy what I need because I have to carry it home. On the rare occasions I've gone to a hypermarket on the mainland, I've got a whole lot of things we didn't eat. Here, you live by the seasons and buy what's cheapest and freshest in the market.
 
It's a myth that there's no contemporary culture here. Aside from the film festival, there are annual festivals of contemporary music, theatre and dance, plus the biennales of art and architecture. François Pinault, chief executive of luxury group PPR, has housed his contemporary art collection in Palazzo Grassi. It's a question of making the effort to go and see things, just as it would be in London.
Learning the language is fundamental if you are curious about other people's lives. I learnt Italian in Milan so I could understand what my colleagues - who spoke perfect English - were saying between themselves. Now I like to know what the old ladies are planning to cook for dinner when they are standing next to me in the market.
 
Compared to Britain, Italy is a much more discursive culture. Until recently, I thought that political debates on TV were hard for me to follow because my Italian wasn't good enough. But I can follow every word and still end up saying to Francesco: "Why did he say that?" Other differences include wearing vests, which all Italians do, and not going out with wet hair, which I would do without a thought but no Italian would ever do for fear of catching pneumonia.
 
This is an easy place to bring up a family. It's a safe city. From eight years old, my daughter was walking to school by herself and taking the vaporetto with her friends. Unlike London, there's no anxiety around finding the right school because there's little choice but the quality is uniformly high. Having said that, when we wanted something different for our younger son, we quickly found a Steiner School on the mainland, where he is very happy.
 
I would like to see more green spaces for the children to play in. Although they are happy and safe playing in the squares, it would be nice if they had a tree to climb or a swing. The spaces that exist often belong to the Church and are closed to the public. I'm hoping the parishes will start to grant access to some of them soon.
 
Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2007