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Trente et Quarante the game of Casanova
The vaporetto slows down and begins docking at Santa
Marcuola landing station. You are ready to get off, but so are many,
many other passengers.
It seems that a visit to the ancient
ghetto of Venice is a must for a great number of tourists after lunch.
But instead of turning left at Rio terra dietro la chiesa Santa
Marcuola, they turn right. Follow them across the Rio de Santa Marcuola,
and you arrive in front of the huge and superb Venetian, Palace Ca’
Vendramin Calergi. This is one of Venice's greatest Renaissance palaces,
an outstanding example in the Golden Age of the Serenissima.
According
to historical sources, this palace was completed by 1509, for the
Loredan family, and then sold to the Duke of Brunswick, who adored
Venice. The palace changed owner several time, to be inherited by the
Vendramin family in 1739. The Vendramin related to the Calergi, became
the Calergi-Grimani through marriage. That’s how the building acquired
its present name.
In 1844, the last members of the Vendramin
family sold the palace to the Duchess Maria Carolina of Berry, niece of
the Hapsburg emperor Leopold II and wife of the second son of Charles X,
King of France. In the wake of the unrest of the Risorgimento, the
owners were forced to sell off the palace. Ca' Vendramin Calergi then
became the residence of the Count de’ Bardi and the Dukes of Grazia who
hosted Richard Wagner at the time when the great German composer was
working on Parsifal. Wagner lived in the palace from 1882 to 1883, and
died there on February 13th.
So, are all those people going to
the Richard Wagner museum on the mezzanine? No, they are going to the
second floor where doors open at 2:45 p.m..
Now, I am in the Casino of Venice,
probably the world’s first casino, opened in 1638. Slots machines are
not created equal, and the one’s at the Venetian in Vegas are much more
interesting. I have to wait a while for the grand renaissance rooms,
hosting the traditional games, to open. I decide to walk down the grand
staircase and take a look at the small Wagnerian museum. Normally, you
should book 24 hours in advance, but the guard lets me in. Documents,
posters, painting--this is the most complete Wagnerian memorabilia
outside of Haus Wahnfried Museum in Bayreuth, of course.
It’s 3.30 p.m. and the gaming rooms are now open. I have my choice: Traditional card games, French or Fair Roulette.
Chemin
de fer? No, Chemin de fer is not out of fashion and the stakes can be
very high. It’s not because the producers of Casino Royale believed that
High Stake Poker Texas Hold’em is more spectacular that you should
neglect this princely game. Better still, why not stand at the same spot
that Giacomo Casanova did in the late 18th century and play a few hands
of Trente et Quarante?
“Trente
et Quarante”? Yes, that elegant card game has been played here since
the Casino’s earliest days. Trente et Quarante, which means 30 and 40
in French, is played in other casinos in Italy, on the French Riviera,
and, of course, in Monte Carlo.
I strongly advise that you become acquainted with the game before you visit.
Then, after a few hands, why not dine at Wagner Restaurant specialized in Venetian cuisine?
Take
a water taxi back to your hotel and turn your head back to enjoy “ a
sculpted cloud resting on water,“ as Gabriel d’Annunzio in La Nave,
described Ca’ Vendramin Calargi, the oldest Casino in the World.
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