“ALL ON BOARD!” – THE 2024 EDITION OF THE PORT DAYS OF VENICE AND CHIOGGIA IS SET FOR SMOOTH SAILING, with 30 partners involved in 15 initiatives over 3 days
From 4 to 6 October, the entire port community was involved in a series of cultural, educational, sports and recreational events distributed between Venice, Marghera and Chioggia.
Venice, 13 September – Promoted by the Northern Adriatic Sea Port Authority and involving the Veneto’s port towns, the 2024 Port Days were held from Friday 4 to Sunday 6 October and envisage a wave of amazing activities for adults and children, students of all ages, families, young athletes, port enthusiasts and curious citizens.
Taking place within the framework of the yearly national PORT DAYS launched by Assoporti in 2018 to open up all Italian ports to the general public, the three-day event included numerous activities in the three hubs that made up the Veneto’s unique port system: Venice, Marghera and Chioggia. The event was designed and organised by the North Adriatic Sea Port Authority and sponsored by the Municipalities of Venice and Chioggia.
Plenty of novelties marked that year’s edition.
The novelties started with the clear message supported by all the partners of the Veneto port ecosystem: ALL ON BOARD! A statement to declare that the port system embraced all users without exception (in line with the focus on inclusion in this year’s national Port Days) and that all the players involved in the port environment, none excluded, directly committed to implementing the initiatives planned to open to the public.
A total of 30 partners were involved – including institutions, maritime/port and private entities and associations – whose task was to provide insight into the professions of the sea and logistics, delving deep into the specifics of ports, the activities that take place in them and their protagonists: Harbourmaster of Venice and Chioggia, Border Police, Finance Police, Customs and Monopolies Agency, USMAF-SASN of Veneto, Friuli Venezia Giulia and Trentino Alto Adige, Firefighters, Corporazione Piloti Estuario Veneto, Rimorchiatori Riuniti Panfido, Gruppo Ormeggiatori del Porto di Venezia, Lega Navale Italiana – Venice section, Venezia Port Community, ASAMAR Veneto, Assosped, Propeller Club Port of Venice, Ca’ Foscari University of Venice, CUS Venezia, University of Padova – Department of Information Engineering and Department of Management and Engineering, Associazione Nautilus, CFLI, ITS Marco Polo Academy, Vemars, Venezia Terminal Passeggeri, Venezia Heritage Tower, Darsena Le Saline, Visemar Line, Associazione remiera Chioggia, Acquera.
4
October
New formats were in place for activities
Venice will take the limelight during the opening day on 4 October when, for the very first time, the Santa Marta waterfront will hosted a ‘port village’ that was set up in the area between the quayside and the offices buildings hosting the companies operating in the port and will stretch up to the embankment facing the Port System Authority building. It was organized into separate areas dedicated to talks, sports, stands and exhibition points where land and water vehicles will be showcased. In the morning, hundreds of young students engaged in sports and recreational activities, as well as in fun educational workshops guided by the Port Educational multimedia tool with a special focus on the ‘section’ dedicated to Marco Polo that was specifically created by AdSPMAS for the celebrations organised for the 700th anniversary of his death. In the meanwhile, high school students engaged in a boat tour of the port areas.
In the afternoon, sports activities were organised for secondary school and university students, while the conference area featured ITS Marco Polo’s Welcome Day, followed by an absolute novelty: ‘the port tells its story’ is an event featuring three double interviews with the top management of AdSPMAS and Harbourmaster, representatives of the Venice Port Community and Asamar, followed by a final interview to two operational terminals. In the meantime, the Santa Marta village was opened to the public, with its stands, and land and water vehicles exhibited by port operators and institutions. The day ended with the musical entertainment provided by the San Basilio Music Fest promoted by Ca’ Foscari University and realised in cooperation with AdSPMAS.
5
October
Chioggia offered an equally rich and lively agenda.
Chioggia offered an equally rich and lively agenda, that opened on Saturday 5 October at the Darsena Le Saline with a meeting for Chioggia’s high school students from the last two years of high school and technical college, who were able to learn first-hand about careers in the maritime/port sector. Universities, vocational and technical schools, and entrepreneurs working in this industry will guide the students through an interactive itinerary which will allowed them to enter into contact with specific tools and directly experience some practical activities. To liven things up, the rowing association Associazione Remieri Chioggia offered students the chance to try their hand at traditional Venetian rowing. While all this happened, the students of the first three years of high school took part in guided tours of the Harbourmaster’s facilities, during which the Coast Guard showed them the offices, the control room and the fleet, and told them of their daily work to protect human lives at sea, ensure safe navigation and protect marine ecosystems.
From 2.45 pm, a treasure hunt involved adults and children in a unique adventure along the town’s embankments, calli and campi. Competing in teams, participants were asked to solve riddles, puzzles and enigmas in a fun and interactive activity that will lead them to discover the town’s maritime and port history and culture.
At the same time, the Harbourmaster’s building was open to the public with free admission for all, to support the idea of providing insight into the work carried out daily by the Sea Port Authority.
To end the day, a celebration was held in the San Nicolò Auditorium to give the awards to the winners of the treasure hunt and also as a moment to celebrate the importance of the sea in the town’s life and economy.
6
October
The events in Venice and Chioggia were followed, on Sunday 6 October, by the final Port Days events in Porto Marghera, where the curious and enthusiasts were able to experience a journey into the past and present of this industrial/logistics area, which continued to be the beating heart of the territory: a boat tour was organised along the port quays in the morning, while guided tours were available at the Venice Heritage Tower throughout the day.
