Photo credit: Twitter

From House Beautiful

As cities shut down amidst the Coronavirus outbreak, it can be tough to see any bright side. However, a few pictures and videos of some positive news from the streets of Venice starting getting some major love on Twitter. What's so special about the Floating City right now? The typically-murky water in the streets is flowing so clearly that fish can actually be spotted swimming, and even the swans and dolphins have returned."Venice hasn't seen clear canal water in a very long time. Dolphins showing up too. Nature just hit the reset button on us," @b8taFPS wrote on Twitter.



Venice hasn't seen clear canal water in a very long time. Dolphins showing up too. Nature just hit the reset button on us pic.twitter.com/RzqOq8ftCj — Gianluca De Santis (@b8taFPS) March 17, 2020

Thought I’d spread abit of positivity for you guys. Since the lockdown of Venice without the pollution from boats the water has been begun to clear up and a dolphin has been spotted in the canal for the first time in nearly 60 years! #venice pic.twitter.com/dbq4mGhfnp — Jack (@NotLacazette) March 17, 2020

Truthfully, this is the good news we needed to hear. The reality is that, liberated from the impact of human beings, Venice's waterways would always look that clear. There have even been reports on how the coronavirus outbreak has actually decreased air pollution. Twitter user @ikaveri also shared a few photos of the canals newest guests.

Here's an unexpected side effect of the pandemic - the water's flowing through the canals of Venice is clear for the first time in forever. The fish are visible, the swans returned. pic.twitter.com/2egMGhJs7f — Kaveri 🇮🇳 (@ikaveri) March 16, 2020

Now, before you jump to the conclusion that Venice has fully recuperated from decades of pollution in just a few short days of quarantine, consider another Twitter user's explanation for why the waters are so clear on @ikaveri's post. "The canals aren't cleaner," user @tyanu_khah writes. "It's just that since boats are not moving all the dirt around, it fell down to the bottom of the canals. Similar to any river after a thunderstorm, it will look cloudy because all the dirt at the bottom is moved around."

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Whether the clear canals have to do with a decrease in pollution or the result of less physical movement in the waterways, the photo serves as a wake-up call about how our actions and activities affect the environment. While COVID-19 might be keeping us confined to our homes, remember that because of that, the environment is finally getting a break from humans. A little silver lining.

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