On Ascension Day, in the bay near the Church of San Nicolò, Lido, one of the oldest rites - going back to the days of the Serenissima Republic - will be observed. The Marriage to the Sea had been celebrated for centuries during one of the most sumptuous holidays of the old Venetian Replublic: the Day of Sensa (Venetian pronunciation of Ascension).

Now revived each year, the ceremony would beign with Bucintoro, the Venetian flagship, which would depart in the morning from the St. Mark's square and head towards the Lido, carrying also the Mayor and city and church officials. Upon arrival near the Lido, a symbolic marriage ceremony would take place by blessing the Sea and tossing a  ring into the bay water, promising to be eternally faithful to the Sea. High Mass, a boat race with rowing champs, and other events conclude the present-day holiday.