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VENICE - Watching thousands of tourists stroll through Venice's St Mark's Square, steward Giovanna is ready to step in at the first sign of unacceptable behaviour - picnics, bare torsos or discarded food wrappers.
Speaking languages ranging from Chinese to Polish, Giovanna and six other women have been deployed by the lagoon city to improve decorum and cleanliness in the square Napoleon called "the drawing room of Europe".
Since June, they have patrolled the area telling tourists they cannot lay out food or walk around bare-chested.
Signs warning of fines have been plastered on bins as well as canal water bus stops, and the stewards - dressed in special T-shirts - give out leaflets telling tourists where they can have their picnics.
If situations get tricky, the women who have been nicknamed "guardians of the square" - call for back-up from police who can hand out fines ranging from €25 ($43) to €500.
"The other day there was a lady sitting with a saucepan but she had no gas bottle," said Giovanna, who declined to give her surname. "As I approached she leapt up saying 'don't worry, I'm not going to start cooking'.
"People usually say they didn't know. We advise them that there is a picnic area where they can go, we do not want them to get angry - usually the reaction is positive but there are times when we've had to make calls (for back-up)." In a city where a coffee and a croissant can cost over €5, many day-trippers bring their own food or opt for take-away refreshments.
Venice had nearly 20 million tourists last year and the city council wants the visitors to be respectable.
"Venice is a city of art and a city that belongs to the world, guests are welcome - but Venice has to be respected," the council's Augusto Salvadori, in charge of tourism and the city's image, said.
At a designated picnic area, British tourist Glenda List said she agreed with the decision. "They want some standards, I can understand that," she said. "They don't want it to be scruffy but maybe they could just provide more bins."
- Reuters
