VENICE, Italy (AP) — The romantic canalled city of Venice has been the venue for 323 weddings of foreign couples this year. Only one has drawn crowds and paparazzi.

George Clooney and Amal Alamuddin said ‘I do’ for a second time, yesterday, celebrating a civil wedding ceremony in Venice’s City Hall on the Grand Canal, greeted by hundreds of well-wishers who waited hours for a glimpse of the newly-weds.

The couple tied the knot two days earlier in a private ceremony attended by Hollywood celebrity friends and family in a luxury hotel. They followed up with a required civil procedure, which to be legally recognised must take place on a site designated by the city administration.

The newly-weds arrived at the pre-Renaissance Ca’ Farsetti in Clooney’s regular water taxi, called Amore, trailed by dozens of boats with photographers, as has been the case all weekend.

Clooney, 53, looked dapper in a grey suit and matching tie, while the bride, 36, wore a cream-coloured, short-sleeved jacket with palazzo pants and a matching wide-brimmed hat, accented by a navy ribbon.

As they exited the boat, Clooney drew his wife’s attention to the crowds on the opposite shore, and they stopped briefly to take in the scene and wave. Clooney then ushered Alamuddin inside, looking up at city employees watching from the surrounding buildings and pointing inside with his thumb as if to say, ‘I gotta go’.

They emerged about 20 minutes later with former Rome Mayor Walter Veltroni, who performed both ceremonies. Veltroni sent the couple off, hugging Clooney and kissing Alamuddin on the cheek.

They continued up the Grand Canal and under the arched Rialto Bridge, crowded with more well-wishers screaming “George, George,” before disappearing up a one-way canal. Clooney’s water taxi driver, who has ferried the actor around on his frequent trips to Venice, was later seen at the airport and indicated that the couple had left.