Beautiful Venice

I was indeed pleasantly surprised when I got to Venice & started to explore. After dropping my bags in my hotel room, I headed out knowing that I had only a day & a half to check this city out. The most expensive city in Italy (& my credit card really knows how expensive), I'd managed to find a reasonably inexpensive hotel (175 euros for 2 nights = A$340) which had breakfast thrown in for free. And it was in an ideal location - away from the hustle & bustle, but positioned on one of the veins that ran to San Marco.

When I started my walking, I was instantly impressed by the beauty (& cleanliness after Rome) of this city. The small canals that criss-crossed the island, & the divine little alleyways that weaved through it. The offerings for tourists centred mostly on exquisite Murano glass wares & exotic Venetian masks (I guess used for a clandestine midnight alley rendevous).

Now, the tourists were a plenty, & it was often difficult to get through the laneways when they were clogged with people sightseeing. The people were also a lot friendlier here. I can imagine what it would be like in Spring with far fewer tourists - heaven!