Arguably one of the most unusual and enchanting cities in the world, Venice is a jewel.  The city is a veritable maze of canals, foot bridges and ancient passageways.  Pictured above is a snapshot I took of a passing gondola (crazy, right?).  Venice is filled with beautiful things to see and piazzas to explore.  While there, I would absolutely recommend taking a water taxi out to the island of Murano where you can see the famous Murano Venetian glass being blown; my friend and I both felt that seeing this greatly enhanced our appreciation for the glass pieces which are sold all over the city.

Another key spot to visit is the famed St. Mark’s Square.  It is enormous, it is beautiful and there are always many things happening there to see, such as free concerts.  Below, you will see me there…

…Just for fun, you should plan to stop into Harry’s Bar for one of their famed Bellini’s.  Opened in 1931, this famed drinking spot was a favorite watering-hole of Ernest Hemingway amongst many notable others.  Here are our Bellini’s…

Of course, no trip to Venice is truly complete without a gondola serenade.  Yes, it is pricey…yes, it is touristy…yes, it is something worth doing at least once in your lifetime!  Check it out…

Overall, Venice is every beautiful and unique thing you have ever imagined it to be.  If you visit Venice, be sure to spend a length of time at a cafe sipping a cappuccino while you simply take it all in.  Oh…and don’t pass on the gelato!

***A word to the wise…despite its beauty, Venice can become a frustrating labyrinth (especially at night).  In my experience, the maps are not particularly detailed and therefore leave out many passageways.  When I was in Venice, I chose a hotel which was on the outskirts of the city; I do not recommend doing this as it led to my friend and I circling the streets for almost 3 hours one evening and being quite scared; we really thought that we might have to spend the night in the street!  Based upon our experience, I would recommend looking for hotels which are centrally situated, near to the Ponte Rialto; this is a major landmark situated in the heart of the city and is easily located.  While some people prefer to stay longer, I feel that a full day spent in Venice is just about enough to capture the feel of the city.  We stayed for two days and felt that we had really seen much of what we wanted to in the first day.