San Marino - Venice Area
We travelled along the Adriatic coastline through the Po Delta towards Venice. This evening we went on a boat over to Venice for an evening meal. We walked through the tiny streets of Venice going over some beautiful old bridges winding in and out of buildings till we found our restuarant. Had a great meal and a wonderful experience of Venice at Night.

Venice 11th July

Today our tour started with a boat ride to Venice and we visited the Piazza San Marco (St Marks Square), St. Marks Basilica, the Clock Tower, the Campanile which is a 96 metre tall bell tower, the Piazetta and watched a Venetian glassblower. Then we had a gondola trip, not as comfortable as I imagined, a bit rushed and too many people on the gondola. We had a free afternoon to visit the markets and explore the streets and beautiful bridges connecting the canals. Venice, the "City of Canals," is also called the "City of Bridges" because of the numerous spans that crisscross its waterways. While many of Venice's 400+ bridges are nondescript and practical, there are several that embody the beauty and the history of this fascinating city. The Bridge of Sighs offered prisoners of the Venetian Republic a final opportunity to view the city before they were led to their cells or to the executioner. The Rialto Bridge is the main pedestrian crossing over the Grand Canal and the Scalzi Bridge is an elegant stone span. We also saw St Mark the Winged Lion the symbol of Evangelist that Venice chose to represent its political armed military might scattered around on the Grand Canal, in St. Mark's Square, in the Doges' Palace, and at the gates of the Navy Dockyard. I bought a beautiful hand painted mask. We spent some time in St. Marks Square feeding the pidgeons and listening to musicians. The street lanterns were unique and coloured in pink glass.