VENICE, Italy-The flooded streets of this Italian city can ‘water-trap’ anyone living on the planet earth.
Once in Venice, the ‘watery air’ lures the wanderer to the mysterious streets - overflowing with green water and surprisingly full of life.
While there are options of water taxis, water buses and ferries to explore the city, many opt to hire personal boats to make the moments more memorable.
Venice is actually a group of fascinating small islands, where art and history combine with old trades and the beauty of the sea.
Sandy beaches washed by the Adriatic Sea characterize the main resorts that offer vacationers every kind of comfort.
The fascinating inland is composed of many paths traversing the green scenery, along with peaceful rivers that pass through small towns rich in history and fabulous villas.
Venice's waters serve as the theatre for many events: for example, 120 boat races take place every year in the Venetian Lagoon. The oldest and most famous of them is the Historic Regatta, thrilling tourists and locals alike every time.
Then, a parade of boats typical of the 16th century makes its way along the Grand Canal; and another competition, known as the voga alla veneta, involves a special technique in which the rower stands, using one oar to propel and guide the boat at the same time.
Venice is an elegant, precious, inimitable, entertaining, and romantic. It is a jewel in the Italian touristic landscape, where churches, buildings, old bridges, monuments and piazzas are the evidence of the artistic and cultural vivacity that marks the history of this city.
The heart of Venice is the wonderful Piazza San Marco - the most elegant in Europe - surrounded by outstanding buildings: the impressive bell tower and the Cathedral - with its five portals of marble and mosaic decorations - foreshadowing the luxury of the interiors. Then the Ducal Palace, a symbol of the golden age of the Serenissima; Torre dei Mori (the clock tower), the engineering masterpiece that has been telling Venice the time for centuries; and the Napoleonic Wing, site of the Correr Museum.
Not far away is Campo Santo Stefano, with the church of the same name (St Stephen's).
Also from the piazza, the visitor can see the Island of San Giorgio Maggiore and the high bell tower that rises from the monumental structure of the old Benedictine monastery, a masterpiece realized by important architects of the time, including the renowned Andrea Palladio.
Venice is the best of outdoor museums, and it can be toured by boat or by gondola, most easily along the Canal Grande, the main Venetian thoroughfare. The Canal begins at Punta della Dogana, the old harbor of the Most Serene Republic, with its peculiar triangular shape that is now, like Palazzo Grassi, a Contemporary Arts Center.
The Peggy Guggenheim Collection is another must-see, exhibited in the Palazzo Venier de’ Leoni; it is considered the most important collection of the 20th Century. Among other important museums are the Gallerie dell’Accademia, housed in the majestic structure of the Scuola Grande de la Carità - inside is a church of the same name and a monastery- and Ca’ Rezzonico, one of the most beautiful buildings from the Renaissance and home to the Museum of 18th-Century Venice.
On the right bank of the Grand Canal - also accessible by crossing the Ponte del Rialto - it is possible to reach the districts of San Polo, Santa Croce and Dorsoduro, where some of the most famous campi of Venice are surrounded by wonderful religious buildings and palaces: San Rocco, with one of the old Grandi Scuole di Venezia and the church dedicated to the Saint; the renowned Basilica of Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari, one of the most important Franciscan structures; San Polo; San Giacomo dall’Orio with the church of the same name at its center and decorated with wonderful Venetian Renaissance artworks; San Sebastiano masterfully decorated by Paolo Veronese; San Pantalon; San Nicolò dei Mendicoli with one of the city's oldest churches; and Santa Maria della Salute.
From Piazza San Marco, crossing the renowned Bridge of Sighs - with a wonderful view of the lagoon - is the Castello district, rich in architectural and artistic masterpieces.
The campi of Venice are historic piazzas, usually embellished with remarkable monuments in the middle, and dominated by impressive religious buildings whence they take their names. This sestiere (district) also hosts plenty of interesting churches: the Chiesa dei Santi Giovanni e Paolo (Church of St. John and St. Paul), where state funerals were once held; the Church Santa Maria dei Miracoli, a fabulous example of Renaissance architecture; the Church of San Zaccaria in the homonyous piazza; the Church of San Giovanni in Bragora - considered one of the most beautiful churches in Venice - and the Church of Santa Maria Formosa, based on a design by Codussi.