Venice, Italy

This weekend I traveled north to Venice with my roommate. We stayed in a great, and cheap, hotel which was centrally located making it easy to see the entire city by either foot or water bus. There are no cars in the city since most streets are only a few feet wide and constantly cross canals using narrow pedestrian bridges. Boats are the primary mode of transportation for visitors and locals alike. We mostly used the water buses to get around since water taxis were pricey and the famous gondolas are mainly reserved for romantic trips without a destination.

We saw many of the main tourist sites during our time in the city. We saw the main church, the Basilica di San Marco, the Doge's Palace next door and then we climbed to the top of the Campidoglio that looks down over the entire city of islands. However, the most impressive parts of Venice for me were the less touristy destinations that we accidentally discovered. Upon boarding the wrong water bus we ended up on a new island where we discovered and a deserted church in which we ascended the bell tower to look back at the city of Venice. The views were incredible and much more enjoyable than the over crowded Campidoglio.