by Julia Borgini

Created on: March 12, 2007   Last Updated: April 17, 2007

Venice is a wonderous city, especially for those of us from land-locked cities around the world. It is an amazing thing to think of a city built on a delta, trying to keep the water at arm's length, all the while people going about their daily lives. I visited Venice in 1984, on a family vacation, and we toured around the city with my uncle's tour group. It was a great experience, as we got to see a glass factory in Murano, we took a ride in a gondola around the city, and then a walking tour of the area around Piazza San Marco.

If you have never seen a glass factory in person, I highly recommend it. The one we went to in Murano was quite interesting. I was a young teenager at the time, and wasn't too interested in a lot of things on a family vacation, however the glass factory sure was memorable. We saw all the stages in the process, complete with an artisan blowing and working the glass for a vase. I was mesmerized at the way the glass came off the end of the tube, and of course, being a teenager, I was very interested at the possibility of serious injury to the artisan. "Do they ever make a
mistake and grab the wrong end of the tube?" I asked the guide, to the snickers of the rest of the group. My mother was mortified I would ask such a question, but I was curious, and I figured others were as well. The vase the artisan produced was quite impressive, multi-coloured and delicate.

The gondola ride is one of my most cherished memories, as it was a lot of fun. It is such an iconic thing, as well as being a tad touristy, but it was fun. My uncle actually had a honeymooning couple on the tour, and he had arranged for a violinist and singer to accompany them in their gondola. He also arranged for me and my sister to ride in the gondola immediately behind them, so we got to hear the music all the way. People came out to their windows as we approached, and applauded as we went by.

Walking tours are always a good way to see a city, and my parents liked to do the same. My father had seen Venice many years earlier, and he thought he knew his way around. In true fashion, we ended up getting lost. My sister and I didn't notice too much, as we were enjoying all the sights as we walked, but my mother was getting concerned. We wandered around the same neighbourhood several times, with my father greeting the same old woman sitting on her stoop about three times. Finally my mother pulled out the map from her purse, much to the surprise of my father, and directed us to the small church we had been searching for. Needless to say this became the highlight of the trip, as well as a funny story we ended up repeating for many years.

I highly recommend going to Venice next time you are in Italy, as the sites are interesting and iconic, and the people are helpful and friendly.

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