Venice, St. Mark’s Basilica

Such a beautiful morning in the most beautiful city on the planet. But from the 2026 ranking prepared by TimeOut Venice is not even in the top 10! Surprisingly. Cape Town, South Africa, is on the first place.

Our morning strolling is going through The Rialto Bridge.

Rialto Bridge is probably the most famous bridge in Venice. But it was not the first Rialto bridge. Before the current stone bridge there were several wooden versions. One previous bridge even collapsed under the weight of crowds watching a boat parade. So, the current bridge dates to the 1500s, designed by Antonio da Ponte, it was completed around 1591. And it remained the only permanent bridge across the Grand Canal for centuries. Other major bridges, including the Accademia and Scalzi bridges, came much later.

Actually, we are heading now to the local fish market. We want to choose the ingredients for our dinner. And also to buy something for breakfast.

This Fish Market (called Pescheria di Rialto) is particularly associated with seafood from the Venetian Lagoon and Adriatic Sea. You can find here the whole fish, squid, octopus, clams, mussels, crabs and some seasonal catches. Interestingly, yhis market is still used by locals, restaurants and food businesses, rather than being purely a souvenir market.

The fish section here is housed under the historic covered loggias. This distinctive Neo-Gothic market building dates from 1907, although fish trading at Rialto is centuries older.

We are back home. The late breakfast is ready. Actually, we have saved a lot of money preparing food at home. This is one of the reason, why you should choose staying in the apartment with a kitchen.

We are ready for more pictures in the city.

And it is time to visit the booked tour around Saint Mark's Basilica. 

The present basilica largely dates from the 11th century, although an earlier church stood on the same site. Unlike many Italian churches, which emphasize Western Roman or Renaissance architecture, Saint Mark’s has a strong Eastern/Byzantine character. And the most famous feature here is its enormous collection of golden mosaics, covering roughly 8000 m2 of interior surfaces!

After such breathtaking views we needed some fresh air, walking under the covered arcades of the nearby Saint Mark's Square.

Many cafes around the square with the average price for one cappuccino 15-20 euro. Maybe another time I would try this exceptional coffee.

Nevertheless, I wanted some afternoon coffee. Italian coffee is the best in the world. But coffee without a dessert is waste of money!

Tiramisu are Cannoli are the most popular and delicious desserts in Italy. And of course, I could miss opportunity to taste them both. By the way, Veneto is widely considered the origin of tiramisu, and specifically the city of Treviso (which is not far from Venice). At the same time, Cannoli is from Sicily (especially associated with Palermo).

However, the iconic dessert exactly from Venice is Fritole Veneziane, small fried dough sweets usually made with raisins and sugar. Unfortunately, I did not have a chance to taste them this time.

Suddenly, near Saint Mark's square we have discovered this purely Instagram place, where many gondolas having rest. So picturesque!

For dinner we have cooked pasta with seafood from the local market. Of course, it was delicious.

It is dark outside. But it does not stop me from going out. I was accompanying with one of my friends, who made some nice pictures of me. She was so patient, I should admit!

Certainly, there were taken some Rialto pictures.

But absolutely amazing the pictures with the beautiful domed church of Santa Maria della Salute, usually called La Salute, which was built after a devastating plague epidemic. Interestingly, the Venetians promised to build a church to the Virgin Mary if the city survived the plague 1630-1631. They survived, so then they built this.

The iconic facade of Saint Mark's Basilica, which has five major domes, also looks magical at night.

Tired but happy we returned to the apartment. One more night in Venice. And tomorrow we will be able to see more of the city.

Venice, Santa Lucia

Venice is my favourite city for all time. And this time I travel there with my friends. I hope, I can be a good guide for them, because I have been to Venice several times already.

We arrived to Treviso airport. Then we took a bus from airport to the Treviso train station. And with train we went to Venice. I would say, this commute was not tiring at all.

The ride across the lagoon is very picturesque, so I would recommend to take the train to reach the historic city of Venice! The Ponte della Liberta (Liberty Bridge), crossing the Venetian Lagoon, which was opened in January 1846 under the Austrian Empire, is 4-kilometer length.

By the way, despite looking like the open sea, the lagoon is actually incredibly shallow. The average depth here is only about 1 to 2 meters, except for the deep navigation channels dug out for ships.

Two beautiful girls and I. We arrived to the final station Santa Lucia. But you should be aware of another station called "Venezia Mestre", which is located on the mainland, and it is not the needed stop for most visitors of Venice, but some tourists by mistake get off there.

The posts from this trip will be definitely full of pictures with me, because I have two good photographers nearby.

We are staying for 2 nights in Cannaregio, one of Venice’s six sestieri, in the northern part of the historic center, quite local and relaxed side.

No cars are allowed for the historic center of Venice, and you can drive only as far as the edge of Venice. But you can take vaporetti (water buses), water taxis or gondolas. Still, we used the cheapest and easiest mean of transport - walking.

Initially, I booked the place for one person, but from the descriptions the room was able to place two more people. At the end, we had to pay extra 80 euros for 2 nights.

Well, I used to stay in better apartments, but the price is quite fair.

While staying in Venice, you do not need to spend time in apartment. So, the most important is the location of your hotel and of course it should be affordable.

We dropped the bags and went out to explore the surroundings.

Walking in Venice takes so much energy! Obviously, we have got hungry. The girls found some traditional restaurant with nice reviews.

Inside it looks quite traditional. With white tablecloths, good tableware and nice waiters. Many people. All of them look like tourists.

Zuppa di pesce, a seafood soup. I was dreaming about it for a long time, since I tried it in some restaurant during one of my previous trips to Venice.

I do not know, if I am completely satisfied with the dish or not. The thing is that the portion size is not big enough for me. Anyways, interesting experience. And so delicious bread!

It is already dark outside. But we need to use every minute to explore the city.

St. Mark’s Square, the Bridge of Sighs and the lower arcade of the Doge’s Palace. Everything is amazing and full of history and stories.

The canals with the reflected light from the windows and street lamps.

And of course, the gondolas and gondoliers.

Magical evening in magical city. I am so lucky, that I can enjoy this atmosphere another two days with my loyal friends.