Venice: the famous attractions, but also the true beauty- intimate canals and charming old facades

Venice needs no introductions. This summer was my second time in Venice. The first time I went it was winter and we only had time to see the main attractions, so I left feeling unsatisfied. In my humble opinion the real beauty of Venice is in the residential areas - narrow canals, 1 person wide bridges, and laundry hanging over the canal to dry. I'm still going to show you the famous sites, but the last images are where I found the charm.

The one and only Grand Canal


St. Mark's square. A place where people try to touch pigeons they would otherwise find disgusting. Unfortunately Basilica San Marco was covered in scaffolding at the time we were there, so I'm including a picture from my fist visit below.

Souvenir shops abound

Street parking can be hard to find

The bridge is the famous Ponte di Rialto, which was so packed when we arrived that we could barely walk. If you don't like crowds or tourist traps don't linger here.

On the larger, commercial canals you can find beautiful and varying architecture

Gorgeous!

Now for my favorite parts of Venice - heading into the narrower canals





The facades on the back streets show wear, but combined with the lovingly tended flower boxes and laundry hung out to dry it creates a charming scene of life in Venice.


Sunset over a canal.

Have any of you been to Venice? What was your favorite aspect?


Here's that list again of all my posts from our travels that I've posted -

Spain

•Introduction to my European backpacking trip and a list of places we visited
Galicia - Baiona and Isle de Cies
Galicia - the coast, some charming vineyards, and Pontevedra
Santiago de Compostela and gorgeous hidden beaches
Gorgeous mountain lakes of Picos de Europa
Stunning mountains - Picos de Europa
Bilbao and San Sebastian
Beautiful Barcelona
The amazing Sagrada Familia Cathedral in Barcelona
Art Nouveau dream house by Gaudi in Barcelona

Italy

Not to miss - the gorgeous rocky coast of Italy's Cinque Terre
More from my summer traveling Europe - amazing Rome
From my summer in Europe - amazing Pompeii
Turquoise ocean and vineyards on cliffs - the amazingly stunning Amalfi coast
My Summer in Europe: Pictures from lovely Florence, Italy
Enchanting Siena

Thanks as always to my boyfriend Chris, who took these amazing photos.

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