All too soon our time in Venice is over and we must board the train to go to Milan.

Venice is a fantastic place to visit, with all its different types of architecture and many canals and bridges.

Make sure you don’t miss any of the great sights such as the Rialto bridge (Bridge of Sighs), the Doges Palace, St Marco Square, St Marks Basilica or the outlying islands.

And definately take a ride on a gondola just to say you did.

We were trying to cram in as much as possible in the short time we were in Venice.

While we were walking around the streets, taking in the sights, smells and sounds we noticed a large ship that towered over the buildings.

The ship could be seen from many parts of Venice so we headed over to have a look. It was quite a sight and we watched as little boats came to and fro loading up produce.

To quickly orientate ourselves with Venice we went on  a walking tour.

Part of the walking tour included a ride on the public gondola.

We thoroughly recommend that you do this walking tour.

Our guide pointed out the different styles of architecture in Venice as it had developed over the years, showing the influence in style of whichever political sphere of influence Venice was under at the time of building.

We also visited a church that had magnificent tombs and paintings by Giovanni Bellini and Titan.

All to soon it was time for us to take a trip on one of the public gondolas.  We had been looking forward to this experience and it is one of the ‘must do’ things that  you must do when you go to Venice.

Each  gondolas is unique in that it is decorated in a style to suit the owner and some of the gondola operators.

Here is Chilli waiting for his turn to hop into the gondola. Chilli is the stuffed dog that the ladies from work in Brisbane gave us to take on our trip. He has had quite an adventure so far.

One of the American girls took a shine to Chilli and made sure he got the best seat in the gondola and that he got to see all the best sights.

Riding in a gondola is a truly fascinating experience. We went up and down canals and under bridges. One of the canals was closed of with a type of sacking to keep the water back. Workers were plastering the walls below the waterline.

We disembark and set of along the foreshore past the tied up gondalas and stop at an outdoor market seller where I buy some bags and t’shirts with ‘Venetia’ in gold lettering on the front.

What now, ahhhh yes of course, we must go up the Campanile (the bell tower) for a birds eye view over Venice.

The Campanile is a 98.5 metre-high tower with a sturdy brick shaft, an observation platform, a section housing the five bells, and a pyramidal spire, topped by a golden angel weather vane.