VENICE

Everyone departed the boat and walked left. We walked right. Nestled in a picturesque backstreet, we sipped on strong coffee and basked in each others company. Overhead a storm was brewing; whipping up the cobbled streets and disturbing the quietness that echoed through Venice.

But we did not care, because how can you care about a little rain when you have been transported through time to such a breathtaking city on the water?

Enclosed in a maze of alleys and flowing canals; a bookshop sat camouflaged amongst mismatched houses with protruding gardens of singular flower pots resting on precarious balconies. Inside the bookshop, an aged Italian stamped books with a euro tag and threw them onto piles of thousands of other disarrayed books stacked high to the ceiling.

We wandered through tiny spaces between the towers; sifting through century old novels and paintings which framed the city.

From the rooftop of a department store located just left of the Rialto Bridge, overwhelming awe engulfed as the view of Venice spread out for miles. As far as the eye could see, rustic red tiled roofs were scattered across the skyline and, on the ground, canals weaved their way through the streets. People strolled around eating ice creams whilst gondolas drifted seamlessly across the water.

The gondoliers worked in flawless harmony, guiding through narrow caverns between built up houses as the water lapped at the boat and the ripples undulated across the surface. We found the journey tranquil and relaxed, a perfect way to appreciate the city and its renowned canal roads.

As the rain started to fall and lightning lit up the sky as it hit the water, we ran, laughing, back to the water ferry; very happy to have spent such a lovely few days in such a wonderful city in Italy.