The Charm of Venice

Venice offers a unique travel experience with plenty of charm

Apr.9

You'll notice something missing as soon as you arrive in Venice — traffic noise! So, as you walk down the narrow streets, you only have to dodge people. And there are a lot of them! About 19 million tourists a year go to Venice for the romantic atmosphere, the art and the food.

Seeing Venice on foot is best. You can walk across the city in about an hour, and you definitely should. Since the most important site is the city itself, take your time. Stroll along the narrow streets or linger over a meal to soak up the feeling of the city.

Look around St.Mark's Square(Piazza San Marco) first. For years, Venice was Europe's wealthiest city, and this square was the city's heart. Admire buildings such as St.Mark's Basilica and the Doge's Palace. Before going inside them to see the superb art treasures, pause to feed the square's famous pigeons, or enjoy a cappuccino at one of the cafés.

Word Bank:

Dodge (v.) 閃避
Jack dodged cars and bicycles as he raced across the street.

Stroll (v.) 散步；閑逛
Jane and Albert took their strolling through the mall.

Linger (v.) 慢慢進行（某事）；磨蹭地做……
It's nice to linger over a cup of coffee after dinner for an hour or so.

Superb (adj.) 一流的
You can see superb examples of architecture in London and Paris.

Apr.10

While walking along the streets is fun, you can get around much easier on the city's many canals. As you cruise down the Grand Canal, Venice's main "street", in a vaporetto or water taxi, you'll pass under the Rialto Bridge, a famous Venetian landmark. Get off the water taxi and walk across the bridge. Enjoy the view and the many shops that line the bridge.

In those shops, you'll likely see lots of the glass that Venice is famous for. To see glass-making demonstrations, visit the tiny island of Murano. In 1291 all glassmakers in Venice had to move to Murano because their foundries endangered the city's many wooden buildings. While on Murano, don't forget to buy some glass as a souvenir.

No matter how long you're in Venice, you'll find an abundance of things to see and do. Museums, churches and the city's delicious seafood all deserve attention. And last but not least, take a romantic, relaxing gondola ride through the canals at night. You can then truly experience the charm of Venice.

Word Bank:

Canal (n.) 運河
Kevin and his parents took a boat through the canals of Amsterdam.

Cruise (v.) 航行
The ship cruised up the coast, stopping at several interesting spots.

Endanger (v.) 危及；危害
Pollution endangers our health. We need to clean up our environment.

Abundance (n.) 大量；豐盛
Jeff got hungrier and hungrier looking at the abundance of food on the buffet.

More Information

soak up (idom) 盡情享受
basilica (n.) 大教堂
foundry (n.) 鑄造廠
gondola (n.) 貢多拉平底船

Usage Tip

Enjoy the view and the many shops that line the bridge.

line 在本句相當特別，它當動詞用！其實還有一些類似的有趣例子喔！

dot -> The night sky is dotted with twinkling stars.
circle -> The jet was circling in the air.

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