The winding streets that meander alongside canals filled with Gondolier boats and couples enamored by the beauty of the city’s romantic landscape gives one ample reason to mingle and get lost in the enchanting city of Venice. Everywhere you look there are charming gondolier boat drivers adorned in black and white stripes rowing tirelessly down the canals while serenading the ears of onlookers. There were even people embellished in ornate Romanesque garments in hues of iridescent gold and deep ruby reds with authentic venetian masks, typical of the Carnevele festival in Venice, to appease the enthusiastic tourists.
The beautifully gothic cathedrals and colonnades infused with 16th century Baroque style make up the architecture of all of the buildings in the city. The way the streets would twist and turn into hidden nooks buried deep within the city definitely caused me and some of the other NC State students on the trip to get lost a time or two. The first day we were there we got to visit a Venetian glass factory and watch how some of the most beautiful pieces of glass, from huge chandeliers and vases, to earrings and necklaces are made from the art of glass blowing. 
The ancient Venetian city is unlike any place I have ever traveled in the world, perhaps because of the way in which it was built. I don’t know if many people are aware of just how much of an architectural marvel the city’s foundations are but it is suspected that much of Venice will be covered in water in the next 40 years. According to our quirky tour guide on our first day there, the city of Venice is an artificial island built in the middle of a marshy lagoon. Early Venetians piled wood atop a mud bank that eventually petrified and turned into a bed of rock in which people were able to build homes and churches on top of. Today this ancient city is struggling to preserve its foundations from the dismal fate of sinking into the depths of the marshy lagoon it rests on. 
In fact, one evening we were carelessly strolling around the main plaza of Venice eating our nightly fill of creamy gelato while listening to the soothing sounds of jazz music when we noticed water seeping up through the cracks of the streets. Within a couple of hours there seemed to be huge puddles of water blanketing the plaza—it was quite a sight to see. After exploring the beautiful panorama of the city we decided to venture to the Scuola Grande dei Camini for an authentic Venetian Opera. Even though the show was completely in Italian and I couldn’t understand a single syllable, the music was captivating and the performance of the main opera singer allowed one to enjoy the show while using your own imagination to interpret the storyline. The charming city of Venice concluded the free weekend trips for my study abroad program at NC State. With only a couple days left in the city of Florence I am already dreading having to leave this fascinating country I have called my home for the past month. What am I to do without warm, flaky pastries, wine that’s typically cheaper than water, creamy gelato, beautiful Romanesque style churches and buildings on every corner, beautiful people adorned in the latest European fashion, and the satisfaction of having no sense of urgency in the world?
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