Naysayers be damned, Venice is absolutely beautiful. Where else do you take a boat from the airport to your hotel, ride a gondola down narrow canals?

We kicked off our day at The Brunch Cafe – an amazing little breakfast spot down a back alley owned and operated by Filipinos!! It was European meets Asian cuisine, who knew? We dined on fluffy Japanese style pancakes and Bao Buns. It was delicious, the kids also devoured their mango smoothies. So fresh and delicious!

We cruised down many a narrow alley, filled with Murano glass, leather bags, pastries, and marzipan figures. I grabbed a new pair of locally made sunglasses and also stopped for a local favors, a Bellini!

Excitedly, we met up with the rest of our family in Saint Mark’s Square and got a brief respite from the heat amid the Byzantine styled church that is covered in gold from the travels of the merchants of Venice. And when in Venice, you take a gondola ride, even if the price is high, and your Nonna uses her Italian mastery to get the gondoliers to bring their price way down!

Strolling along stone paths, riding the vaporetti, feeling the wind blow through your hair, it’s simply beautiful and wonderfully unique.

We wrapped up our evening at what was claimed to be the best gelato in the world, Gelati Nico. . . maybe, but you can’t beat the location and the view!

We wrapped up our time by wandering around the canals and taking our breakfast on the Grand Canal, the people watching was epic and the croissants divine. On to Milano!