Venice spreads before me like a dream, conjuring up images of the watery realm from another time, its beauty immortalized by poets over the centuries. I could only imagine how it looked to intrepid seafarers returning from faraway lands to their beloved floating city long ago.
I had a prime spot on the top deck of the barge, a glass of prosecco in my hand. As the vessel cut through the translucent green waters of the Giudecca Canal, I breathed in the lagoon air deeply, feeling the stress of travel melt away.