Snapshots of the Campanile in Venice, Italy

Visiting The Campanile in Venice, Italy

When you’re walking in dream-like Venice, there is not a single moment in which you do not want to snap a photo.  Every doorway and window.  Each little bridge or canal.

Venice is breathtaking at every turn.

You have to force yourself out from behind your camera to take it in a little deeper.

I don’t think you can mess up a trip to this city.  All you need to do to be struck by its beauty is to show up.

That being said, on my first magical visit to Venice, I did not ascend the bell tower in St. Mark’s square, The Campanile, from which, I believe, you can see the Best View In Venice.

On my second visit with my sweet daughter, Mary Polly, we arrived at the tower by boat early in the morning.  (The next best view of Venice might have to be from the front of a boat.)

The tower opened at 9am, at which time there was no line to ride the elevator to the top and take in the 360 degree views of Venice.

And Wow. Just WOW.

The lagoon, the Grand Canal, the gondolas, the square below and the city stretched out before us until we could even see our cruise ship parked at the distant edge.

People, it was AMAZING!

It had rained the night before and the square was filling up with water.  We watched from above as little worker bees set out the planks for people to walk through the square.

I also absolutely loved seeing San Marco’s domes (St. Mark’s Cathedral) from above.

There are five bells, and one still rings on the hour, but the days events, such as lunch or quitting time used to be marked by certain bell chimes.  I love the idea of a day marked by the ringing of ancient bells.  Not school buzzer bells, but great, deep musical sounds that call you to the next part of your day.

The tower is up Oh-So-High, so I was glad for these little bars over the windows, which would make it less scary to take a little one to the top, but they were plenty open enough for your camera, which is handy since you want a shot from every possibly angle.

After a while we made our way back down to the bottom and wandered on the planks in St. Mark’s Square (Piazza San Marco).  Everyone was going somewhere, but Mary Polly and I just stood around watching people make their way around and through the flooding.

An elevated line was gathering on the planks outside San Marco, and just as many people were just looking for a dry spot from which to take a photo.

The water seemed to keep the usual venders from braving the square, which made for a wonderfully empty space.

Eventually, you come to the end of the planks though, so we pulled off our shoes and waded through the water to our next stop.

On our second day in Venice, Mary Polly and I mostly wandered.

And wandered.

In and out of churches and gelato stands.

But our favorite part of the day was this fun morning at the top of The Companile, finished by wading through the square.  Such sweet memories!

In the fall of 2012, I took a Mediterranean Cruise with my daughter! It was the trip of a lifetime! We called it #Eurocruisazy! Read about more of our adventures here!