Venice

Imagine a city where the streets are not made of stone, but of sparkling green water. Instead of cars, you see long, graceful boats called gondolas gliding by, pushed along by singing gondoliers. Colorful buildings with pointy windows and bright roofs look like they are floating right on top of the waves. The only sounds you hear are the gentle lapping of water and happy voices echoing between the houses. I am a magical maze of water and stone, a city built on a dream. I am Venice, the city that floats.

My story began a very, very long time ago. People were looking for a safe home, a place where they could be protected by the water all around them. They found my lagoon, a shallow, watery place, and had a brilliant idea. But how do you build a city on water. They had a secret. They brought millions of long, strong wooden poles and pushed them deep, deep down into the soft mud under the sea. It was like planting a secret forest upside down. On top of these strong wooden legs, they built sturdy platforms and then my beautiful houses, palaces, and churches. It was hard work, but they worked together. People say my official birthday is March 25th, in the year 421. I grew from a small, safe village into a big, important city. A famous explorer named Marco Polo even grew up here. He sailed to faraway lands and came home to share amazing stories about his adventures, making me famous all over the world.

All of my little islands are connected by beautiful stone bridges that arch over the water. My most famous one is the Rialto Bridge, which is always busy with people laughing and watching the boats zip by underneath. For hundreds of years, I have been a place that inspires big dreams. Artists came from everywhere to paint pictures of my shimmering water and colorful sunsets. People from all over the world traveled here to trade wonderful treasures and share amazing ideas. Today, I still love having visitors. People come to ride in my gondolas, get happily lost in my twisting alleyways, and eat yummy gelato. I hope that when they see me, they remember that with a clever idea and great teamwork, you can build something beautiful and strong in the most surprising of places. You just have to dare to dream.