Venice
Landmark
A city built on water, with canals instead of streets.
Venice stands on more than a hundred small islands in a lagoon. The houses rest on millions of wooden poles driven into the mud. Between them run about 150 canals, crossed by some 400 bridges.
There are no cars. People walk, or take a boat: the bus is a boat, the ambulance is a boat and so is the rubbish truck. For centuries Venice was a rich trading power, which is why it is so full of palaces.
- islands
- 118
- bridges
- 400
- canals
- 150
- 1
The long black boats are called gondolas. They are rowed standing up, with one oar.
- 2
At very high tide the sea floods the squares. Since 2020 movable barriers at the mouths of the lagoon can hold it back.
- 3
The wooden poles do not rot, because under water no air can reach them.
Question 1 of 2
What are the houses of Venice built on?
- Leaning Tower of PisaA bell tower that began to lean while it was still being built.
- Neuschwanstein CastleA fairy-tale castle on a rock in the Bavarian Alps.
- Plitvice LakesSixteen lakes that pour into each other, in the forests of Croatia.
- MatterhornThe pointed peak in the Alps that looks like a pyramid.
It is in Italy.
Read about Italy