Because of a long run, and pregnancy and sheer vacation exhaustion, when we all left the house to go out tourist-ing for the day, I was not feeling it. I was tired and grumpy and I couldn't seem to muster any enthusiasm, even though I'd dreamed of seeing Venice for my adult life. The prospect of herding the four kids around another city on another hot day felt overwhelming and I wanted to go back to bed. But I kept my bad attitude to myself, we found some tasty pastries for breakfast, and gradually my spirits lifted.
Our first stop was Rialto market, where we ate some delicious fresh fruit. Then we just walked the streets of Venice. Venice is a city made up of hundreds of tiny islands, all connected with hundreds of small footbridges. (We decided it would be a nightmare to have a stroller in Venice.) We walked to Piazza San Marco and just tried to appreciate the amazing architecture, but didn't want to wait in any lines to tour any of the buildings inside.