Piazza San Marco

The Piazza's history goes back as far as the early 9th century, when relics of St. Mark were stolen from Alexandria, Egypt. The first iteration of St. Mark's Church dates back to the 9th century as well, but the current structure of the church dates back to the early 11th century. Most of the decorative effects were added in later centuries.

The lines were so long for St. Mark's Basilica that we didn't get to go inside, but we hope to do so in our next trip to Venice. In lieu of waiting in line, we indulged in some tasty Italian gelato and explored some other buildings. We also photographed the Bell Tower (initially built in the 9th century, assuming its current form in the 16th century and rebuilt after the 1902 earthquake) and the Piazzetta—with Doge's Palace and St. Mark's clock tower.Read more