We're in Assisi, where, during some excavations, a domus was discovered. It's clear it belonged to a wealthy family because of the richness of the wall and floor decorations, and might even have been the home of the poet Propertius.

Parking is a problem in medieval hilltop towns and cities (especially those attractive to tourists), so one solution is to build an elevator to get from parking further down the hill, up to the center of town. But, you never know what you are going to find when excavating. In Assisi, they certainly hit the jackpot, right in the center of town: A roman domus.

If you have ever visited Italy, you have probably run across the term pinacoteca describing a picture gallery, and wondered where it came from. You will find out in this video about a room called the "tablinum" in the Assisi domus, discovered because they wanted to build an elevator!

Ancient culture merged with "modern" culture, especially after Constantine created the new capital of the Roman Empire, Constantinople. Near Matera in Basilicata, even caves built into the rock face became churches. The frescoes on those walls are quite stunning.

Marika takes us to Venice where we have a look around through her "eyes." We start out near the Doge's Palace.

Marika shows us a famous bookshop in Venice. It's in a critical position with respect to the water level, so special precautions are taken to protect the books when there are high tides. Fascinating!

In Venice, the concept of "streets" and "roads" is totally different from most other places in Italy, so there are some new words to learn that apply almost exclusively to this wonderful city. Marika does some show and tell to help us get the picture.

Marika takes us to see a special statue, a fish market and two famous bridges.

Even if we have never been to Venice, we all know a gondola when we see one, but let's find out more about this elegant Venetian symbol.

Everyone has heard of St. Mark's Square, but Marika gives us some interesting tidbits of information and then takes us to a see a very special staircase.

Marika takes us to the piazza where Marco Polo supposedly lived. But which house is it? She asks a local. The name of the square is Corte Seconda del Milion. Il Milion is the Italian name of the book, The Travels of Marco Polo.

A short boat ride takes us from Venice to Murano, where they make some of the most beautiful glass in the world.

The Venetian island of Burano is famous for its multi-colored houses and for its lace. It's time to get your camera out, if you haven't already.

The last stop on our trip around Venice is the beautiful, uninhabited island of Torcello. Marika has a few stories to tell about it.

Rossella tells us how she came to be the solitary inhabitant of a beautiful, abandoned village in Calabria, called either Pentedattilo or Pentidattilo.