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.

What a wonderful place Pentidattilo had been, but then plastic arrived and pretty much ruined everything.

Rossella feels that it's her mission to show people this marvelous place. She dedicates part of her home to guests from all over the world.

Rossella talks about why she likes Pentidattilo so much, and imagines what it would have been like when it was populated by families. She has managed to preserve the magic of the place, where time has stood still.

Writer and scholar Fulvio Benelli shows us a part of Rome that tourists always flock to: Piazza Navona. But he tells us the fascinating story of how it came to be.