There is perhaps no other European city quite as romantic, as exquisitely beautiful or as enigmatic as Venice. 'La Serenissima' floats on a hundred islets in a crescent-shaped lagoon, ribboned with canals, its labyrinth shadowed with ghosts of the past. This seemingly fragile city was the birthplace and inspiration for some of the greatest artists in history and was also, for a thousand years, the strongest sea-faring and mercantile power in the world. In Strolling Through Venice, John Freely brings Venice - her past and her present - alive. Beginning at Piazza San Marco, Freely guides the reader on a series of carefully planned and unique walks radiating from the iconic Grand Canal into each of the city's sestieri. Through streets and squares, along canals, into churches, galleries, museums and palazzi; every major place of interest that the visitor could hope to see is illuminated. At each spot Freely peels back the layers of history to reveal the stories of Venice. Practical and informative, richly coloured and bursting with history, myth and legend, Strolling Through Venice is the perfect guide for anyone who has fallen under the spell of this most enchanting city.