Venice with Bells on by Abby Cheng

"When a man is riding through this desert by night and for some reason -falling asleep or anything else  -he gets separated from his companions and wants to rejoin them, he hears spirit voices talking to him  as if they were his companions, sometimes even calling him by name. Often these voices lure him away  from the path and he never finds it again, and many travelers have got lost and died because of this. 
Sometimes in the night travelers hear a noise like the clatter of a great company of riders away from the  road; if they believe that these are some of their own company and head for the noise, they find  themselves in deep trouble when daylight comes and they realize their mistake. There were some who,  in crossing the desert, have been a host of men coming towards them and, suspecting that they were  robbers, returning, they have gone hopelessly astray....Even by daylight men hear these spirit voices,  and often you fancy you are listening to the strains of many instruments, especially drums, and the clash  of arms. For this reason bands of travelers make a point of keeping very close together. Before they go  to sleep they set up a sign pointing in the direction in which they have to travel, and round the necks of  all their beasts they fasten little bells, so that by listening to the sound they may prevent them from  straying off the path."

---- Marco Polo, Travels

Gothvos stone from Mounts Bay Cornwall placed and photographed in Burano Venice by Abby Cheng

Venice was one of my destinations for my first solo trip. Even though I spent the least time here, it truly became my favourite place I’ve ever visited. 

Actually, from the first moment I arrived in Venice airport, I had no special feelings for this city cos' my luggage wasn’t delivered!. I was told it was impossible to get it that day. Here’s the problem: I wanted to stay here for one night only,  which meant, the entire period I stayed in Venice, would be without any of my belongings… It was ridiculous…and unbelievable! But the best thing I could do was to accept the fact and take a boat to the main island…

However, this wasn’t the only mishap that happened to me... When I noticed there were fewer and fewer people on  the boat after 20mins or so, I realised that I’d taken the wrong boat. It went to the opposite direction… It was nearly 9pm I felt exhausted, and again, unbelievable…. 

Then when I looked outside, I found the scene was astonishingly beautiful. So I turned to make myself enjoy Venice.

 The night time in Venice was quiet and peaceful. It’s a very touristic city, there were always loads of people

 so I didn’t feel unsafe. Instead, I enjoyed it a lot. I was touched when I heard the bell rang in St. Marco square.

 I felt relaxed when I walked around here. People I met were extremely nice and hospitable. I love strolling in this fantastic Floating City. And eventually, I actually felt quite thankful that I didn’t need to worry about my inconvenient huge suitcase. Because of that, I could go to another island (Burano) on the next day. And because of that, I could deeply immerse myself in this scenic place.

I always remember that one of my friends told me ”Every unexpected thing is the most memorable in our trips

.” Thanks to these mishaps l fell in love with Venice. 
So I decided to leave my first Gothvos stone in Venice to mark a time and place where I made and found my true inner peace. 

Abby Cheng 
21 Janurary,2018