A day in Venice: Tourism and tranquility

Good morning, Venice. It's 8 a.m. and 60,000 Venetians are enjoying their magnificent city while they still can. In less than one hour, the onslaught of tourists will begin. Venice - a fairytale city in the Adriatic. The city was built on stilts well over a thousand years ago and is a true marvel. It's a labyrinth of 3,000 narrow alleys and 177 canals.

On the Grand Canal, the morning rush hour has begun. Workers reach the island from the mainland by way of a water taxi, or vaporetto. The Venetians take the traghetto, a gondola, to the other shore. On to the Rialto, for many centuries Venice's business center, and it remains the city's main market to this day.

It's artichoke season. Thousands are peeled every day - 15 for €6. Most things here are from the local region and the prices are affordable, perhaps because tourists are more interested in taking photos than buying. A few bridges and alleys further and we arrive at St Mark's Square. Many millions of visitors stroll through the piazza here every year, and today is no exception.

Venice's tranquil side starts a few bridges on. One of the many enchanted, yet rarely seen corners of Venice - 10,000 grand palazzi, countless old rustic buildings. It'll set you back half a million euros for a 50-square-meter one-bedroom apartment.

Gondolas have been gliding along Venice's canals for over 1,000 years, more recently accompanied by German and French popular music imported with the tourists. Unwed gondoliers are sought after. They're said to earn over €5,000 a month, tax free. Venice - tourists can experience the city's magnificent beauty during the day, but its true soul is often only revealed in the evenings and mornings, when the droves of tourists are tucked away in their hotels.