Like Venice, Chioggia is built on wooden piles in the marshy Venetian Lagoon and, because of its canals and bridges, it is often called “Little Venice.” There were fewer canals and fewer bridges in Chioggia, but the city was definitely reminiscent of Venice.

Along this canal, you can see decorative laundry hanging outside the windows of one home, just like in Croatia.

Ted and I spent over two hours walking around Chioggia.  It was about a mile from our ship, but it was a pretty walk and even included a bridge over a canal.  There were lots of bicyclists, families, and tourists doing the same thing we were doing:  enjoying a relaxing day in a charming city.

The main street was a typical main street with shops, cafés, pharmacies, etc.  We saw this pretty flower shop and were surprised to learn that all the flowers sold here are artificial, because they looked so real.

About a half-mile stretch of the main street was dedicated to cafés on one side, with shops on the opposite side. This must be a safe city. There are two bicycles parked in front of one of the cafés and they are not in a bike rack, they are not locked in any way, and no one is sitting immediately beside them to watch them.

Maybe these cafés didn’t fit on the main street.  They were around the corner on a side street. FYI, “No bici” means “no bicycles,” of which there were many in the city.

The city dock for small watercraft was at the end of the main street.  The dock was also an entrance from the Venetian lagoon to the city canals.  About a block inland from the dock, there was a bridge over the entrance canal and there were benches on the bridge.  Ted and I just sat there for awhile, talking with each other, and enjoying the beautiful weather and the views of Chioggia.