Page:Three Years in Europe.djvu/122

94 Como in Italy is a fine town situated on a fine lake. On our way we had passed by the lake of Lugano which is also a pretty lake. A good bath in the lake of Como in the afternoon we reached the place, and a hearty dinner which followed, made us quite forget the toil of the preceding night's travelling. From Como we went to Milan and saw the fine cathedral, built entirely of white marble, and which, in the richness of carvings and beauty of decorations is superior to all other cathedrals in Europe.

From Milan we went to Venice. A wonderful town Venice is as you can very well imagine, with the sea ebbing and flowing through her streets, with her splendid churches and cathedrals, princely domes and cupolas, and the associations of a thousand years lingering about her decayed palaces. A lovely place this queen of the sea, this wreck of an ancient and mighty republic!

We stopped three days in Venice and saw every thing worth seeing in that place. The St. Mark's place, is the centre of Venice. We saw the Doges palace, and a princely palace it is, with large marble halls and stairs and spacious apartments. The Council room is a noble hall filled with fine pictures, and containing the table and chairs of state where sate the doges of Venice, swaying