Venice is not a city in the normal sense.
It's built in the middle of the Venetian Lagoon, a shallow, marshy, brackish mess at the northern tip of the Adriatic Sea.
118 little islands lashed together by over 400 bridges and more canals than anyone sane has patience to count.
It's the most incredible travel destination in Italy and attracts over 20 million visitors per year.
But how does Venice even stand?
The secret lies under the water.
millions of wooden piles, tree trunks from oak, alder and larch, hammered deep into the mud.
Sounds fragile, right?
But submerged in water, without oxygen, the wood doesn't rot.
Instead, over centuries, the piles petrify into something almost like stone.
