There are sleek, black gondolas floating in the canals, violinists serenading diners in small, romantic restaurants in dimly-lit alleyways, flower vendors selling long-stemmed roses on cobbled squares, and crumbling, photogenic medieval palaces seemingly sinking beneath the weight of all that gilded art. And if you come in late Feb, you can don one of those iconic Venetian masks and join the revelers in the streets and even at the masquerade balls at the Carnevale.