Travel Theme: Secret Places

Ailsa over at Where's My Backpack? runs a weekly travel theme on her blog.  I'm new to her stuff but really enjoy not only what she writes, but what her readers contribute.  It's an incredibly fun and often breathtakingly beautiful page.This week's travel theme is "secret places".  As I still have Venice    on the brain--which I'm thinking I should research as a legitimate medical condition, because doctor, I get no relief--I immediately thought of the Venetian streets.  See, here's the thing about Venice...the Grand Canal and the several twisty-turny and poorly-defined "blocks" that flank the Grand Canal, are jam-packed with people and shops and cafes and music and you'd be hard pressed to find a secret place if your life depended on it.  But perseverance pays off.  Walk a little bit further in, wander away from the noise and the crowds, and you'll find a deserted Venice, one with empty streets and dark alleys and mysterious shadows.  Wander that way at night and the boats get ghostly in the moonlight.  Pay a little attention and you'll find the abandoned gates of former gondola garages that are sinking with the city.  Feast your eyes, and let your imagination tell you story about what goes on in these quiet streets.What places spark your imagination?