[Oops!
Meant to post this before the other one. My bad :P ]

-the water is still murky but it is a pretty blue murky (yeah...I didn't realize that was possible either)
-it is all foot-traffic or boat-traffic. There are absolutely no cars inside the actual city and I nevertheless saw a single bike either. Not sure if people realized biking was impractical in such tight and crowded streets or if there is an actual law against it.
-cuttle fish (a Venetian speciality) is pretty good. It is similar to calamari in taste.
-One euro fried calamari is probably not a good purchase...I am kind of surprised I did my get sick :P
-flower sellers are the most persistent of all the street vendors because it is such a romantic city...be firm and almost stern with your "No."
-gelato is better in Florence
-I found the people to be nicer in Venice than Rome or Florence, but that is from personal experience only. Others in the group said that the Venetians were the rudest people they had encountered on the trip thus far but...they are the same people who could use some subtlety training ;)