Give me a canvas, and I'll return you a fairy-tale dream

Speaking of Venice in Italy, it's a place I've always wanted to visit... However, this time I went to a place known as the 'Venice of the North', located in the beautiful water town of Giethoorn in the province of Overijssel, Netherlands. Giethoorn is called the Venice of the North because the entire village is surrounded by numerous waterways, just like Venice, so to enter, one must rely on boating or walking, as vehicles are prohibited. Residents usually travel by boat or country lanes. The boat motors are noiseless, so the whole town is very peaceful and serene. On my first day here, I chose not to take a boat tour because this exquisitely beautiful village must be explored on foot to truly appreciate every detail. Walking through the village was like watching a VR movie, exploring deep into the village and experiencing details that the average tourist does not see, and each detail was astonishing. Almost every house here is waterfront, with the canals lined with exquisite fairy-tale cottages. The roofs of the houses are made of reeds, which are warm in winter, cool in summer, and durable. It is said that the reason for this roofing method is that in the past, people were poor and could not afford bricks and tiles, so they used reeds instead. The houses along the canals each seem like a secret garden, but these gardens are not completely open. Standing on the riverbank, boating through the canals, one can see yards full of flowers and lush green grass everywhere. Here, without the hustle and bustle of modern life, there is only comfort and tranquility. Perhaps it is this tranquility and the fairy-tale-like atmosphere that makes the animals here very spiritual. The villagers do not live lazily; on the contrary, they live a life of refinement, with every household keeping their yard perfectly tidy and comfortable. However, this superficial beauty gradually changes after nightfall. It is said that the majority of the people in the village are tourists from other places, and the number of actual residents or workers is not very large. We arrived in Giethoorn on a weekday afternoon, so by the time we had dinner in the village and walked to the river, there were not many people left. The paths that were crowded just a few hours ago suddenly became empty. The streetlights in the village were lit, but not all windows had light shining through them. So, although it is said that the few hotels in the town are actually fully booked, it seems that not many people actually stay overnight in the town. Compared to the bustling scene in the afternoon, Giethoorn at night actually seems a bit deserted. The tranquility of Giethoorn may be unbearable if one stays too long, but having seen and experienced its beauty, it becomes a memory that was once part of life.