When arriving in this volumetric space from the many narrow access ways, there is an unmistakable sense that one has "arrived," in both the literal and metaphorical sense of the word. To construct a simile, having arrived at Piazza San Marco is much like the fantasy image of having "arrived at the heart of regal society after moving through the protected layers of palatial entry, up the grand stair, and down the gilded vaulted hallway terminated by great double doors that are swept open by twin doormen to reveal, in the brilliance of ten thousand candles and the ebullience of five hundred seductive voices, the immense ballroom of one's destination.