Artist Christo walks on water with The Floating Piers on Italian lake

Long-awaited installation to be rural attraction this summer

It's taken nearly 2,000 years, but regular folks will soon get to feel what it is like to walk on water thanks to a project by the artist Christo, who may or may not have had his namesake in mind when envisioning his latest project: The Floating Piers.

"Any interpretation is legitimate," Christo, 80, allowed graciously in an interview Tuesday with The Associated Press at the picturesque Lake Iseo in northern Italy where his 23rd large-scale installation is just a week and a half from opening.