This view of March 13, 2004 shows Mars nearing the end of its epic 2003 opposition apparition, while Venus is heading toward its first transit since the late 1800's in June.  We can see Venus is well north of the ecliptic and still gaining in latitude leading up to its passage south of the Pleiades on April 3, 2004.  Venus is magnitude -4.27 and Mars is +1.25 this evening.  Unannotated image.