May 12, 2015: Did you know that Venice has 426 Gondola’s that operate the canal water tours that make this “one in a world” setting so famous—and they are all operated by one company! Each Gondolier his own character, from tour guide to singer to musician – and the job is usually handed down within the family.
Venice has over 40 miles of canals, the best being the tiny canals that run through and along the back streets, many being one way – well it is Italy so that doesn’t really matter or hold water! Canals can be as deep as 25 feet and as shallow as 2 feet. Venice, they say, is over 800 years old and consists of over 400 islands – the most popular outside of Venice being Murano, world famous for its hand made blown glass. Some of the more spectacular pieces can cost hundreds of thousands’ of dollars and are considered artwork.
Venice can be exhilarating and confusing at the same time. Locals, most of whom can’t afford to live there, pretend not to speak much English, or any other language for that matter. It has some great places to dine and snack but not in or around St. Marks. And the farther away you find accommodations from St. Marks the more reasonable your room rate will be – albeit very small but who cares, you shouldn’t be in your room anyway!!!
