Today we talk about Gondole!!

Ok today topic is Gondola, the black boat that is typical of Venice.
The Gondola and the Gondoliers are part of the mythology of Venice. It is a tradition passed by from fathers to sons, and it is still a very male art/job.
It's narrow and flat shape is perfectly adapted to travel along the narrow and shallow rivers and canals of Venice. They were used as means of transport but now a days they are mainly an attraction and therefore  a trip on  them is an essential part of the Venetian experience. In fact a journey on them give the tourists a different view of the city, passing by grand palatial homes using a form of transport dated back over 1.000 years. The average cost of  a journey is about 80 euros daytime.

The traditional dress of the gondolier is a striped vest, black trousers and a beribboned straw hat, he usually stands upright at the back of the gondola and he pushes a oar to row the boat in the direction he is facing, he also sings local songs for the tourists' pleasure. The oar stands on a thing called the Rowblock (forcola in italian) it gives the possibility to hold the oar in eight  different positions so the gondolier can steer the boat more easily.
The passsengers sit  on low stools in the center of the boat usually facing forward and giving their back to the gondolier.
The gondolas are hand crafted using techniques from the 1880s, it takes almost a year to build a gondola, nine type of wood are used to  build it: walnut, oak, mahogany, fir, larch, lime, cherry, beech and elm. It's cost is around 40.000 euros.
The shape of the gondola is asymmetrical to counteract the force of the oar. Without the curve on the left hand side  the boat will go round in circles.

Gondolas were used for many different occasion such as funeral, wedding, special cerimonies, some are still used now a days  in races and parades ( like "la vogata del silenzio").
The gondola is rappresented in many  the paintings like the ones of  Canaletto : "Return of the Bucintoro to the Molo on Ascension Day"  "The Grand Canal and the Church of the Salute" , 19 of the paintings of Canaletto are displayed today at the Wallace Collection Museum in London, in fact this type of boat used to be an inspiration for many writers, artists and musicians.

Hope you enjoyed todays' information, post us a comment if you like  and speak you soon.

The Carnival 2011

Another Carnival has left, the "calli" are full of Coriandoli ....pieces of coloured paper that people throw in the air  ( similar to confetti) , the shops are taking down all of the decorations, people are putting away their fantastic customes....that will be used again next year, San Marco square is getting a clean up, and the stage is almost gone!!! 


Another Carnival has gone!!
But we take this occasion to thanks all of our customers  that arrived in hundreds to celebrate this special event in this fantastic city:Venice.


To start with let's talk about the Carnival itself. 
This vibrant  and playful festival usually preceds the abstinence of Lent ( the period before Easter). Its a period  of time where people dresses with Masks and costumes, where, back in the days, social divisions were dissolved, participants played practical jokes and anything goes.
This tradition began in the 11th century but it reached  the peak of its popularity in the 18th century. unfortunatelly too much industrialization took over the leisure time and let the festival to a long and sad decline until 1979 when it was succesfully revived.


The main occasions that are celebrated, apart from masks and costumes, and that  need to be pointed out are:

Il volo della colombina : 
The traditional  Flight of the Dove started in 1500 when an acrobat turkish that, from a boat, managed to reach the bell tower of the Basilica of San Marco walking on a rope. On the way back instead he reached the balcony  of the Doge and gave his greetings to him. This event was so that the  organizers and the public decided to add it in the  official celebrations of the Carnival of Venice.






Il ballo del Doge:  Il ballo del doge  by Monica Cesarato, Official website of this event.












La vogata del silenzio:
During the last night  of the Carnival a  closing ceremony is held: "the row of the silence". Several boats, rowing strictly, marched along the Grand Canal as they glide silently around the buildings are lit by hundreds of candles. Thousands of curious tourists watched from the banks  the passage of boats, observing in silence. 

Theatre Fenice: Il ballo della Cavalchina: a traditional event held in this amazing theatre especially for the Carnival season














Many more are the events held in Venice during the Carnival season so be sure to check out our fan page on Facebook to have all the latest information for this event, for next year of course!!!!

If you have been to the Carnival and have pictures that you like to share with us please feeel free to post them on the comment section, or if you have any thing to say about Venice we are here to listen!!

Happy Carnival to you all!