

Thanks for the photos John.
I've got to get out there and see those sandoli.
Here's another boring shot of the bow.
This job sucks, anyone wanna trade me, I sure would love working in a drab gray cubicle somewhere, maybe under flourescent lights with processed air to breathe.
Rowing in the wind is always a great way to get a workout, but it also inspires creative thinking. Gondoliers find themselves contemplating corners and canals in new ways. The direction of the wind forces them to take new approaches to waterways they've rowed hundreds of times. Such was my cruise today.
I loved it. Dug deep with each stroke and couldn't stop smiling.
I did many things today to celebrate, but taking the Ferraro family out in the wind was one of my favorites.
Here you see the boat moored along with other traditional Venetian boats.
Flags add to the festive feel.
Anyone who likes Venetian boats half as much as I do should enjoy the above photo.
The boat is owned by a club known as Leobisso da Mojan. Nereo contacted them and reported back:
"This evening I got an answer from the Leobisso guys. The boat is called "batelota" or "batela buranella". She was built by Maestro Mario Busato in Mogliano Veneto near Treviso in 1987 (or so).
She's 12.50 meters long and can be rowed by up to ten oarsmen."
Bravo Nereo! Thanks for the info.
Next time I'm out there, we should see if we can grab two spots on that boat with the Leobisso guys.
The legendary Bepi Suste was seen on February 14th in costume for the Regata di Carnevale.
Nereo caught up with him and some of his stundents from Voga e Para - the rowing club he founded on his island home of Burano.
The Voga e Para club is known for their impressive rowing program for kids, in fact I published a post back in October of 2008 about them entitled The Little Fish.
Here in the US we associate Valentine's Day with romance, but in Venice they also have a costumed regata. Nereo Zane has put up a series of great and humorous photos taken of regata participants this year.
Take a look at his post entitled Regata di Carnevale.