It's the Boats...and the People

It's no secret that I'm crazy about gondolas.I'm also pretty nuts for Venetian rowing, other Venetian boats, and of course Venice and the Veneto.
But today I was reminded of another thing I love - the people.
Today I spent time on the phone with Joe Gibbons of Gondola di Venezia
in Boston; we talk regularly and I always enjoy catching up with him.
I chatted for a while with a gondolier friend of mine - Fred in Texas;
we talk a couple times a week.
Tim of Sunset Gondola,
John of Gondola Romantica in Minnesota,
Sean of The Gondola Company in Coronado,
and Mike in New Jersey,
These are guys I enjoy talking to on a regular basis.
And then there are gondola friends on Facebook.
I regularly post photos from guys like Nereo, Tamas, and Chris Clarke.

Sure, I love the boats, but the people are terrific too, and there are many more names I could mention here.
Gondola people are great.

This afternoon I was visited by Marie of "Italy to Los Angeles and Back" and her husband Roberto - a carreer gondolier in Venice.
We share a common love of many things mentioned above, and while this was the first time we met face-to-face, they were like family.

Thanks for reading, my friends.