jempma

Before our trip to Venice in May, we did "the research" about gondola rides and we pretty much felt like it was just going to be a rip-off and that it would never measure up to what our imagination could create. BOY WAS I WRONG. One sunny and warm May day, while wandering around behind St. Marks, we were approached by many gondoliers who wanted to take us for a ride, but we stuck to our guns. It just didn't feel right. We felt like we were being hustled. We would walk over canals that were bumper to bumper gondolas (literally)some with Tenors going full blast! Not for me. As we continued our walk a young gondolier was sitting alone and asked us in broken english if he could take us for a ride. He seemed sweet. My husband speaks Italian. Good chemistry. First I said no but he persisted and agreed to take us on his "long" ride for his short price. (yeah, right, I thought)But he did just that. Kept us out for well over an hour and charged us 60 Euros. (We have him a very nice tip when it was all over). Asked us where we wanted to go and we said "away from the crowds". He took us across the Grande Canal so we could experience it from the gondola - and then into the little "lanes" of Venice. It was gorgeous! We even passed a school where someone was playing a cello! It was echoing off all the little buildings. I felt like I was in a movie! Would have been worth much more. Sometimes he would sing quietly (lovely) and ask my husband, in Italian, if I was happy I wish I had gotten his name, but my advice is - wait for the chemistry