Venice, Italy

I took my mom to Venice, and the one thing she wanted to do was to take a gondola ride.  I thought it was too expensive and kind of "touristy", but I agreed, and to this day, I am so thankful my mom talked me into it!  It was so interesting seeing the canals from water level, especially the smaller less crowded canals.  It was so quiet because the walls of the canals blocked out the noise from above, so all you heard was the water and the occasional singing for gondoliers!

Fun Facts:

• Gondolas have navigated the 177 canals of Venice since 1094
• Gondoliers must complete 400 hours of training and apprenticeship before being licensed, and only 3-4 new licenses are granted each year
• According to a 16th century law, all gondolas must be painted black.  The reason my design is mostly blue is due to the tarps that are used to cover the gondolas when not in use
  
• 8 different types of wood are used to build a gondola - oak, elm, lime, larch, fir, cherry, walnut and mahogany.  The oar is made of beech
• The hull of the gondola must receive a new coat of varnish every 40 days to protect it from a lagoon pest that eats into wood