Often, but not so often that we take it for granted, Maggie and I have an exceptional experience that yields memories that will stay with us always. Our visit to Venice is one of those times.
Venice itself is a fantastic and utterly unique place. Here you can still feel the presence of the wealthy merchants that ruled a magnificent empire that stretched the length of the Adriatic to the Orient and controlled it all with a vast navy and a network of fortified cities that include Dubrovnik. Canals instead of streets, gondolas instead of cars, and Gothic and Renaissance architecture crowding every canal produce an atmosphere only pictures can adequately describe, so have a look at the dozens of pictures in our gallery to see what I am talking about. But that is not what stands out for me.
Our new friends from the Canottieri Treporti have made our trip unforgettable. As I mentioned, we anchored in front of a beach belonging to this sporting gondola club. It all began when we asked if we could leave our dinghy on their beach while we went to shore. We had asked at the nearby marina but they wanted to charge us 14 euros to leave the dinghy for half a day. After beaching the dinghy, we soon introduced ourselves to some of the members and before we knew it we were touring the boat hangars and drinking wine. Since then one member, Mirco, has been aboard to share some wine and some of his poetry. He even took the girls for a gondola ride. We have also been to his home to meet his wife, Ana, and their two pets Luna and Penelope. We had a lovely outdoor supper that Ana prepared, more poetry by Mirco and we were truly taken by the warmth and friendliness of this beautiful couple.
We connect with people along the way and make a fast friendship not knowing if we will meet again, but we always do hope so, as with Mirco and Ana. Perhaps this winter in Sicily? Quallunque sara sara.
Branko
No comments:
Post a Comment