At last we got in the boat for 2 days in a row. The wind gods said no yesterday but by Friday, all had calmed down. After a big pasta dinner on Thursday, Friday morning turned into a sausage, mozz and gorgonzola Frittata at the House. We had some espresso Read more…
Standard 3 espresso start this morning in the house. Raided the Fridge and a made a frittata from the scraps from last night’s dinner. Sausage, pasta, tomato, gorgonzola and mozzarella. Got the crew together to head to the boat yard to rig our Gondola for racing. Easy Vaporetto to far Read more…
This day is always a great day. Its registration day for the Vogalonga team sign up. Because of the amount of years, I have been doing this, I have some pretty old memories of this day. At my beginning of this tradition, there were no cell phones or internet at Read more…
TEAM USA Vogalonga 2019 Landing in Venezia at Marco Polo always feels like arriving home. It has become my second home in my heart. Though my stay is usually just a week, I have been doing it for more than 35 years, with some years having multiple visits. We just Read more…
ONE OF THE MOST FAMOUS UNIFORMS IN THE WORLD Stripes of the Gondoliers are an important Venetian icon and remind us of a glamorous lifestyle. They represent one of the eldest trades in the city. There is however still a lot of mystery around the gondoliers’ world. It is a world Read more…
THE EARLY DAYS OF THE GONDOLA GETAWAY When I first started the Gondola Getaway, I was still in my youth of 25 years old. I was starting a business but was still surfing and traveling to Mexico as often as possible. We would head to Baja and camp at K38, Read more…
This was our 72nd year of the Naples Improvement association organizing an incredible boat parade here in our own Alamitos Bay and the Canals of Naples Islands. I have personally participated in about 50 of them, 36 of them in a Gondola. It was EPIC once again! We certainly have Read more…
A little History of two locally world famous boats, As I write this I am looking over the bay at the perfect October “Adult” Summer. Air temp Still in the 80’s, Water temp still in the 70’s and the waterways wide open! I could literally sail my “Double Sabot” Read more…
Naples, California — Naples History-Circa 1906 shows Hotel Napoli, a beach resort where guests could arrive by the electric “red car” and stay at the beach some 35 miles from Los Angeles. The image shows a boater in the bay and two Pacific Electric Red Trolley Cars. Read more…
SEASON FOR REFLECTION. A calm night shows the Trees in the Bay at their best. TREES ON THE BAY They aren’t really trees, but they float and they light up, and they’ve expanded far beyond Alamitos Bay. The Trees in the Bay have become a uniquely Long Beach holiday tradition. Read more…