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Tales of An American Gondolier

The Early Developers of Naples Islands would be smiling today!

Gondolas today near where the Hotel was…. The Canals and Gondolas today! Over 110 years later…. 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…

Two boats, Three Islands and about 1,000 years of history.

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” blindfolded from LBYC to ABYC to…

Behind the Scenes of the Naples Island Boat Parade

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 had the random years of wind,…

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 where few locals, let alone foreigners, are a part of. Gondoliers have been active in Venice for…

Day 4 USA VOGALONGA 2019

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 on the way to the…

Day 3 USA VOGALONGA 2019

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 side of Venezia to the…

Day 2 VOGALONGA 2019

Grand Canal to the Rialto Mercato – Legendary Fish Market 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…

TEAM USA Vogalonga 2019 Day 1

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 landed, and the old familiar…