To the average person, the gondola is even more a symbol of Venice than the lion of St. Mark. A Venice without them is unthinkable. But the kitsch factor is something that stops me from truly loving them, and for this a feel a little guilty.
Ten century tradition collides with tourist trap totem.
Old soul and brio meets O Sole Mio.
Somehow, Venetians can reconcile these contradictions. I can understand why they would be reluctant to surrender their patrimony (dating from 1094) to cartoon-level commercial vulgarity. After all, it's only in the last 5-10% or so of Venice's life that gondola transport devolved into the overpriced amusement park ride we see today. Behind the scenes, there's still a (shrinking) cadre of brilliant, passionate "squeraroli" and "remeri" that handcraft each and every gondola in the exact same manner as the generations before it. The physical aspects of a gondola remain as real and gorgeous as they ever were during the Serenissima.
But things have changed around the gondola. It' s got a new and hollow context. Since it holds no transportation value (except the traghetti), it's now simply something to be consumed, like a gelato, and licked off the list of "things you must do in Venice", especially for daytrippers, for whom this will be the first and only visit.
The Comune of Venice laments, and I agree, that so many of Venice's visitors have an excruciatingly superficial view of Venice. Ex-Mayor (and 60's radical philosopher) Massimo Cacciari actually once spearheaded a campaign to discourage tourists from visiting. In this sense, I guess, the idea was to kiss off the crowd for whom the the Piazza, gondola, lunch & mask shop itinerary constituted "doing Venice".
I suppose I'm in danger of capsizing the gondola with deep meaning. It's only a boat, after all, not a vessel for the collapse of Western Civilization. People who ride them are not stupid, mean or vapid. Gondoliers are cool and colorful, and quite serious about what they do. I've been in one (on someone else's dime) a couple times and found the whole thing pleasant.
My only point is this: sometimes subsisting on pre-fab fantasies can blind us to the wonder of the reality in front of us. And there's no worse place to be blind then in Venice.
I got engaged on one this summer in - Boston, Mass. I look at the gondola as a sign of the old Venice that must be preserved. How about giving the Grand Canal back to the gondolas? Perhaps the canals will clean up a bit and the tides will do a little less damage.
Posted by: Kurt | October 27, 2003 at 11:53 AM
Absolutely beautiful!
Posted by: hanimant patio furniture | May 04, 2011 at 11:51 PM