4 x Gondolas

Gondolas are ubiquitous in Venice, and they are popular among tourists. (When Venetians are in a hurry--and have the money, they take motorized taxis.) See this large.

Groups often engage gondolas, sometimes along with entertainment--here a singer in full voice, accompanied by a guitar player. 22 people are along for the ride, if I've counted correctly. A disadvantage of so many gondolas together--they would have to row single file along the smaller, more romantic canals, and so would probably avoid them. Here the gongolieri are not wearing their usual broad-brimmed hats--probably since it's cloudy. Rain was forecast, so the group took a risk arranging this outing--as it turned out, no rain fell :)

The outing of the day was to the Accademia museum, which is partly still under renovation (putting in air conditioning)--but to my memory most rooms and paintings were available. A top-notch collection of Venetian art; I enjoyed especially the large medieval room, the Giovanni Bellini's, and Georgione's Tempest. The latter is strangely allegorical, by an artist who died young and from who fewer than a dozen works are certain to have survived.