Hangzhou Global Tour: Day 19

Today we had an opportunity to build tourism relations with the Vice Mayor of Venice, Luciana Colle, and her staff. The city government headquarters are near the Grand Canal, close to the Rialto Bridge. The facility itself was so wonderful, with many old pieces of art and murals adorning the walls of city hall. Both Venice representatives, as well as our team, shared stories and commonalities between the city of Venice and Hangzhou. We then exchanged gifts and took a number of photos for local journalists.

Next, we boarded a series of Gondolas, which is one of the most iconic symbols of Venice and is pretty much a rite of passage when visiting. Since we were already near the Grand Canal, this is where our tour would begin; however, it wasn’t long before we entered a narrow and slightly more secluded area—this is where Domenick broke out his guitar and began strumming a few chords and started singing. Apparently, playing a guitar or other instruments is prohibited on gondolas for some reason, however we were able to obtain special permission from the vice-mayor for filming purposes. The Grand Canal of Venice is somewhat reminiscent of the Grand Canal we floated down in Hangzhou, however the one in China is much, much older—parts of which date back to the 5^th Century B.C.

That afternoon we had a bit of free time to explore Venice, which for the second time while in this enchanting city, I got myself lost. I have a pretty good sense of direction, but Venice would even give the great Spanish explorer Ferdinand Magellan a bit of trouble.

Tomorrow we head to the most colorful place in Venice, the island of Burano, which is also famous for its lace, so please stay tuned. In the meantime, click here in case you missed yesterday’s update, or, click here to read the next.

Mike Shubic

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