Gondolas of the Venice Grand Canal at Sunset

Perfect Moments

It was January on the water, I had a respiratory infection, and the sea air seemd to do me no more good then it did for Gustav von Aschenbach in the novel Death in Venice. I actually spend a good deal of time later this night contemplating if my breathing got worse, how would I get to a doctor…does a water ambulance come and take you to the hospital? Luckily, my problems were run of the mill sick, nothing like the plague, but you can escape that history either when you visit Venice.

All of these problems and dark thoughts one would think could drag down anyone’s spirits, but not me…not in Venice. It is a jewel, one that specifically requires blinders, but even the most amazing gemstones have flaws. The people who built this city undoubtedly understood the sea, its power and majesty. They must have also been a bit mad, but standing on that pier looking at the sunset, I believe we have the same heart.