gondolier

It opened July 4, 1905, and it’s a delight to imagine: arcades for strolling, canals with arched bridges, gondolas and gondoliers.

He relates on a personal level to a gondolier whose son will eventually take over his business.

“You need to talk a lot if you want to be a gondolier,” he said.

“There is no one better than a gondolier to represent the city’s traditions,” he said.

Nearly 300 acres of marshland, 15 miles west of Los Angeles, were transformed into a homage to Venice, Italy, complete with dredged canals and imported gondoliers.