Countdown to Christmas - Italian style - December 20

photo courtesy www.newford.org.uk


Day 20 (venti)!

Believe it or not, I selected each of the Advent Calendars I was going to feature on these blogs way back on December 1. I chose the calendars, and assigned them each to a day of the month.  I got a huge chuckle today when I opened the file for today's blog and took a look at this calendar, because what is behind door number 20 is the annual Babbo Natale Regata in Venice!

How perfect is that! Babbo's for the Babbo Natale Regata.  What a great coincidence.

The Babbo Natale Regata is one of my favorite events of the season in Venice.

For the last several years, on the last saturday before Christmas, the city holds a special regata on the Grand Canal.  The requirement for anyone rowing in the regata, either as a competitor or one of the boats in the corteo (parade) is that everyone must wear a Santa Claus (Babbo Natale) costume. I

Usually, I take up a spot near San Zaccaria vaporetto stop to watch all the Santas rowing. This year, I got to don one of those fantastic costumes myself!  The Pink Lionesses in Venice (of which I am now a member), suited up at the Bucintoro rowing club along the Zattere.

 Here we are waiting to get into the dragonboat ( our sleigh for today's regata)

 Loading up all the Babbe (lady Babbo Natale's) into the boat

                    100 Babbos (technically that would be Babbi) rowing down the Grand Canal on a                                                                  beautiful sunny December morning.

Even the boats are decorated!

We've all arrived at Ca'Foscari.  A very happy bunch of Babbi !

Festive boats!

                                        Buon Natale!