Art of gondoliering

"If there is ever a place you want to experience at water level, it's Venice," says Ed Grenby in the Sunday Times. And you can take the helm yourself on a two-hour gondola lesson at the Canottieri Giudecca rowing school. Although the basics of gondoliering might sound simple – "it's pretty much jumped-up rowing" – doing it right is tricky, not least because "you have to do it standing up". "Gondolas are a lot wobblier than, say, punts", and standing on the

prow will leave you "shaking like early Elvis". Once you grasp the concept of rotating the oar without breaking the water, you might even be "confident enough to look up" as you glide along. But don't expect to see all the city's sights during your lesson: the school's slipways overlook the Lido, rather than the "goddess-graceful Venetian skyline" surrounding St Mark's Square. So after all that practice, you might want to sit back and let a professional do the hard work for you. Canottieri Giudecca (+39 041 528 74 09) has two-hour lessons costing £236.