Tiny Adventures: The Venice Canals Holiday Boat Parade

Ever since we moved to the canals, we’ve been attending the annual holiday boat parade, which is my favorite neighborhood event of the year.

In the past, we’ve decorated bridges for the occasion, and in recent years we’ve begun participating in the parade from within our canoe. 

This year we didn’t dress a bridge, but we did reuse two oversized peace sign wreaths (made of vines) we had on-hand.

Adam joined the wreaths to the front and rear of the canoe with the gripping poles from our over-the-table iron rod, and added two strands of rechargeable battery-operated twinkle lights. They were sweet and simple. (One sign eventually toppled over in the strong wind, but that provided us with a better view anyway!)

The boat parade is a charmingly homespun affair, as there are no motors allowed on these waterways and the collective mood is more of the attraction than the actual floats.

That’s one of the things I love so much about this event. It’s just so.… Venice.

This post includes some photos I captured this year, along with shots of our canoe snapped by my friend Sara Toufali of Black and Blooms, who rode in tandem with us in a boat generously loaned to us by a neighbor. 

Here’s to those who showed up to cheer each other on, sing out in unison, and embrace the wildly creative spirit of our lil’ beachside community.