The day that Cory and I arrived in Venice we made our way to Rialto and the Grand Canal. We were saddened to find the fish market closed (stay tuned for that spectacle!) and the would-be picturesque views destroyed by the angle of the sun. We vowed to come back the next morning.
Come back we did! I played European, completely disregarding anyone else's idea of a personal bubble, and shot off about, oh, two or three hundred shots of the Grand Canal from the Rialto Bridge. After I tired of that scene, we went to side of the bridge that faced the other side of the Canal and watched gondolas and water ambulances glide and blaze by (respectively, of course) and while we were taking in the scenery I noticed that there had been some beautiful fiddle music being played all the while.
Not knowing when to leave well enough alone -- and having learned already that day that Venetians are outwardly very tolerant, if not supportive of tourists -- I snapped a couple of pictures and tossed a few Euros in his case. I had initially thought the light and the overal subject were what made the composition interesting, but looking at this photo, I realize that it is his contentment, his happiness in just being where is is, doing what he's doing. I think we all seek that measure of happiness that this man has nailed down on a bridge in Venice.
This photo is from our honeymoon. If you'd like large resolution, enlargement-quality copies of any of the files you see from our adventures in Italy, please leave a comment and let me know.