This is a particularly tempting offer: pocket a nice jackpot while enjoying the magical setting of Venice. In any case, that is the proposition of the Italian city, currently looking for gondoliers.
Venice is calling on those who dream of a job like no other. The city is inviting applicants to apply for the most prestigious profession in the city, once reserved for a handful of Venetian families: gondolier. While the license was long passed down from father to son, today anyone can apply (including women for some time now).
As with most jobs, there are a few requirements to apply. The first is to complete a 400-hour training course, spread over six months. This training, which costs just 1,000 euros, will teach you how to maneuver a gondola with the agility of a true Venetian. At the end of this course, you will be issued with a certificate, proof of your skills in navigating the narrow canals of the Serenissima.
But before you get started, make sure you meet the required criteria. Indeed, to become a gondolier, you must be at least 18 years old, have a college degree, and of course, know how to swim. A medical certificate attesting to your good health is also required. In addition, mastery of Italian is essential to communicate with customers and local authorities. You will also need to be able to provide first aid, an essential skill to ensure the safety of passengers. Finally, a good knowledge of the history of Venice is necessary, because as a gondolier, you will often be asked to tell the anecdotes and legends that make this city famous.
And good news to the lucky ones, you will receive your own gondola, a precious work tool that will have to be carefully maintained, not to mention the nice sum of 150,000 euros that you can claim for a year of work on the salary side. If the summer season is over for the moment, there is no doubt that the offer will present itself again very soon – you can regularly check this official page of the Municipality of Venice -, that is to say the time needed to revise your Italian and learn the history of Venice by heart!