Andrea was a gracious, enthusiastic host. We had established a bond via email prior to arrival with my sharing of Venetian history research I had done anticipating the visit. He loved that I took this interest, is very knowledgeable himself about the city's history.
He was there to meet us when we disembarked from our cruise ship, guided us to the apartment. It was as described, close to St. Mark's Square. Very cozy, on a canal, we had views of the parading gondolas from our window. Totally charming, really felt like we were in the Venice we had read about.
Andrea made himself available to take us to the sights we wanted to see, steer us to good local eateries where the food was great, the prices reasonable.
Andrea is very personable, enthusiastic about his city and its history, and made our visit very meaningful - far more intimate than the typical tourist experience.
Finally, he was there to help us with our luggage, get us to the water taxi we needed to get to the airport for the trip home. He made the whole visit a smooth, pleasant experience.