Day 7: April 8, 2024

Venice seems like a small town. I notice that boat drivers yell greetings to each boats or people walking by. At the bar (cafe), people strolling by will shout greetings to the owners inside. And there are always smiles and jokes being passed along as well. I wish I could understand the jokes. Maybe I will at some point but not yet.

The weekend was beautiful both for the weather and activities. I met classmates for coffee on Saturday morning, then we took a boat to Torcello, an island about 30 minutes away. It is a quiet and peaceful place. There is a very old church from the 6th century there with Byzantine style mosaics. Bellissima. We also climbed up the bell tower which had a gorgeous view of the lagoon. We could see flamingos in the water below! Afterwards, we lunched at a simple restaurant serving typical Venetian food with a large garden, Taverna Tipica Veneziana. The seafood risotto was delicious. Also small fried soft-shelled crabs.

Next we took the boat to Burano. You have probably seen photographs of this colorful fisherman’s island. The homes are brightly painted so the fishermen can spot their home when out in the boats. It is very touristic and I have been there several times but it is always fun to walk around there.

Then over a bridge to the island of Mazzorbo where there is a Michelin starred restaurant and hotel, Vanissa, that also produces good wines. We walked through the vineyard and stopped to try one of their wines. I noticed a young man wearing an identical outfit. My twin! We took a photograph. He was a good sport.

Our excursion ended back in Venice with a gelato. Yum. A very nice Saturday indeed.

Sunday was solo for me. I reorganized the kitchen because none of the plates and glasses were together. I swept the floor. I did yoga online. Then a long walk and some shopping at Zara. It was very warm out but Zara still had the heat on… not too pleasant! I ended the day at a restaurant by the apartment. The waiters were very sweet with my poor Italian and didn’t respond to me in English. Nice pasta ragu and I chatted in very elementary Italian with the French couple next to me who spoke Italian but not English.

Today began my second week of classes. Several classmates had returned home so I wasn’t sure if I would still be with the same teacher. Lucky for me, I got the same teacher and the same classmates, minus the few who didn’t return. But this week the school is very full so we had to walk three minutes to a different building for our class. This one has uncomfortable chairs BUT the bathrooms are much nicer. Sometimes these things are important, lol! I noticed that I am understanding the teacher better this week. Hooray!

Lunch was a bar serving cicchiti (pronounced che-ket-tee) which is, I think I already mentioned, is similar to Spanish tapas. Typical Venetian fast food. The have all the small bites behind glass and you point to what you want. They cost usually around 2-3 euros each and 3 fill me up. This one, Al Squero, is very popular. It is located across a canal from a workshop that build gondolas, so it is fun to watch them at work. However it is also popular with the seagulls who swoop down to steal the food so you have to be careful if you dine outside!

All winter I was listening to Italian podcasts to get used to hearing the language. It is nice hear to just go sit at a bar with a coffee and listen to the conversations around me. I am picking up more words… still can’t follow an entire conversation BUT I’m definitely understanding more words.

Tonight I will join one of the walking tours arranged by the school. It starts in the neighborhood of Castello where my friend Isabella has a restaurant so I will eat there afterwards with two classmates.

Ciao Buona Notte! Click on page 5 below to continue…