eee-tal-YA! eee-tal-YA!

Viva Italia! Frank and I are in Venice for this leg of the trip. We watched the first half of the game eating pizza and drinking prosecco. At the half, we walked around looking for some hoopla. What we found was a lot of tourists watching the game on a small, fuzzy screened television. Most of the people that work here, live on the adjacent islands. Those few folks that do live here were watching from their homes. We watched the penalty kicks with the following individuals - the restaurant owner who wouldn't provide me something to drink, a highly-spirited East Coaster in a red shirt with a sunburnt face to match, his wife, who said to me, "yes, we've been here the WHOLE time," their daughter engrossed in her PSP, an Italian-American from NYC, and his SUPER EXCITED wife = who yelled "ITALIA, ITALIA...order the Dom Perignon now...for everyone." This proclamation of excitement filled the allies all around. While Italy won, we don't know if she got her champagne...but she got to take home her Italian. We went to another cafe to watch the bartenders spraying everyone with their water hoses, jumping up and down...chanting "eee-tal-YA! eee-tal-YA!" The team kissed their trophy and everyone waved their flags, yelled, and kissed each other. Finally, to top off the true Italian spirit, we walked along the grand canal, eating gelato, and listened to speakers pumping, "We are the champions, we are the champions...of the world..." Typical Italian scenario, right?

In other Venitian highlights, our first day we did a good job of meandering. Despite what the maps look like, the island of Venice is quite small, and doesn't smell like I worried about - except on trash day. We hit the Rialto markets for some fresh produce, stumbled upon a cafe in a remote area, and then we discovered we had walked pretty far. It's fun to just get lost here. It's also less stressful than discussing just exactly where on the map we are and which way we should go. eh-hem...That night we went out for a typical Venice meal, which I might add is super salty and translated incorrectly on the menu (sea food rice = risotto with clams or squid and spaghetti = black squid juice with spaghetti and olive oil). Although we are game for many things, the lights weren't dim enough in this joint to allow for the exploration of gastronimic delights. We capped off the night watching the Germans take third place in the World Cup at Bacaro Bar, where you leave your bra and you get a free drink. "Thanks for the offer, but I packed light and could actually use my undergarments. How much for my three drinks?"

Those three drinks cost me a little bit of an attitude adjustment in the hot weather on Murano the next morning. We were provided a free boat ride over to the glass making island, and had a tour of the grounds with a salesman from the Furnace factory, Mauro Gallo - a distant cousin, perhaps? Pieces on the island were beautiful beyond words, and expensive beyond words. $1000 Euro (1250 American) for a vase. "oh, but we give you discount, and ship for free." OK...can you ship me back for free too?

Today, we went to the Lido Island, rented bikes and explored. On this island, there are private beaches. In America, a private beach means clothing optional. In Italy, it means, please pay us E10 to rent a chair, E10 to rent a towel, and E40 to rent a cabana - oh, and clothing is optional. Luckily, the hotel owner lives on Lido and gave us the inside scoop on the public beaches. We found those beaches, brought our own towels, and enjoyed the sun. We rode around the entire island searching for other beaches, but instead found a sunburn. Vacation in Venice...

Tonight the gondola awaits us, and the slew of other tourists searching for a traditional ride. Pictures will arrive in a few days. We head to Croatia tomorrow afternoon.
Ciao, Ciao.