"O Sole Mio"

Joey and Drew finally made it to our hotel at midnight. So today we awoke early to a wonderful breakfast included with our room charge. The rest of the family went to Treviso for a tour and lunch. The boys and I decided to go to Venice for a walking tour and gondola ride. They were going to have to do laundry first, but the hotel graciously agreed to do that task for them. So off we went on a bus from Scorze to Venice which took about 45 minutes. Again, a gorgeous sunny day in Italy. We found our way to the Rialto Bridge which one of only three walking bridges to connect us to the Piazza San Marco. On the way, we bought fruit at from a produce stand, some murano glass from a little shop and, of course, my daily ration of gelato!! I think I enjoyed our walk much more than the our walking tour although we did learn a little history and some other fun facts from the tour. Of course, the gondola ride was fantastic although Joey was getting a little queasy from the rocking of the boat when we were docking.

From Venice, we took a bus to Mirano where the rest of the family were gathering for dinner at the Ristorante dalla Lina at Via Vetrego 105, Mirano, where our cousin Alina was closing her bed and breakfast restaurant to the public to have a special dinner for us. Her mother Flora and all of her sisters were there--Edda, Carmen, and Raffaella, helping serve and prepare dinner as well as her children Sara and Simone. Again, with a room full of boisterous Italians eating, drinking and storytelling, a fun time was had by all. At the end of the evening, the Italian cousins gave each of us a gift that was made special in Venice--a beautiful carrying bag, a Carnivale mask and a bottle of special olive oil. Grazie di tutti!! After kissing and hugging and picture taking, we said our goodbyes until tomorrow when we gather for our wine tasting tour. Ciao for now.