The rain returned in the evening along with a spectacular thunder and lightning show. We decided to brave the storm to go to dinner at a trattoria whose menu we’d seen and liked. We borrowed an umbrella from the hotel, I donned my rain coat which prompted Linda to call me “Little Red Riding Hood” and we were off on another adventure.
Somehow, despite then rain and the dark, we easily found our way down narrow streets and across a couple of bridges without slipping on the wet cobblestones or being struck by lightening, to Ristorante Marciana. The street was bustling and vibrant and we joined other diners outside under the protection of the awning instead of going inside. We enjoyed a delectable antipasto of shrimp and pickled onions and a main course of spaghetti di mare, copious amounts of wine and after dinner, I ordered limoncello AND grappa. We struck up a conversation with the couple at the next table and had a lively discussion with lots of laughter which drew in another couple from another restaurant who heard the commotion and joined in.
It was well into the evening’s conversation that we learned that our delightful table mates were New York State Senate Majority Leader and President Pro Tem Dean Skelos and his lovely wife Gail. I gave my grappa to Dean as I quickly realized that limoncello and grappa together was not a wise choice. The couple who joined us were also from NY so the conversation got livelier and they had met our adorable waiter the evening before on his day off so he bought them a bottle of wine when they joined us.
When we parted company, Linda and I decided to return to Piazza San Marco to listen to more live music. The rain had stopped by now and we once again managed to successfully maneuver the narrow passageways. We ordered more wine and then to our horror realized Linda had left her purse at the trattoria. We went back through the narrow streets retracing our steps and luckily found the place again AND Linda’s purse. When we returned to the piazza, a waiter appeared immediately with the wine we’d ordered earlier. We probably didn’t need it but the shock of almost losing her purse with her cameras and iPad had sobered us up a bit.
The rain kept the crowds at the piazza light but didn’t dampen our spirits one bit. Yes, these two broads are having the time of their lives in Italy!
