An Diamo, Let's Go!

Yesterday we all slept in. I checked on the kids at 11:30 am and they were still fast asleep! We woke them at noon when Dan and I left to walk across the bridge to the Rialto market.

Unfortunately the fish market is closed on Sundays and Mondays, but all the produce was there--beautiful! We picked up a bag full of fresh apricots, oranges, cherries and nectarines. We chose six croissants at the bakery and brought home brunch to the kids. Tasted so good!

Our hotel offered a free water taxi over to Murano where the famous Venetian glass is made. Watching the glass blowers at work was captivating. After we watched and a guide (salesman) explained the process, I went in to shop. The kids looked around for a bit and then were drawn back to the glass blowers.

The glass furnaces were over 2200 degrees Fahrenheit. The sand was actually minerals from all over the world crushed to sand that would make the finest glass.

While we were there they were working on a chandelier. Amazing to watch glass melt and become soft enough to twist and shape.

Murano was quiet and a nice respite from the busier, crowded Venice.

Once back on the other side we took our requisite gondola ride. Alex, our gondolier told us he comes from four generations of gondolier...drivers? ...Boaters? He went to gondolier school and works 20 days a month in the summer but only 10 days in winter months. He didn't sing, but he did whistle.

We stopped at the smoothie stand again and had pizza again for dinner. But for a change for a snack we found a candy shop that had giant gummy coke bottles and ritz crackers and ate them while we watched The Sound of Music on my little iPad.

Marty was refusing to watch because it was old and had singing, but of course he ended up liking it! What teenager doesn't love lying in bed with his entire Family squished in watching Sound of Music while mom sings along?!

It was nice to have a down day. To sleep in as much as we wanted and to have a few activities but plenty of time to relax and watch a show.

Each night no matter how late it is, Nick and Chris want me to read to them. We are reading The Great Brain so it's impossible to refuse because I want to find out what adventures JD and his brothers have next as well.

We were thinking of our guide from Rome, Valeria today. She would always say, "Redd-ee? An Diamo! Let's Go!" Also when we saw the mummies in the Vatican museum or went down three levels to the church way underground, she would say, "Skir-ed?!" (Scared?!). And would say, "My dears..." when about to tell us something good. They've become some of our favorite expressions to immitate on the trip.

The Italian we've learned is: an Diamo (let's go); buongiorno (good morning!) -- We commonly used it at night as well. Day or night, coming or going. They'd say, "Have a good day," and we'd say, "Good morning!" They'd say, "Good night!" and with big smiles we'd say, "Good morning!!"

Unless of course we said, "grazie!"; grazie (thank you!) -- We essentially used "thank you" whenever communication was required. "Good morning!" "Thank you!" Can I help you? "Thank you!" Would you like to sit outside? "Thank you!";

"Parla iglese" (do you speak English) was of course helpful but unnecessary as they all do speak English as the cities of Rome, Florence and Venice are full of tourists. It actually becomes a little embarrassing that I don't speak two languages and I'm beginning to get a complex. However, I still tried to at least ask, "parla iglese?" out of courtesy.

We also practiced counting, une, due, tre, quattro, cinque, se ... Unfortunately we weren't as quick on our feet or prepared ahead of time with our number translation when necessary so Dan would chime in with Spanish--"seis!" Which worked most of the time except that the time he was trying to ask for cheese and requested "queso." The girl just stared back at him and said in perfect, annoyed English, "Do you mean, Cheese?!"

 

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