OK, here goes again after the Venice wifi ate my entire entry.
With the start of a cold, it didn’t bode well when it was raining this morning when I (Alan) went out to get pastries for breakfast. This was the long awaited day when Venezia’s arancineroverde (orange, black, and green) was to play Reggiano in the newly reopened field out on Santa Elena at the Eastern point of Venice. Venezia Union plays in Seria D, 3 divisions below Seria A where AC Milan, Juventus etc. play. Seria D is probably on a par with Albuquerque Soccer League Division 1, but not as good as Albuqueque’s Premier division. So I headed out in pouring rain, asking myself if this was such a good idea, through Castello toward the Giardini and beyond to S. Elena. Once there, the rain had stopped and I asked directions to the stadium. I got in line for tickets at the 2:30 game time and despite the fact that the total attendance was about 800, it took 1/2 hour of the first half to manage to get a ticket. Everyone has to produce passport or carta di identita or some other official picture ID to get into the game and then show that same ID 2 more times on the way in. Apparently there were computer problems and since every name must be checked against the computer list of banned tifosi (rabid fans), it is a slow process There was only one fight in the line for tickets. I opted for a reserved seat instead of sitting in the chain link and concertina wire enclosed Curva Sud where the tifosi sit, singing and setting of large firecrackers (remember M-80’s) and smoke bombs in the team colors. I have no idea what the score was when I got there, but Venezia scored twice in the second half and appeared to have won. All 800 fans, minus the 30 from Reggiano, were ecstatic, and in sympathy, the skies cleared and offered a beautiful sunset on the way home from the game by vaporetto.
While I was gone, Noelle went to Ca’ Mocenigo and BJ took advantage of the quiet afternoon to make chicken soup for my cold with ingredients I had bought earlier. We didn’t look for matzoh meal to make matzoh balls.
After I got back, I helped Noelle get to the Fondamenta Nove to catch a vaporetto to Piazzale Roma to get a bus to the Treviso airport. I think there was more security at the soccer game than at the airport. I returned home and we enjoyed homemade chicken spaghetti soup. The plan is for a quiet evening reading and no plans at all yet for tomorrow.