03 Oct 1985, Posted by Scott An Chora in Travelogue, No Comments.
10/03 Venice, Italy
Took a morning boat to Giudecca to visit a glass shop and took advantage of the weather and the sand. The hostel I went to check out was over crowded with mostly children running about, so spent the remains of the day back on the main island. Before dark I had gathered up my things and boarded a train towards Padova. Across from me sat a beautiful young lady with a twinkle in her eye and I caught a smile or two. Sex was in the air so I broke the ice. “Will you have lunch with me?” I asked. She explained that she was on her way to meet a friend and that the two of them had a law exam in two days and were going to do some studying. She leaned toward me, planted a kiss and handed me an address. She explained that the address was her sister’s place and she would be there in a few days and would look forward to get acquainted. This had all the trimmings of a date to look forward to.
When I reached Padova I headed straight to the hostel to ensure I had myself a bed for the night. I had been given some bad directions and ended up in front of a church instead. The church was covered in a cloud of depression. Everyone coming or going was dressed in black. There was not a smile to be found and I cannot recall if anybody even looked me directly in the eyes. It was like they had just been, or expected to be, scolded. There was a long line of people waiting for the opportunity to kiss a glass case which contained a body part of St. Antonis. I could sure agree with those that might think such a practice as odd. I stood over to the left and wondered why the human soul doesn’t get up off its knees and do what is right. “My soul was like a leaf, wrapped up in the morning tide” My view is that Gods prefers loving actions over prayer and ceremony so I brought a few beers and sat across in the park waiting for somebody in need. It didn’t take long to locate a conversation and once they discovered that I did not speak Italian and was from the other side of the world they began treating me like a novelty. “Do you know here he is from?”, “Say something”. I made curfew but the jury was still out on if that was a good thing. That place had the feel of an institution and the food solidified that conclusion.
