Venetian Nights

by Sophia
(Mount Pleasant, SC)

One night, when I was singing my way through Italy with a small group, we visited Venice. Being poor musicians, we couldn't afford to stay in Venice itself, so we booked a small B&B in Mestre, a short drive & water taxi away. Everything was going swimmingly, until we stayed out too late one night and missed the last taxi! There weren't any more runs to the mainland until early the next morning.

Tired, but still excited from our clubbing that night, we stopped at a small cafe near the water and sat down at some alfresco tables to take stock and make a plan. Much to our surprise, the owner of the cafe was nearby and asked if we needed anything. He explained that he was closed, but that he would love it if we would join him in some espressos and grappa.

Needless to say, we spent the wee hours of THAT night sipping coffee and grappa and learning about his city in our limited and broken Italian. Whenever I have a grappa, I think of our gracious host and that magical night.