And Then Came Monday

Though I had been to Negombo, the thermal park, a few times already during my stay on Ischia I had yet to go with Gianni, and he invited me to go with him for one of my last days. We made our way to park around noon and relaxed by the beach until lunch time (one o’clock as always) when we headed up to the restaurant for a little wine and some delicious food. I decided to take it easy and not eat too much since I had overdone it the last few days, and ordered a nice fresh salad of tomato, basil, and mozzarella, followed by a plate of fresh and delicious fruit. After lunch it was back to the park till nearly five o’clock when we made our way home. Back at the house I spent a couple of hours cleaning before meeting back up with Gianni at Triangolo to watch Italy’s first game in the world cup. We watched the first half there and at halftime headed over to Delfino for some dinner and to watch the second half. Two other friends, Angelo and Liborio also joined us for dinner which was perfect. I had not been able to see Liborio much this trip, but had spent many a day on the boat with him seven years ago, and Angelo is and always will be a great friend and one of my favorite people from the Island. After dinner I headed back to Gianni’s for a beer and some long conversation. We both knew our time together was coming to an end, and though neither of us wanted to admit how tired we were, sat and talked till nearly four am. My bond with Gianni had grown so much over the past two months and now he was as they say in Italy, “Non e un fratello nel sangue, pero e un fratello nel cuore.” He is not a brother in blood, but is a brother in the heart. Tired and sad all over again I walked down the street to my house to get ready for the next day, my last full day in Ischia.