The Last Supper

Gianni had left my last night up to me saying that whatever I wanted to do, he was at my disposition. I told him I would like to go to dinner, just the two of us, and then meet up with everyone at Bar Triangolo after. He was delighted at my decision and showed up at my house around 9 to drive us to dinner. Seven years ago I had a dress shirt that I wore often and Gianni always commented on how much he liked it. Since I had slept on his boat the last two weeks I was there I had left that shirt hanging up for him. I decided I would do the same for him this year and had picked out one of my dress shirts, a pair of sandals (rainbows) that he always said he liked, and a book as a going away present. To my surprise he showed up wearing the shirt I had given him seven years ago, but quickly changed into the one I was giving him now. I Felt the tears coming as I handed him these parting gifts and so we simply shared a look that said it all and kept the tears at bay. We didn’t say much, but it was okay, we both knew we didn’t need to. So it was on to the scooter and heading to Il Briciola for what would be our last meal together for who knows how long. As Giovanni greeted us, and was sad to hear that I was leaving, he asked what I would like for my last night. I told him to bring out whatever he wanted as I had never had a bad meal at his place, and dinner was soon under way. First the wine and water was served, followed by raw mussels, bruschetta, and stemed clams. Next was the famous Taglietelle al Limone (cooked by Giovanni not me this time), then some fresh grilled fish, and of course finished off with coffee and fresh fruit. Giovanni as usual joined us for a glass of wine to talk about my travels and invite me back to Ischia soon. He told me I was always welcome in his restaurant/home anytime I was in Italy and gave me a hug as we left. Though Gianni and I ate together almost every day it was rare that we ever were able to share a meal just the two of us and that made tonight that much more special for me. After dinner we headed down to Triangolo for an after dinner drink and to meet up with Carmela and Cristian, as well as a couple of other friends that had come down to say good-bye to me. As Triangolo came to a close Gianni and I decided to head out to Forio to meet up with a couple of other friends, Nelly and Monica, for one last drink and some dancing. The girls had to work in the morning and left for home around 3:00 and Gianni and I stayed for about another hour just talking and relaxing before heading home ourselves. The house was already clean and my bags were packed, so I climbed into my bed for the last time and was quickly off to sleep.