We got up at 9:30 this morning and at 10:30 we made our way to the workshop for the last time. I had to print off my boarding pass and pick up some things. Claudio had repaired an accordion part of mine to take back to England and he also gave me some materials to be able to do accordion maintenance in England. I forgot to take my passport for the online check-in so Stephanie went home to get it.
When we left the shop we took photos outside the shop with Claudio and Stefano. We then walked into Stradella for lunch at Alternative Cafe again. We shared a large ham and tuna panino and a toastie. After that we walked to the station to buy our tickets for tomorrow morning, but found the ticket office shut. Bother. We then walked to the gelateria for the last time and they said they were sorry to see me go! We shook hands before Stephanie and I went to eat our ice cream by the bell tower. Then we bought crisps for tomorrow before sitting in the little communal gardens for a chat.
Eventually we got home and set about starting the packing process and sorting the flat out. Very stressful! I packed pretty quickly though, I must say. Later in the afternoon we went with Erica and Ivana to a supermarket before going back to the station as Erica was convinced there was a self-service ticket machine. We'd checked earlier and there wasn't one. Erica checked herself, and there still wasn't one! We went home again and Erica told Claudio about the ticket dilemma, so he set about trying to order them online. He had all sorts of problems with the website, and was at it for about an hour, but eventually they were booked. Stephanie and I then carried on packing/sorting as well as writing a card for the Beltramis.
At 8pm we went next door for our final night in Stradella. Ivana had made lots of pizzas and Erica had made cheesecake with sprinkles on it! Stephanie and I were joined by: the four Beltramis, Daniele, Valerio, Stefano, Kleidi and Kleidi's parents. At the end of the pizza course I was presented with a scroll of mock certificate for working at Beltrami Accordions! We then presented them with a card, a Taplow Youth Choir CD, shortbread, Percy Pigs and a wooden train spelling out BELTRAMI, which we bought in the market in Milan. After dessert Kleidi helped us plan what to do in Genova tomorrow. Matteo rang to say goodbye, as did Ivana's parents. I'm going to miss them all so much! I left a bag of Percy Pigs for Mattero.
We left at 00:30 after saying goodbye to everyone except the Beltramis. We finished some last bits of packing and went to bed.
Buona notte x
No comments:
Post a Comment