In 1974, 17-year-old Brigitte and her parents travelled 650-kilometers from their hometown in Landshut, Germany, to vacation at a campground near Venice, Italy. Unbeknownst to Brigitte, while she and her parents were sunbathing and eating delicious Italian pasta, her boyfriend Tony and a few of his buddies were racing toward the campground on their motorcycles to surprise her.
When Brigitte heard she had a visitor, she was shocked. Who could it be? Only a few people knew the name of the campground she was at, and it was a six-hour drive from Landshut. Suddenly it all made sense. There was her longtime boyfriend, Tony, perched on his motorcycle.
After getting her parents’ approval, Brigitte, Tony, and the gang headed to Venice for a one-day adventure. Since they didn’t have much time, Brigitte’s father suggested they skip the tourist boats that left from the campground and instead take the worker’s boat, since it was a quicker route to Venice. They followed his advice, but rather than arriving in the city’s centre, they were dropped off in the slums.
After gorging themselves on lasagna, the group eventually found their way around the city. They spent the rest of the day exploring the breathtaking St. Mark’s Basilica and feeding pigeons in Piazza San Marco.
Tony and Brigitte eventually moved to Canada, settling in Perth, Ontario. Forty years later, they still hadn’t returned to Venice since that one-day trip they made as teenagers. So what were they looking forward to most when they finally got the chance to go back? Eating Italian pizza and spaghetti with ragù.
Check out part one of this series, Kevin & Cynthia.
