Last day with the family

 Sunday 

11 August 

Day 42

54 to go

Opals 85 v Belgium 81 Bronze medal winners

We had a very long sleep in this morning, not coming down for breakfast until 930am. As always, Francesco was up and the breakfast things laid out ready for us. We ate, while watching the last day of Olympic events.

We returned upstairs to pack up our cases, ready for our move tomorrow. It is hard to believe how much time has passed by already. Mum and Dad are now on their flight to Singapore, they will be home on Wednesday. We put together what we could, leaving only the essential items.

We joined Francesco downstairs again, continuing to watch various medal matches. He cooked up pasta for lunch, that we all devoured and then ate some fresh watermelon. I kept tabs on the girls basketball final, watching the google live updates. Seemed like a great match, glad we came away with the win.

At 2pm, Francesco drove us to a public pool, where we were meeting Giulia and her family. It was a hot day again, so we were glad to find a cool reprieve. The pool was very busy, with many locals taking advantage of the offerings. Giulia had rebooked longes with umbrellas, so we assured of somewhere to lay down and store our things. 

I was straight for the pool, struggling to find a space. The pool wasn’t for swimming, just bobbing. We enjoyed a refresh, then had a lay down. It soon became too warm, so we were back in the pool once more. After cooling down, we sat in the patio area enjoying a drink and I had an icecream.

Dried off again, we returned to the pool for one last dip. Mathilde was not keen to get out, but we were all going, as it was after 6pm. Once packed up, we left the venue, said our last goodbyes and then returned to Francesco’s for a quick changeover and then heading out again at 745pm for dinner with Gianluca’s family at their home.

We arrived just after 730pm. Marcello, Gianluca and Chiara’s youngest boy was now home from his scout camp. It was great to finally meet him. We sat outside at a long table so that everyone would fit. We also Chiara’s parents, Lorena and Roberto, join us. For a change, we had Chinese for dinner, which was delicious. 

We enjoyed our time sitting in the balmy air, listening to the sounds of summer, happily chatting while enjoying our meal. Mattia, finally joined us, after missing the bus home. He was full of stories of his time at the sea with his friends. 

We watched the crescent of the orange moon rise. I was looking for shooting stars, as these past few days are known each year to yield many meteors. Unfortunately I saw none. 

By the time it was 10.30pm, it was time to return to Francesco’s for our final night.