As my summer zooms toward the halfway point, with another
marathon sprint of a school year looming in the not too distant future, I fully
enjoyed all that my town offered today. I made my way downtown in the morning
for a bite to eat for breakfast (zucchini pizza). Then I went to the beach,
where I met my Dutch cousins and spent time under the sun and in the Adriatic
with them. The water this year is much clearer than in the past, not that it
was ever Jersey shore murky. 
After pranzo (lunch) with Zia, I did some laundry, read a
little and relaxed as I prepared to walk to Campomarino sopra (the part of town
on the hillside). Today is the Festa di Santa Cristina, and all over Italy,
little towns like ours are celebrating in their own way. By heading up to the
town by foot, I surpassed my step goal of 20,000, reaching more than 21,200.
Walking around the closed streets of the festival, one can
get a real sense of life for the locals. In the beach area where I live in the
summer, people are from all over Italy and Europe, and just vacationing here.
When I head up the main part of town, that’s where you find the people who live
here year round. 
As I was sitting the main piazza (square) and admiring one of the most serene vistas
overlooking the local farmland and the Adriatic, I heard a local band
approaching. I went to see where they were, and marching down the antique
streets, past the vista on their way to the piazza della chiesa (church square)
was a full marching band. As they approached, they made sure to stop and
serenade the locals while standing under the watchful eye of a rendering of
Santa Cristina. Then the band serenaded the procession as the townspeople, led
by their church priest, made their way, along with a Santa Cristina statue,
through the narrow streets of Campomarino. They wound past the local murales
(murals), and attracted onlookers who peeked out their windows as the
procession passed by. After the procession passed by the center of town, I decided to make my way into the festival area, and partake in two of my favorite pastimes; eating and shopping for watches. I managed to pick up five more watches, some of which are likely gifts. I also managed to eat some food that would make Rick Steves jealous, but might make Andrew Zimmern yawn.
