Tom`s travels: Lio Piccolo (24/04/2021)

After heading back to Italy for a few days, while I was there my mom, brother, and I decided to head to Jesolo for a couple of days. There was a partial lockdown currently in Italy and one was only allowed to stay in his town of residence or place of second-home ownership. So from Jesolo, we had planned to go on a bicycle trip to the nearby village of Lio Piccolo, however, as it was already in a different municipality we thought we would not be able to rent bicycles from there so instead reached the closest rental places there and start our trip from that point. That meant though we were still nearly 20km away so we would have to bike 20 to get there and 20 just to get back, plus any other km we would bike around the place there. A friend of my brother, Tiziana, joined us as well and so we left to reach the village passing through the towns of Cavallino and Treporti. From there we then followed a panoramic road surrounded by the lagoon which is a typical feature of this area. Lio Piccolo is in fact a small group of houses built on top of small islands separated by canals in the middle of the lagoon. From there we could even spot in the not so far distance the island town of Burano and the nearby island of Torcello with the iconic thick and tall Romanesque tower of the Basilica of Santa Maria Assunta jutting out from among the surrounding flat area. Just a few hundred meters later we then came upon an incredible sight, which we were really hoping to see but were not sure we would manage, a flock of flamingoes. They were feeding on fish and shrimp on one of the patches of low tide and marshland next to the road which we were following and were quite close as well. I managed to take several pictures with my phone's zoom. A couple of tourists on their bicycles as well stopped and took some photos and then asked how come they did not look pink as usual. I intervened explaining that it was due to the fact that they turn pink based on the pinkish color of the shrimp they feed on. Shrimp in the Venetian lagoon is usually grayish so that's why the flamingoes have a light pink/gray color to them. They usually turn pink when they head to other areas such as southern Italy or Africa where they find the suitable type of shrimp to enhance their color. A little further we then eventually reached the village of Lio Piccolo, just a few houses built around a small square with the Boldu Palace and the church of Santa Maria della Neve. Stopping there seemed like heading back in time, as the buildings were old and the square unpaved, once a typical sight in many small towns and villages in Veneto. Here Tiziana left us and headed back for an appointment and we decided to continue on and follow a circular path close to the lagoon behind the village. The path was really narrow and with overgrown grass right next to it, furthermore, we were higher up and to either side and below us was a canal and the lagoon. At one point though, not long after taking this path, my brother stopped in front of me to take a picture and I tried to slow down and stop. However, as I put my foot down, I noticed too late that I had chosen a spot with overgrown grass, and the spot where the solid ground was supposed to be was much lower than I had anticipated and so I lost balance and fell sideways taking the bicycle down with me. I headed straight for the canal falling backward with the bicycle weighing down on me. Luckily a broken tree with several branches partially stopped my fall and so just my backpack touched the surface of the water. However, it soon started filling and the weight of it plus the bicycle were pulling me further into the canal. I called for help and my panicked mother and brother managed to help pull the bicycle off of me and get back up. I had some scrapes and cuts in my back, arms, and hands but fortunately nothing bad. My backpack was full of water though with some clothes inside and even my wallet which I stupidly had put in there. I quickly removed the cards and cash and the wet clothes and try to dry them as best as I could. We were all rather shocked and so we decided it was best for us to head back to the village and not continue on and risk further as the path was getting even narrower. As we headed in the direction of the buildings a big group of cyclists came rushing from behind us but there wasn't really anywhere to go so eventually we let them pass when we found a little clearing right before the village. Once there, I sat on a bench, washed my cuts and bag with water from the fountain, and then sat there to dry off a little. I tried convincing the others to go back and finish the tour but instead, we decided to cycle back towards Jesolo on larger and safer roads. We passed the flamingoes yet again and then stopped at a place called Osteria dal Pupi where we grabbed a fritto misto, fried shellfish, and fish, to eat on the wooden walkway next to the canal with the nice April sun shining. As I had that delicious dish I forgot all about the previous experience and enjoyed my time with my mother and brother. After lunch, it was then time to head back, and this time we followed a lesser trafficked road along the Saccagnana Canal and later lagoon. Here we found they were building an overhanging cycle path right on the lagoon, the Pista Ciclabile Pordelio. It still looked like they needed some time before completion but we read it was supposed to be done by early summer, something we would later find out would take much more time. After that, we eventually reached the bicycle rental place where we gave our bicycles back and then drove back to our beach house in Jesolo in time for a dip of the feet in the sea.