We hit the roads on our bikes this morning eager to burn off the energy we’d built up when an all-day rain kept us inside. At first we didn’t notice it, but by the time we reached our planned turn around point, we both remarked on how light the traffic was. What we noticed most was more bikers.

We didn’t think about why it was light. We were just grateful.  It made a Thursday ride feel more like Sunday.

Because we hadn’t been to the grocery on Wednesday, we elected to pick up a few things at the conclusion of our ride. I was apprehensive when we coasted to a stop in the completely empty supermarket parking lot. Not a car in sight. The store lights were dark.

We studied the signs on the doors. One sign explained that on Wednesday, they would be open the longer Thursday hours. Nothing said, and ‘Oh, by the way, we’ll be closed on Thursday.’

Is June 2 a holiday? Somehow we missed the memo. That would explain why the traffic was so light and why the supermarket – and every other story in the area (now that we paid attention) was closed. We fired up our Internet connection when we got back home.

Indeed, June 2 is an Italian national holiday celebrating the Festa della Repubblica. In 1946 Italians voted in favor of the republican form of government.

We remarked that very few holidays cause Dahl’s and Hy-Vee to close their doors. In fact, U.S. stores do land office business on most holidays.  So far, we haven’t seen fireworks. No parades. But people are taking a day off. We celebrated, too, by writing – again.

Since our refrigerator was all but empty, we were grateful the local deli was open. We picked up some pasta, an apple, and a bottle of wine.

We toast the Italian Festa della Repubblica. Salut!

Ciao!