During the brightest nights of the year, the stars become protagonists in Friuli Venezia Giulia: there is no lack of open-air events to enjoy gazing upwards looking for shooting stars and expressing a wish.

This year, I expressed my wishes during "Calici di Stelle", a travelling event organised by  Movimento Turismo del Vino Friuli Venezia Giulia (Friuli Venezia Giulia Wine Tourism Movement), which this year was held in  Grado  (10 and 11 August) and  Aquileia (12 and 13 August). I attended the Friday 11th evening at Grado, held in the square at the end of the Lungomare promenade. This is a fabulous location with sea view, made even more magical by the sets: small wine barrels used as tables, pastel-coloured roses in empty bottles, jars of sand as ashtrays.

During the event you can taste the different wines of our territory, coupled with traditional dishes. The tasting kit (€ 20) consisted of a goblet with bag and a voucher for 5 gourmet tastings. The restaurants of the Castrum in Grado delighted us with traditional main course: boreto, shrimp gazpacho, fish and clam cous cous, as well as a rich range of exquisite desserts. Everything was fresh, everything excellent. I particularly liked the boreto (which I had twice!), the most typical dish of Grado: a broth (called boreto in the Grado dialect) of fresh fish served with white polenta. At the end of the meal we enjoyed for the cigars of the Club Amici del Toscano® which were matched with quality products such as grappa and chocolate.

In the background, there were ladies of the Belle Epoque, parading with their impeccable bearing and dancers dressed in white dancing lightly and disappearing as suddenly as they had appeared.