September 14 – 19
Day 27: Sunday, Sept 14… What to do? What to do? We have talked, and talked, and talked. We have both swung back and forth on an emotional pendulum…STAY! GO HOME! Ugh! We opted for short term gain and no pain and kicked the decision down the road. Ninety minutes after jumping on a regional train in Bologna, we were on the beach in Rimini. Among other things, Rimini is sort of the “South Beach” of the Italian Adriatic coast. It is also home to miles of inexpensive hotels and lovely beach. Whatever we end up deciding, a beach holiday seems like a good idea.
It turned out to be a really good idea. The Adriatic is lovely. Watching people stroll by on the beach was endlessly entertaining. Back at the room, we prepared grilled cheese sandwiches with 18 month aged prosciutto crudo. It paired nicely with my 5 euro bottle of Pinot Grigio. Molto bene!!
Day 28: Monday, Sept 15… Did you know that you can take a short ride west of Rimini and visit the third smallest country in the world? (behind Monaco and the Vatican). Well, neither did we. We forked over a handful of euros and took the hour long bus ride up to San Marino. The setting for the city, the fortifications, and the old town were all impressive. Inside the walled city however, an endless line of tourists inched past an endless string of shops hawking tourist crap. We’re out! In the end, we spent more time in the bus than we did in San Marino. We did not count either the time or money well spent.
A little time and distance has given us a fresh perspective and renewed optimism Clearly the biking portion has not turned out as hoped. After considering several options, we feel we can still salvage somthing of our original intent. All we have to do is a) decide on an area of Italy to explore on a shortened trip, b) find a suitable bike to rent, c) find a place to store my bike for two to three weeks. Coming up with the plan has turned out to be the easy part. No one answers their phone. Automated phone trees in Italian are a mystery. We’ve sent a dozen emails into the ether with no responses to any of our queries. But, as Chief Dan George said in the Outlaw Josey Wales, “We vowed to endeavor to persevere.” Either it will work or it won’t. We will hopefully know more tomorrow.
Day 29: Tuesday, Sept 15… Another early morning run. Another nice breakfast spread at Hotel Tiberius.
We spent several hours chasing any kind of certainty around anything. By noon, we definitely had a train ticket to Taranto (inside the boot heel of Italy). We definitely might have a bike to rent from Decathlon, which may or may not be suitable. We might have a hotel that may keep my bike (for a hefty price) for two plus weeks while we tour. Granted, my super power is making easy things look hard, but still. Nothing has been easy. We are beginning to wonder if the universe is sending us a message? (Just. Go. Home!) Well, we’re not listening…yet.
Mentally exhausted and frustrated by the endless stream of uncertainties, we escaped to the beach. We read. We watched the always interesting cast of characters stroll by. We swam. Gradually, like the tide, the stress ebbed away. It felt good. By day’s end we know we are going to Taranto. The rest…well? I think Jesus said it pretty well. “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” Yeah! What He said.
Side note: Rimini has plenty of public beach space. Having said that, miles and miles of beach is covered by private “clubs” or hotels that have quadrants filled with beach chairs, umbrellas, volleyball courts, playgrounds and other amenities.
We calculated something like 30,000 chairs and umbrellas from our hotel to the end of the beach just over half a mile to the north. This beach stretches south for many, many miles. I would HATE to be here during high season.
Day 30: Wednesday, Sept 16… Once again, thank you Trenitalia. We traveled half the length of Italy, in comfort, at a reasonable price, in seven hours. Even as we were making our way to Taranto (emphasis on the first syllable… TAH–ran-to) we were still trying to nail down details and getting nothing! Then we heard from Luca and Vera!
Sharon had posted a request on a Facebook cycling page asking for anyone around Taranto willing to store our bikes. We hit the jackpot!! This amazing couple met us at the train station, loaded our bikes and all our gear in their car, and dropped Sharon at our hotel. Then they drove me to Decathlon and helped me get the bike. When it turned out not to be equipped as advertised, we scavenged parts off mine to make the rental usable. After all that, they brought me back to the hotel. Luca insisted we stop by their house on our way out of town to continue making fixes to the rental.
I cannot say we were surprised. One of the benefits of travel is to know from experience that there are kind and generous people in the world. So, we were not surprised – but we were humbled and overwhelmed with gratitude. Two kind people swept away days of uncertainty, stress, and frustrations. Thank you!
Day 31: Thursday, Sept 17… Did I mention that Luca and Vera are seriously cool? They have an impressive fleet of bikes, including vintage road bikes. They love touring. Vera is a PT who specializes in helping kids with scoliosis. Luca is retired after forty years in the Navy and now helps Vera in her practice. We are looking forward to spending more time with them in a few weeks.
A few more swaps and additions and I finally had a rental bike that should take us around the “heel” of Italy and beyond. Armed with local knowledge, we made our way down the coast. It is amazing!
It was a confusing day. Mid-September felt like August. We were immediately drenched in the midsummer heat. We passed postcard perfect coves and beaches. While there were a few lively towns, many more were giving off creepy, ghost town vibes. Shuttered storefronts. Chairs on tables. Darkened restaurants and markets. Entire towns without a soul in sight. Is it possible the tourist season is already over? We found a very nice campround that was open, but it was mostly empty. This was completely unexpected.
Day 32: Friday, Sept 18… More of the same today. Perspiration. Rugged, rocky coastline. Beautiful beaches and coves. Occasional tourist hot spots and more often – ghost towns. We are having to respect the weather. We took more frequent water and shade stops to avoid overheating.
We were ready to be done by the time we pulled into Gallipoli (not the WWI Gallipoli in Turkey). Records exist of people living in this location since prehistoric times. Then the Greeks arrived and gave town its name. In Greek, Kallipolis means “beautiful city”. In 265BC, Rome took control and made it a military and trading hub. The city walls date to the Byzantine empire. We ate dinner outside a 900 year old church. Needless to say, there’s a bit of history here.
Day 33: Saturday, Sept 19… By 8am it was already oppressive. Not a good sign. Two hot days in a row have taken their toll on my lovely bride. We set our sides on a campground only twenty miles down the coast. It was a moving rest day, if you will. As we were leaving town, we met up with some enthusiastic Greek cyclists doing our trip in reverse. They offered some good suggestions.
We arrived early at a gargantuan camp resort. One host said in August they had as many as 7,000 people staying there. NO THANK YOU! This late in the season, it was blissfully empty. We used our extra time to swim several times. Well, if I’m being honest it was more of a float than a swim. Incredibly easy due to the higher salinity of the Mediterranean.
In spite of the frustrations and challenges, we are feeling incredibly blessed once again to still be on the road in this beautiful part of Italy. So – that’s it for this week. Until next time, Seize the Carp!
