Monday
Wow, I must be fitter than I thought, or these hills are gentler today, or there is some pretty high energy stuff in the bread and yoghurt here in Italy, because I have made it to the San Pancrazio Franciscan Monastery and it is only 11.38am, and it doesn't open for viewing until 3pm, so I will have my picnic lunch and enjoy the peace and solitude of the monastery garden.
I set off on my trusty bicycle a little after 8.45am after a breakfast of bread and cherry jam and yoghurt washed down with a black coffee, and a piece of cherry tart washed down with another black coffee. It seems strange to eat cake for breakfast, but it was pretty jolly good. I struggled to get my suitcase down the narrow winding staircase to the main entrance where Sarah will pick it up from later in the morning, paid my bill of 10E for the bottles of aqua naturale and the wine. I tried to buy a bottle of olive oil but the young lad said they did not sell it as they only make enough for their own use and for the restaurant. That's a shame because it was very nice oil. Oh well, my suitcase is probably heavy enough already, and I have to remember that I will be lugging it around for the next few days as I make my way to Montepulciano.
So I set out on my way, already it was warm and projected to be about 30 degrees today My arms are getting quite suntanned so I put on a smaller top today so that the last bit can get tanned as well so I don't come home striped like a zebra, and I will try and make do without my sunnies for some of the ride so my big white rings around my eyes disappears.
I am feeling well rested after my lazy day yesterday so opt for the longer and hillier ride today which will be about 41 or 44km. I wish there was a distance measure on my bike, I should have brought mine from home, I would like to know for real how far I have been. Those of you who know me well, will know that I have no perception whatsoever, time, distance or what something will look like if I try to make it from a pattern. Well it is absolutely no different here – the instructions say ride for 1km or 50m and I have no idea how far that is. All I know is that the ride from Villanganzerla to Trattoria Alla Grotta was 9km (and the only way I know that is because the notes say so) and it hardly took me anytime to ride it at all. I guess it only took me 15 minutes to ride from Greerton to Freedom at the weekends and that was just on 5km, and I guess really it is not quite double the distance so it shouldn't take too long, but it looked a hell of a long way on the map
Anyway I get to the Tratorria and it is closed on Mondays. Fat lot of good that is, but just as well it hasn't been long since breakfast and I am not really in need of food or drink just yet.
So I take the hilly route option from here which is another 14km. This takes me past a the Villa Pigafetta-Camerini which was built in the 1700's but is only open to the public on Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays in May June and September, so again no reason to stop. And then I start the climb, most of it I had to push my bike. But the notes promised a stunning view at the top which make it worth the effort and how true that is. I am joined along the way by a local man who tries so hard to make conversation with me, but I cannae understand a word he says, apart from pointing out on my map where I am now, where he lives and where I am headed to. But I actually know where I am headed, so I thank him for his help and off he goes, pushing his bike further up the hill. He was very slim, and had very muscled legs so I didn't feel so bad pushing my bike alongside him (he actually started walking long before I did) even if I was puffing like an old train and he wasn't. He was years younger than me mind.
I have just been joined by a bloke who has walked up here and is sitting a couple seats away having a cigarette, luckily the wind is blowing the smoke in the other direction. I can't believe how many people smoke here and so many young ones. Outside the bars there are always about five or six blokes, all smoking, and the number of young women who smoke is amazing. Everywhere you go you can smell it and waiting at the bus stop in Padova the other day, I was the only one not smoking. Anyway back to this bloke, I heard him coming up the path and turned to see who was coming up behind me, and caught sight of him just as he stopped to take a leak against the statue. I quickly turned away but I was quite shocked that chose to do it against the statue.
Outside many of the homes are these little monuments (shrines) with statues of the Virgin Mary and child and they are beautifully decorated with flowers and other paraphenalia. Often you see them just in the middle of nowhere along the road, and other times there are great big memorials with someone's photo and dates on (I guess those are for people who have died) but I have no idea why they are just out in the middle of nowhere (like that one I rode past about four times on my first day – a memorial so some guy called Mario. On my second time past I said to him “Mario I've been past you before unless you have two shrines, and lo and behold I went past him two more times – once in each direction. But thank goodness he was there otherwise I might not have known I was lost. But so far today I have not gotten myself lost. Mind it is still early and I still have another 25km to travel today. I am really surprising myself
But I digress, at the top of the first hill which I had to walk up I stopped for a photo stop, I even took a photo of myself just to prove that I made it up there. I stopped there at a bar for a cappuccino and a delicious apricot shortcake, and bought a packet of toasted tomato and basil flavoured bruschetti and another apricot shortcake for my picnic at the monastery. I am finding that I am not really all that hungry at lunch time so a small snack is plenty. Unfortunately I haven't been past any fruit shops this morning otherwise I would have bought some fruit.
Like I have said a number of times in this blog, the time seems to go quite slowly here. I have had my picnic and drunk a heap of water, typed all this up and it is still only 12.41, still another 2 hours until the church is open to viewing. I wonder why they open it at such a late time in the day. About now I could do with a gelato, but there is not one to be had around here, I will have to wait till much later. I am becoming very partial to gelato – I can see me becoming a more regular visitor at Bella Mia in Devonport Road. I will be able to justify it if I cycle there and back home again, won't I????!!

After my cappuccino it was back on the bike again and up another (the book described it as a gentle incline) hill of 1.5km. I was very pleased that it was reasonably gentle and I managed to cycle all the way to the top of this, albeit puffing madly when I got there. So much harder than any workout I have done at Configure Express (but thank goodness I had been going to the gym and was at least a little prepared for this cycling lark – apparently the majority of Headwater tourists have not done any training and lots haven't been on a bike in years when they come out here. I have no idea how they get on., maybe they get rescued by the Rep. I note comments in the book thanking the reps for their immediate response when called on – I have only seen Sarah that once to take me up that huge hill at Teolo, and apart from that I have been completely on my own, so I am feeling pretty pleased with myself.)

So now I need to decide whether I will sit here quietly and wait for the church to open, or whether I will push on. I finished my book last night (I bought a big thick novel at Heathrow to read on the plane and am now wishing I had bought myself another when I was looking through a bookstore in Padova the other day. They had a very small selection of English books but some interesting titles.


It is now the Tuesday morning. The cockerells are crowing outside, the sun has come up over the hill and the place is slowly starting to come alive and it is 7am. I have been awake for an hour and sent some texts to those people who aren't on the internet so won't be reading the blog, and it was nice to get replies from them all. Aren't mobile phones wonderful. Amazing to think John and I did all that travelling in the 70's without all this modern gadgetry and we did just fine.
Anyway, back to yesterday. In true Italian style, in Italian time the church I had waited for opened the doors – I never saw a soul, just quietly the little wooden door opened and by the time I got over to it, and stowed my bike safely, there was no-one to be seen. I went in, and it was certainly worth the wait. Beautiful paintings, stained glass window, amazing statues and the three beautiful alcoves down each side. The ceiling was made of small carved (looked like) wooden tiles. The work that has gone into this wee church is absolutely amazing. It was so quiet, so cool, so peaceful in there.

And then it was back on the bike and down the hill. The notes said that I would ride down a steep cypress lined hill past 11 of the 14 stations of the cross. I'm sorry but I had no idea what that meant, but all the way down there were these intricately carved statues and after passing a number of them realised that these must be the stations of the cross.
After descending the hill, with both hands firmly gripping the brakes, it was out onto the road and into the full force of the afternoon sun. Quite a long way to ride now to the hotel, and a very varied ride – along a canal track (where the notes said you might see herons feeding on the fishes – but I didn't see any today – it must have been too hot for them and they were taking cover somewhere in the shade) , along an embankment, over a gravel track, through a quarry, past vineyards, and through villages – sometimes in the full sun, at other times down nice shady lanes. (that is tree shaded lanes – not the other type).

I got a text from Chris (the English lady who set out on the walking track the day I started) to say that they were already at Il Feudo resting and enjoying a beer and where was I? Well I was stilll 18 km away at that stage, but text back to say I was really enjoying the last stage and would see them soon.
What a welcome sight the sign saying 100m to the turning for Il Feudo. At this stage I was cycling along a fairly busy main road. Cars coming up behind me keeping tooting – I presume just to let me know they were coming, I wouldn't imagine it was because I looked cute cycling along there in my lycra cycling pants. I was extremely hot and bothered by this stage and looking forward to joining Chris and Alan for a beer.
I arrived, got up to my room had a shower, washed my hair, downed ½ litre of water and then went downstairs to find Sarah, the Headwater rep sitting there with the other two. She had come to hear all about our trips, make notes on anything we noticed along the way that needs changing in the notes and make arrangements to take us into Vicenza in time to catch trains to where-ever we are heading next. The other two are going to Venice for the rest of the week, I was yet to make up my mind what I was to do.
I was pleased to hear that the road I was supposed to take on the day I got lost was closed and there was a big barrier there and there was no signpost pointing in that direction, so it wasn't me just being dumb and blonde or grey. Sarah apologised most profusely and said that changes like that happen all the time, and nobody thinks to tell her about them. Oh well, I didn't come to any harm so all is well.
And so for my final meal on this part of the trip – we had the choice of pasta or vegetable pancakes, Roast beef or roast chicken, and for dessert apple pie or tiramisu.
So my choices were the pancakes, the beef and yep you guessed it the tiramisu. The pancakes were delicious – vegetables in a creamy sauce between layers of pancake, and the roast beef was very very very rare, and extremely thinly sliced and spread out to fill the whole plate, garnished with lemon which we squeezed over it. The vegetables tonight were mushrooms, zuchinni and spinach – all extremely healthy which I thoroughly enjoyed (including the mushrooms which I don't normally eat). The tiramisu was good and all this was washed down with the aqua naturale and a lovely bottle of red wine.
And so the perfect end to this wonderful 8 day trip with Headwater. The hotels were wonderful, the food divine and the scenery just brilliant. I have transferred my photos onto the computer, but as usual the pictures do not really capture the peacefulness, the serenity and smells of the countryside and the cooking as you pass through the villages. What I haven't been able to suss out yet is how to put one or two photos onto the blog. Hopefully when I next have access to wifi I will figure it out. Just slowly here, I am an old lady after all.
And no, the round Taupo cycle race is not top of the priority list as one bright spark suggested when I text to say I had completed this circuit. I will go again for a quiet peaceful cycle track, away from the mad crowds, the hustle and the bustle of the city and where the pace of life is slow and relaxed.
I now look forward to the next step in this journey, and overnight have decided to take the train from Vicenza to Padova, where I will then transfer to a train to Florence. Florence wasn't on my original itinerary but everyone tells me how wonderful it is, so I have decided to go there and find out for myself. I haven't been there before, but I have been to Rome and Naples so can bypass them if I run out of time.
So now, it's off to breakfast. Catch you all tomorrow