Italy May13-Jun1/09

Gelato


The first 5 hours on the train gets us to Munich. An easy train change as we catch our next train at the same platform. We arrive in Florence around 6AM.

ITALY

Highlights: Florence, San Gimignano, gelato, Mary Sierra cabin, Venice.
Challenges: Hills, heat wave, traffic into Perugia.

Some rough camping due to lack of campgrounds.

FLORENCE




We wait for the tourist info to open and then make our way to the campground up a long hill. The campground is amongst an olive grove overlooking the city. After freshening up I walk up to the Piazza Michaelangelo which overlooks Florence and see the same view of the Cathedral of S. Maria del Fiore as on my vision board.


We walk into the city across the Ponte Vecchio bridge. There are many expensive looking jewellry shops. An old fragile woman in black is holding out a cup to passerbys begging.



The Cathedral is huge - although it is free to enter the line up is too long to wait.



Florence is hot. I'm tempted to try to see the Uffizi Museum as it has an extensive art collection including some famous artists, but I'm tired from the heat and figure the line up is too long to wait.








Tuscany impression: stone buildings, potted flowers, green fields of olive groves and vinyards making a patchwork in the fields.



Even though I saw a slide show of a friend's cycle trip through Italy, it doesn't register with me until we are there that you have to generally go through lots of little villages and each one is perched on a big ...... hill and that you have to climb up to the village, descend and then do it all over again for the next village.



Maybe this along with the heat wave plays a part in my decision that we will shorten our stay in Italy. Essentially after heading south from Florence we cross the country to the other coast. We have a good map, it shows the quieter secondary roads and the steepness of the hills.



SAN GIMIGNANO



This village is known for its towers, 7 in total?

It is very hot and fairly steep going up to San G., by the time we reach the campground my legs feel like jello.

We end up staying two nights and take turns doing a walking tour around San G.


CYCLING

Day 221 Florence to Greve 40KM
Day 222 Greve to Siena 60KM
Day 223 rest day
Day 224 Siena to San Gimignano 57KM
Day 225 rest day
Day 226 San G. to Belforte 52KM
Day 227 Belforte to L'Aratrice 57KM
Day 228 L'Aratrice to Amiata 37KM
Day 229 Amiata to Bagnolo (past Santa Flora) 46KM
Day 230 Bagnolo to Sarteano 49KM
Day 231 Sarteano to Perugia 65KM
Day 232 Perugia to Umbertide 60KM
Day 233 Umbertide to Pianello 34KM
Day 234 rest day
Day 235 Pianello to o/s Marotta 82KM (Mary Sierra cabin)
Day 236-238 rest days
Day 238 to Marotta 11KM

Italy 650KM