Yes........

While cruising the canals of Venice in a Gondola, the most romantic way to see the city, sipping Bellini's and enjoying the commentary from Marco (our Gondalier) Cam asked me to marry him....

I of course accepted.

We celebrated with a bottle of Moet & Chandon Rose (okay so on our budget it was a 200ml bottle, but it was still amazing).

Venice

Our arrvial to Venice was not as smooth as we would have liked. We arrived at Verona train station to find that there were no bike friendly trains to Venice - so we found a quiet platform and packed up our bikes.

The train was a whole 'nother problem. We had first class tickets and we still had to sit on the floor as the train was completely full.

On arriving in Venice - 30 minutes late - not too bad for Italy - we made the mistake of catching a water taxi to what was supposed to be our hotel. €60 later we were dropped off somewhere in Venice but not really anywhere close to our hotel. The taxi driver just pointed in the wrong direction and only then told us that he didn't know where our hotel was.......

We begrudgingly paid the fare and headed in the direction he pointed. After navigating some small lanes we came across a gondolier (gondola driver) who pointed us in the right direction. We arrived at our hotel and found that the reception was on the 3rd floor......

Jay went to check in and they offered us an upgrade to a nicer hotel in a better location with a private bathroom and breakfast daily. Hmmmm let me see...... do we carry our bikes and bags another 10 mins or do we stay where we were.... I had to consult Cam on this one. To the better hotel we went.

We arrived and checked in. We were of course on the 3rd and highest floor. We dumped our stuff and freshened up after our marathon bike carrying effort through the crowds and heat of Venice.

When the books tell you about the amount of tourists in Venice they are not kidding, the crowds were unbelievable.

We had read in the guide book that one of Jay's favorites drinks, the Bellini, was originally created in Venice at the famous 'Harry's Bar'. We decided that if we were going to taste a venician bellini we should try the original and the best, so we headed to Harry's. We had been warned that the prices were a little on the expensive side...

Expensive is not the correct word - we paid €32 for 2 Bellinis (they were tiny! Check out the pic) but..... they were devine!! Guess you get what you pay for.

The funny thing about Harry's is that they are very particular about who they let in. While we were savouring our drinks they turned more people away than they welcomed. How did we get in? : ) We decided not to have a second round but to check our the town a little.

We got talking to an art vendor who informed us about the fire in the sky that was happening tonight and that there was going to be crazy amounts of people. We later found out that the fireworks, which lasted a full hour, were to commemorate end of the black plague. To celebrate, the Venicians build a bridge of boats from one to church to another - this spans just over 300m. They also have a huge fireworks display at 11.30pm. Once we learned about the fireworks we decided to have a quick dinner and find a place to watch the fireworks.

We stocked up on Bellini's - which conviently come in a bottle - and sat in front of the the Ducale Palace at the entrance to St Mark's square. We watched the sun go down and the fireworks go up. The Italians have a very bad habit of being the last to arrive and then wanting the best spot. They litterly sit on top of you. Once the fireworks started they were spectacular, have a look at some of the pics below.

Once again we just happened to be in the right spot at the right time. We cant believe our luck.

We spent the next few days getting up early and wondering the streets of Venice for around 12 hours a day visiting some of the most beautiful bridges, buildings and sites we have seen yet. These included the St Mark's Basicillica and square, the Ducale Palace, the Bridges of Sighs, the Rialto, Academia and Carneggio bridges, the gardens and the lovely picturesque islands of Murano, Burano and Torcello. We also walked across the bridge of boats (supposed to bring good luck). We later found out that the bridge is only up for 2 days - the fact that we crossed it at all is good luck.

The weirdest thing was when we were chilling out in the public gardens looking towards the sea. All of a sudden the bow of a HUGE cruise liner appeared to be heading straight towards the island. We made a bee line straight to the waters edge to see what was going on, however, they seemed to have it under control and the ship passed through the islands of Venice to the port. This was a very surreal moment - totally something you would see in hollywood right before the ship hit land.

It is needless to say that Cam and I both loved Venice. We will definately be coming back at some time in the future.

Verona

After a hot train ride from Milan we arrived in Verona to the rumblings of thunder. We found the campground and set up camp. The campground is within the fortications of the Castel Saint Pietro and sits on a hill overlooking Verona.

We grabbed some supplies from the local market before setting up kitchen in the common area in the campground. While cooking dinner we got talking to Beat and Katerine from Switzerland, another cycle touring couple. We chatted for hours before finally dragging ourselves to bed on the promise that Cam would make them fresh coffee in the morning.

Wednesday

We woke up and had breaky with Beat and Katerine. We ended up chatting until around 11am when they decided that they really should hit the road as they had a distance of around 100km to cover today. Before they left we exchanged details and were offered a place to stay in Switzerland when we next visit Europe.

After bidding Beat and Katerine a farewell we wondered down into Verona and checked out the sites. The Castel of San Pietro, Ponte Pietra, Roman Threate, Roman Arena (small version of the collosseum), Juliet's balcony, the Duomo, Piazza Bra and Piazza Erbe.

We bought tickets for the opera La Boheme that was being held in the Roman Arena that night. I can't believe that we are going to the Opera!

We had an early dinner and wondered back down to the Roman Arena thinking that if we got there at 7.30pm for the 9.15pm start we would beat the crowds. Wrong! We arrived to a very long line up. Oh well we still got great seats - we sat on the marble benches above the VIP balcony.

The opera was awesome, we both totally loved it. We couldn't understand a word of it (well actually we understood Grazie but that was it) but we were still able to follow what was happening. This was helped by the guidebook which gave us an explanation of the storyline.

Thursday

We got up late as it was a pretty late night last night. We had some breaky and read our books for a while before putting on a load of washing and heading into town to see if we could get some tickets for the Ballet.

We came home without tickets but with the hope that we could purchase them at the door later in the evening.

The lazy day continued ..... we snoozed, we washed, we ate......

At around 7.30pm we headed down to the Ballet to see if we could get some tickets - still no luck. We grabed some dinner and then went back at 8.30pm. Finally, we purchased two front row tickets for the high price of €6.00 each. As with tradition in Italy, the Ballet started 45 mins late. It was awesome. Cam did not enjoy it as much as the Opera but I loved it as much or even more.

We wondered back up the hill to the campsite and had a bottle of wine overlooking the city lights and watched the moon disappear into the smog.

Friday

Again, we rose late and enjoyed a lazy breaky. We headed into town at around 11am and had a look at the Castel Vecchio before heading to an internet cafe to update our blog. The things we do for you guys!!

We then headed back to the campsite to pack up as we are heading to Venice tomorrow.

Click here to see the pics

Passo dello Stelvio and Lake Como

Travel day - We are heading north to Bormio at the base of the Stelvio National Park.

This had to be one of the best travel days we have had. We got up early and rode to Florence Station. While Cam dissassembled the bikes I went in search of the Post Office to send home yet another care package of stuff we have collected along the way.

However, this was not to be. There was no one at the Post Officer who spoke English and the cow of a woman who was serving me was not interested in my very poor Italian. Alas, I grabbed my stuff and went back to Cam very frustrated.

We bought our tickets for Milan and then went to have a coffee and wait for our train to leave. From Milan we caught a regional train upto Tirano and then a bus to Bormio.

It sounds like a long day but everything flowed really well and we basically got off one train and straight onto the next.

As we arrived in Bormio the heavens were warning us of the impending rain so we decided to grab a hotel. We headed over to the Tourist Office and found a cheap hotel (or what we thought was a cheap hotel).

After settling in we headed off to explore town. As it neared dinner time we headed to a restaurant that served pasta - we needed carbs for the climb up Passo dello Stelvio tomorrow.

Dinner - I have to mention dinner as it was one of the best meals we have had. We started with an entree of Smoked Goose followed by pasta - I had spinach pasta balls with some kind of cheese sauce and Cam had deep fried cheese balls rolled in a buckwheat flour and salad. All our dishes were local specialities.

Thursday - Passo dello Stevio

We woke up and looked outside - it was still pretty cloudy but there were patches of blue sky. We dediced to catch the bus to the pass and then if the weather was okay, ride down to Prato del Stelvio and then ride back up.

The bus trip was educational. I don't know how they get the buses up the road in winter. It is narrow, steep and full of tight switchbacks and tunnels.

We were met at the top with falling snow and cold winds. Did I mention snow - you know that white stuff that falls from the sky when it is really bloody cold!!

We tossed up what to do - should we ride, should we catch the bus back down and try tomorrow...... we decided to give it a go. I made it down 12 switchbacks or roughly 3kms before I could no longer feel my fingers. The weather was getting worse so we turned around and rode back up and straight to a hotel for coffees and a hot fire.

During the time we were defrosting the weather cleared and we decided to give it another go. We decended to switchback number 32 and decided to turn around and head back up. This gave us enough time to get back to the top and catch the last bus back down to Bormio if needed.

As far as climbs go it wasn't that bad. I know I know I just admitted that a climb wasn't total hell. Don't get me wrong it was still long and hard but easier going that Alpe d'Huez. Once we arrived at the top we headed again to the hotel - this time for lunch as well as to again defrost.

We walked in the door and were instantly greeted by the owner telling us to sit by the fire and she ordered us soup and hot chocloate. We were too tired to argue. Guess we looked cold or something.

After warming up we decided to ride back to Bormio. A decision that ended up not being a warm one.

As soon as we popped over the top of the pass the weather was completely different. We were instantly hit with a blisteringly cold gale. We gritted our teeth and kept going - slowly to keep from freezing. About 1/4 of the way down we ran into rain/sleet and this made it so much more unpleasant. By the time we arrived in Bormio the weather had set in.

We both had a hot shower and warmed up before returning to the restaurant from last night for another gormet feast.

Friday - Gavia Pass

First is was Col fever, then an insect bite now it is Passo fever. Cam had decided that he wanted to tourture himself a little more and seeings the weather had cleared he decided to ride up the Gavia Pass.

I stayed in Bormio and hit the Post Office to finally send the care package that I tried to send in Florence and to do our washing.

Saturday - Bormio to Colico

We checked out of the hotel and rolled out of town. Today's ride take us from 1200 metres down to 400 metres. the going was easy with an occassional incline thrown in to keep us awake.

We arrived in Tirano with nearly 2 hours to spare before our train left. We didn't realise just how quickly our ride was. Our average speed was just under 20km an hour.

After buying our ticket we grabbed an early lunch and warmed up in the sunshine.

The train trip was about an hour and by passed a stretch of the trip that was not ideal. The directions in the Lonely Planet were dodgy and there were many sections of the ride that we were not allowed to ride in bikes so we dediced to catch the train and be done with it.

We arrive in Colico at around 2pm and headed to the campground. Once we set up camp we went for a walk around town - we found a pub with a TV and settled for the arvo to watch the end of the Tour.

Once the Tour had finished we header to the supermarket and grabbed some food for dinner.

Sunday - Colico to Lecco

The only hard part of todays ride was a side trip to Abbazia di Piona. According to the Lonely Planet it was about 5km's return to the Abbey and back. What they don't tell you is that it is actually 2.5kms well more like 3.5kms on a pebblecrete road. When I say pebblecrete I mean like the pool surface but the rocks are fist sized! It was so bumpy that I actually had a pain in my kidneys. To top things off, once we actually arrived we couldn't go in because of course it was a sunday and they had sunday service. doh!!

We turned around and rode back out to the main road. The trip back was no where near as bumpy as we were riding slowly uphill.

The rest of the ride was uneventful as we followed the road as it wound around the lake. We arrived in Lecco at lunchtime and headed straight to the campsite 4km out the other side of town. After setting up camp and having some lunch we decided to ride into town and see if we could catch the end of the Tour.

Our luck had run out - on the way into town it started to rain and after seaching ALL the pubs in the centre of town we settled on F1. What a totally boring sport to watch on TV. Once we realised that we weren't going to get any Tour we headed back to the campground for dinner.

Monday - Lecco to Bellagio

The ride to Bellagio took us along a narrow road sitting just above the water. After riding through two long tunnels on the way out of Lecco the road winds its way to Bellagio. The views were beautiful, we looked across the lake at the road we rode in on yesterday.

After riding for a few km's we came across a small peaceful town with the lovely campsite - we couldn't believe that we stayed in Lecco with all the noice when we could have ridden for another 10 minutes or so and been at this campsite. Oh well next time..

The ride to Bellagio was short - only about 20 km's. We arrived in town and decided that we would have a coffee and something to eat as we didn't really have breakfast. We stopped at the tourist office to find out about accommodation for the night. The campsite was about 4kms out of town at the top of a nasty climb. We both agreed climb aside, Bellagio is a town that you want to be in the centre to experience. We a hotel and dumped our stuff. Cam wanted to visit an Abbey close by that was dedicated to the Patron Saint of Cycling. The only downside - it was of course on the top of the mountain. The Lonely Planet described the climb as humbling........

After climbing for about 9km at grades reaching 14% in sections we realised that we were not on the right road! Why does that only ever happen when the going is tough?! Thankfully the right road was below us so we were able to basically roll the rest of the way to the Abbey - about 5 kms. In the end we climbed about 200 metres in altitude gain further than we had to..... doh!!

The church was sweet - as you walk in you notice that it is really quite small, it is then that you notice all the bike frames and race jerseys hanging on the walls, not bad for a church!

Next to the church is a monument to cycling and then next to that is the beginnings of a new cycling museum being built. behind the monument is a look out with a great view back to Lecco and also down to the road that we rode in on this morning.

We heading back down to Bellagio - wow - it was so fast.

We had a shower and then wondered around - very slowly as our legs were trashed. We found an awesome place to have a drink overlooking the lake. After a few beers and some really bad service we moved on. We found another bar and ordered some cocktails. Only the best - we earnt them!

After a few drinks we headed back to the hotel for dinner and bed. I was very very tired.

Tuesday - Bellagio to Como

We were not quick to get on the road today. After having some breakfast in the hotel (part of our room rate) we packed our things and hit the road. It was again a short day today. Thank god as I my legs were still really sore from yesterday.

The road was not as flat as yesterday but we took each hill slowly and after about an hour or so we stopped for coffee at a little bar that overlooked the lake. We didn't realise just how high we had climbed. The water was a long way below us. That only meant one thing - a decent - as Como, our final destination was right on the water.

Not long after coffee - like 5 or so kms we rolled into Como. What a beautiful little town. We rode to a piazza near the water where we found a restaurant. We grabbed lunch and enjoyed the fact that the ride was over and we would be heading to Verona.

After a very relxing long lunch we had a look around town. We were checking our some post cards when Cam was approached by a journalist and we were asked some questions about our travels and what we thought of the lake Como area, they finished the interview off with some pictures and a promise to send the article to us when it is finished.

We rode to the train station and caught a train to Milan and then onto Verona.


Click here to see some pics

Chianti Regon

Monday - Florence to Greve in Chianti

We got up early and hit the road. We are doing the ride that we missed when Cam got bitten by the bug. Our destination today is Greve in Chianti. The Chianti region is famous for its Chianti wines and olives.

The landscape is no where near as pretty as the other parts of Tuscany but it was stil pretty.

The ride was only 35km and we arrived in Greve at around lunchtime. We went straight to the tourist office to find some accommodation. We ended up staying in a small hotel with a pool - oh the hard life....

After checking in and dumping our stuff we hoped back on the bikes to take a side trip to the highly recommended Abbey at Bagia di Passignana. The road climbed, very steeply at first, and then eased up slightly. Our first stop was the quaint hilltop town of Montefioralle, from there we climbed for another 8kms. To give you an ideaof the pain - it was about 35 degrees and the climb varied between 8 and 10% grade.

Once we arrived at the Abbey there was NOTHING to see. The Abbey apparently is not open to the public anymore and if it is then it is a secret entrance. Needless to say neither Cam or I were happy campers. : (

On the bright side we had a great decent back down into Greve.

After showering and grabbing a bite to eat we headed over to Le Cantine, a wine cellar, for some local wine tasting. The cellar is set up in a very unique way. You purchase a wine tasting card - we bought the €25 card, then you work your way around the cellar. There are 7 banks with around 10 to 12 different variety of wines. You put your card in a slot and choose the wine you wish to sample. Each wine has a cost and this is deducted from your wine card. The prices ranged from €0.40 to well over €7.00 per taste. We average around €1.80 - €2.00 but splurged out and spent €5.00 on a taste from a bottle that was worth €104.00.

After purchasing an awesome desert wine - our reward for the day we climb Passo dello Stelvio, we headed back to the hotel for our much deserved swim and chill out.

Tuesday - Greve in Chianti to Monteriggioni

We were up and on the road by about 9.30am - we were heading for Siena, where we would catch the train back to Florence.

The first part of the day was a long slow climb upto Panzano in Chianti. Once there the road took us down to the valley floor where we then climbed upto Radda in Chianti - this part of the ride was pretty and the climb was easy.

Once in Radda we had a bit of a look around before grabbing some lunch.

After lunch we rode along the ridgeline to Castellina in Chianti. This section of the ride was a lot faster and more enjoyable then we anticipated. We arrvied in Castellina early and as a result we grabbed a coffee and tossed up the idea of changing our route slightly.

From Castellina we decended for about 10kms or more - what a hoot!! We were heading for Monteriggioni, a small walled city sitting on top of a hill. The town was tiny - we rode from one side to the other in less than a minute. The main wall still entirely surrounds the village and on fridays you can walk around the top of the wall. This gives you a whole new meaning to lets go for a walk around town....

From there we rode back down to the train station and caught the train back to Florence.

Click here to see the pics

Florence and Pisa

Our first time travelling on the trains with our bikes still built. All went really well. It was way less stressful on both body and mind.

Once we arrived in Florence we headed straight to the campsite which just so happens to have one of the best views of Florence. The campground sits in an olive grove on the side of one of the hills surrounding Florence.

We set up camp and headed to the on site pub for some beers and a chill out. While we were there we watched a rain storm coming in from Siena and dump for about 5 mins (just enough to cool it down)before clearing right up again.

Saturday

We got up and had our regular coffee before hitting the town on foot.

We started from Piazza Michaelangelo, which has the best view of the city (I conceed it is better than the view from the campsite - but only just).

From there we walked down into town and to the main Catherdal. You've gotta hand it to the Italians - they really know how to do gawdy! We climbed the 427 steps to the cupola (dome) - what an awesome view.

From the church we wondered around Florence visiting the various piazza's and spots of interest including; the famous Porte Vacchio - jewelery, the street markets. We wondered up past the Boboli Gardens and Palazza Pitti in San Niccolo on the long way back to the campsite.

Sunday

We got up and on the move early this morning. Our destination was to see 'David' and we were not prepared to wait in line for hours. The Musee opened at 8.15am so we arrived at 7.30am and were about 10th in line.

David is very impressive - he stands 513cm and was carved out of a single piece of marble that wasn't deemed suitable for the Catherdal. The detail is amazing - the veins in his right hand, the creases in his knuckle joints. The wait in line was totally worthwhile.

Once we had finished looking around the Museum we dediced that as it was still early and the weather was awesome that we would jump on a train and head to Pisa.

When you think of Pisa you think of the leaning tower, however, the tower, a campanile (bell tower) for the Catherdal is only one of 2 buildings that are actually leaning. The 2nd being the Baptistry - the lean on the baptistry is only slight. So much so that I thought I was imagining it. It wasn't until we were back in the campsite that we learned that the Baptistry also has a lean.

The whole complex is so beautful. I thought that the Catherdal was actually a lot more interesting than the leaning tower. The way it was built and the colours of the marble used. It was beautiful without going over the top.

After grabbing an awesome lunch at a roadside cafe we jumped back on the train and headed back to Florence.

Click here to see some pics

Quick update

We are currently ruffing it in a nice hotel in Bormio.

We are spending the mornings riding to peaks over 2600 metres and getting snowed on - and the afternoons (warming up) watching the LIVE coverage of the Tour.....

We are on the road again tomorrow and heading downhill to the Northern Lakes district (Lake Como).

We will provide a proper update of our trip when we have access to cheap internet.

Hope everyone is fine back home and in Canada.

Stay tuned for more info and some AWESOME photos....

Ciao