A Pile of Old Ruins !

I slept so well last night in the silence of the corn field and awoke to an unfamiliar dawn chorus of different bird songs just as the sky lit up in a refrain of last nights sunset; what a way to start a day. I was up breakfasted, cleanup and packed for another early start on the road before the heat of the day began to make itself felt.

Overnight I had made a decision that was to change my course somewhat; Pompei was only a couple of hours away… well on straight roads anyway, and that was to be today’s destination. What a disappointment that turned out to be after the glory of Assisi. Now if you’d asked me in advance which I was most looking forward to I would undoubtedly have answered Pompei. I’ve always loved wandering around roman remain, you can imagine the Roman empire in all it’s might still strutting around, doing what Romans did! But Pompei lacks anything of the grandeur and splendour of other sites I have visited; it is simply a dead city. The authorities, who are happy to relieve you of your 11 euros have done nothing to help to bring it to life for the thousands who come through the gates. Yes, it has a magnificent Amphitheatre, but with much of it behind locked gates, the only other feature for me was it’s vastness. OK, there was the odd little bit of mosaic, the odd bit of fresco but overall I felt it completely lacked any form of presentation. Oh, I’m sure scholars of Roman remains will decry my lack of enthusiasm but for Joe Public who in his tens of thousands supports the project with his 11 Euro, little has been done to bring it to life.

So I left Pompei with feelings of better things to come to look for a camp site… Ah, well, yes, they don’t seem to do camping around this area. A quick look at the map and I spotted Amafi, right on the coast. I knew the name but that was all. There followed the most hair-raising ride of my life! Now I’m quite used to hairpin bends (or switchbacks as my Canandian friends call them), I’ve ridden more over the last few weeks than you can shake a stick at! But mix that with a narrow road with a vertical rock wall on one side, a sold stone wall on the other; and half of Italy’s maniac drivers on both 2 and 4 wheels all fighting for supremacy as though it were the Monaco Grand Prix… No Thanks, I actually chickened out half way along and headed for the mountains. Amazingly I didn’t see a single accident; so many near misses I lost count, but not one single bump, scrape or fatality , amazing!

Anyway, change of tactic, jumped on the motorway and got out of town. That got me back to quiet hillsides and more cornfields… which is where I am again camped tonight watching yet another fabulous sunset… Day done!

Now I'll head for Greece!

       

Prayers at Assisi

If you’re going to start the day with a prayer, then I guess praying at the tomb of St Francis of Assis must rate amongst the top geezers to pray to… not that I do a lot of praying you understand, but when I found myself confronted with the tomb the emotions of the week sort of took over I guess. The is second anniversary of the death of my son rapidly approaching; that together with all the emotional goodbyes this week had left me feeling a little lost so perhaps prayers might help on both counts! So there I was in a most unfamiliar pose, head bowed in front of the tomb of the man himself ! I reserve judgement on the effectiveness of such sillyness…

Anyway, up with the lark, I arrived in Assisi at 8am well before most of the tour groups had even breakfasted and believe me it was well worth it! I practically had the place to myself, yes, even the Basilica…and the tomb !  It wasn’t until about 9.30 that the main throng started to manifest itself. Another big plus point for Assisi is that all the Basilicas are completely free of admission charge. The only exception to this was the castle for which I was charged a modest 5 Euro… Barcelona please note. A couple of hours just flew by especially once I got chatting to a couple of young American girls at the castle about the Scoots Project… I’m not sure how the conversation got there, but it tured out that they were both doctors and one of them was just desperate for a charity placement in Africa… I might also have even persuaded her to learn to ride a motorbike!!! All in all Assisi is a place I would heartily recommend, especially to any photographers, it really is picture postcard beautiful ( well before the hoards of tourists arrive anyway!)

Once on the road I headed south east, but without the help of my trusty GPS as I’d managed to muck up the mapping last night, so it was back to good old paper maps.. not too bad when it’s dry and not too windy.

leaving Assisi I headed off North east(ish) heading in the rough direction of Bari, camp site weren’t just scarce, they were non existent.. So I did what I love best about travelling; I found a beautiful spot at the edge of a cornfield to set up camp, far enough from the road that I couldn’t be seen and watched the sky explode in a magnificent sunset as I sipped a glass odd the red Vino…

 

This is turning into a week of goodbyes ! After an emotional goodbye on Monday night, this morning I said good bye to two of the best travelling companions I have ever had ! Yes, Taz & Joel have headed off in one direction and me in another. As said to them this morning there were a thousand reasons to go and a thousand reason to stay... I have loved abs olutelyevery minute of the time we have spent together over the last three weeks; I don't think I have laughed so much for years! But even good things have to end sometime and this morning felt the right time to end on a high. We had enjoyed a fanastic night of hospitality with our host Jason at  the Villa San Rocco in Tuscany, it was a real dream meeting... but that was yet another Goodbye... I shall miss them all; Joel's dry humour, Taz's smile (and her Indian cooking !!!) and Jason's easy hospitality... All very special people.

So today has been spent riding through Tuscany and into Umbria in a somewhat melancholy mood, on my own once again with my thoughts, heading south. I am now camped just outside Assisi...  perhaps hoping for a little inspiration and guidance from St Francis ?
Tomorrow I head on towards Bari and the ferry for Greece, not sure yet if it is going to be Igoumenitsa or Patra but I think Patra is probably going to get the vote simply because I haven't sailed to there before !

Assisi



Its fascinating this travelling lark! We stopped off at a supermarket in a little town yesterday for food supplies… something we seem to do a couple of times each day. On emerging back out onto the quite intense heat we found a young man stood by the bikes waiting for us. Jason has been living in the area for the last 4 years whilst working on a ‘heap of stones’ that his father had bought a few years ago. After a brief conversation he invited us to come and stay with his family and perhaps camp in the garden. Directions were given and whilst Jason ran a few errands we ambled slowly up the hillside to the village of Benabbio to grab a cold drink at the local Pizzeria whilst awaiting his return. We then followed on up a small side turning the aforementioned ‘heap of stones’ which is in fact a beautifully restored 10 bedroomed baroque mansion!

It is in fact still an ongoing project, but it is truly a place worthy of a Grand Designs programme; all the more so when Jason then informs us that this is his families first DIY project… WOW!

Having met the family and friends currently involved on the work including 1 month old daughter Dario, we are then told that rather than camp in the garden, they have rooms for us… the surprises just go on and on.

So grand tour, shower, glass of wine and chat then of back down to the pizzeria for the best pizza I have ever tasted washed down with ample quantities of red wine and ice cold water followed by a couple of big bowls of ice cream which were passed round and round the table of six until empty…and all for the princely sum on 10 Euro… once again WOW!

So here I sit watching a magnificent sunrise on another perfect Tuscan day and pondering what next! The plan was to head further across towards Ancona today for the ferry to Split but I’ll see what transpire after breakfast.  

Bardi must be one of Italy’s best kept secrets ! I only heard about it from Leno Conti at Conti’s Café in Lampeter. I had never realised that most of the Italians in Wales came from this one little corner until I mentioned over a coffee one day that I was heading for Italy whilst en-route to an Horizons Unlimited meeting in Greece. With that he popped up stairs and came back with a book all about the Italian migration to Wales which I found fascinating… So here we were, the three of us in this little heard of town in the middle of… well, nowhere really and what a revelation it was.

The first sight that greats you as you approach, no matter what direction you come from is the fortress; over 1000 years old, it totally dominates the landscape. As you enter the town you are greeted by an impressive town square complete with fountain. Not one but two beautiful churches and a small, neat little town that you just can’t help falling in love with.

In fact we all liked it so much that it was decided that we would stay at a camp site fairly close by so that we could spend a few more hours visiting the fortress and just enjoying the general ambiance of the place. Whilst I was sitting in the square relaxing with an ice cream I noticed a couple of guys looking at our bikes, the older man seemed particularly interested in mine so I wandered over to say “hello”. I guess it shouldn’t have come as a surprise when he spoke with a Welsh accent (as did the younger one!). It turned out I was speaking to one of very people that had inspired my curiosity about Bardi; one Angelo Antoniazzi formerly of Aberystwyth, whilst the younger man was the a son of the Rossi family from Llandore, Swansea… There was also a young lady from Cardiff working in the tourist information office. A fascinating conversation ensued for the next half hour of so before we had to kit up for our ride down to the coast.

Tonight we are camped quite close to the Mediterranean coast at Moneglia on a typically overprice, over crowded Italian camp site where we are staying for two nights whilst we do the “tourist” bit at the Cinque Terre just along the coast from us. One bonus of the site is that it does have free WiFi, a swimming pool and ice cold beers !!!

Saturday 23^rd June,

Arrived in Italy yesterday via the Grand St. Bernard Pass. After a night of severe storms and heavy rain the day had dawned heavy, with low cloud and high humidity, but whilst partaking of a leisurely breakfast the sky slowly started to improve. So by the time we were ready to move off at about 9am the cloud was broken by lots of nice blue patches and it continued to improve all day, culminating with temperatures in the very high 30s by mid afternoon.

The riding was spectacular for this our third day in the Alps. We had gone against tradition and ridden the Grande Route Des Alps from south to north which had been quite beneficial to us as most of the crutch rockets and cyclists were going the other way so we had a relatively easy and hassle free ride. Hairpin bend after Hairpin bend.. climb after climb.. stunning vistas at every degree of the compass. Although I have been through the Alps a few time, with the exception of the Grand St Bernard Pass road we didn’t ride  single road that I had previously ridden.

After years of riding without, I seem to have finally convinced Joel of the dubious benefits of GPS !!! Although not without some trials and tribulations !!! Yesterday was our longest days ride by far with camp sites few and far between in this area of northern Italy we ended up finding a suitable wild camp (another first for the indubitable duo!) but not until about 6.30pm. Whilst not perfect it had the advantage of being right by a river so we were all able to take a nice cooling plunge before dinner.

So today we head across toward Bardi to seek out the families of the “Welsh Italians” and the weather is again looking good !

Friday 15^th June.

What a superb day, after a wonderful “last supper” with our hosts Kathy and Alfonso last night; an evening of good food, good wine, good music and great company, we took out leave of them this morning to start our run down towards Greece. We have a little over 4 weeks before the Horizons meeting at which both Joel and I are due to present. So no rush or pressure, time for a gentle meander across the south of France, stopping wherever the fancy takes us.

Taz and Joel really are great, stress free travelling companions with wonderful  senses of humour, I cant remember when I last laughed so much ! Our days run was only about 240 Km but the roads were supeb, twisty and up and down the mountains. I really wouldn’t have wanted to travel faster, not least I wouldn’t have had the chance to see so much of the scenery. Tonight we are camping on the edge of Provence and tomorrow we head further across towards Italy but it may take us the rest of the week as we take in the sights and ride some of the smaller roads through the hills and mountains. 

 

Today has been a really great day

 Still at the “House sit” in northern Spain, Taz, Joel and I took the train into Barcelona to do the Sightseeing bit. Now cities are something I tend to steer well clear of, but I’m aware that I do miss out on a lot of interesting stuff as a result. This idea of letting the train take the strain was again, something new… and I must say something of a revelation. Barcelona is amazing and certainly worthy of far more time spending on some of the spectacular sites and sights! Yes this is a city that I will returning to at some point with someone special. T see in greater detailk the amazing Gaudi buildings and especially the Cathedral. The huge market right in the center of the city is also somewhere I will want to spend more time trying out a few more of the many delicacies on offer. This was all topped off by our hosts putting on a very special dinner party for us, having cooked a Catalonian fish dish, Suquette; a fish stew…wonderful and washed down with a nice bottle of bubbly. What a day!

Tomorrow will be our last day of staying with these lovely people… it’s time to move on. Friday morning will see the three of us back on the road heading round the coast to France and then on to Italy and beyond.  As much as the hospitality here has been wonderfull, it will be good to be back in the tents and self-sufficient.

 I'll try to get some pics sorted tomorrow.

A nice relaxing day yesterday including a swim, sauna and steam room at the local Hilton spa, GPS arrived and spent the rest of the afternoon trying to get the maps from  Open Street Maps downloaded onto it. It was then rounded off with a Chinese meal in honour of Helens birthday which was last week and forgotten by me as usual.

The wind was really kicking up as I reloaded the bike for the run to Ashford to catch the train to France. Watching the sea as I rode through Hastings I was quite pleased not to be crossing by ferry this time. I hadn’t heard anything but the wind and waves were that strong I would not be surprised if some of the sailing were cancelled, and more delays I could definitely do without ! The ride was thankfully uneventful inspite of having a constant battle against the wind which make the riding quite tiring. The cross was as ever, fast and efficient, on a calm day |I still think the ferry is a

much nicer start to a trip but for today I’m just pleased to be in France and on my way south at long last. Ran down the coast to Boulogne being battered by the huge gusts blowing in from the channel. I stayed off the motorway for most of the run as the route national 901 is a far more interesting ride and also a little more sheltered (but not much today). So tonight I’m camped at an Aire at ther back of a picnic site, reasonably sheltered by tall hedges on three sides and more or less hidden from view unless someone pokes their nose around the corner. Dinner consisted of the last of my home made quiche with some egg fried rice and very tasty it was, all the more so as I hadn’t eaten since breakfast, although that is not unusual for me when on a road trip.

Total   mileage 218

Day 4 (3^rd days riding)

Total mileage approx 380 Problems with GPS i.e. routing and lack of power made accurate mileage impossible.

Stopped about 40 miles north of Claremont Ferrand, weather was closing in and wanted to get camp set up before rain started. Made it… just! Spotted a tiny sign by the side of the road and followed about 3km of little winding lane to one of the best camp site locations I’ve ever been to. Completely isolated with only a couple of caravans on site and several acres of rough, grassed woodland in which to pitch. All looks a little run down, but the facilities all work and are spotless; good enough for me! Dinner was chopped up bacon and onion with a bag of rice, all topped off with some grated cheese…Ooo I do know how to live it up when I’m on the road! Now just relaxing listening to the gentle rain from heaven falling softly on the earth below! Oh yes, and enjoying just a very small nip of finest malt… can’t see it lasting long at this rate but it is nice after a long ride whist relaxing!

May make it to Taz & Joel tomorrow if the weather is kind to me, or may be a little short; either way it’s not a problem as I have all the time in the world.

Well, the weather was not kind to me… no not at all! It started with a little drizzle as |I pack the wet kit away and steadily got worse all day. As I was riding across the Central Massive it was also damn cold and just to add to my misery it was also mistly once above about 2000ft, which I was most of the day. I even detoured to see the famous Millau Bridge but all I saw were clouds… from the inside!

So I just kept riding, working on the principle that if I got far enough south it must improve mustn’t it ?  And at 4.25pm precisely I saw my first glimpse of blue sky, not enough to make a sailors trousers, as my mother used to say, but blue it was and shortly after I ran out of the rain. It was 402 miles on the clock by the time I found my stopping place, rather inappropriately called “My Fun”; the bar was shut, the pool was shut and they wanted 9 Euros for the WiFi… hence no blog last night! OK, I admit I’m a cheap skate but I simply refuse to pay for WiFi in this day and age; not least I can get a Big Mac for less and all the WiFi I can eat!!!

So I didn’t make to Taz & Joel that was another 100 miles later and a new day.

Omens ???

Not an auspicious start to what is potentially my longest ever solo trip! OK, I wont be on my own all of the way, but I have no idea how long Taz and Joel will be able to put up me yet, so it could still be a long way on my own.

After spending the weekend and early part of the week trying  (and failing!)to identify an electrical problem on the bike which is causing the battery to go flat whilst using my twin HID spots, only 10 minutes from home it became apparent that my GPS was not picking up the satellites very well. I also realised that the anti-glare coating on the screen was breaking up yet again !!! Yes this is the 3^rd Garmin 2610 that I have had this happen to, the previous ones had been replaced under warranty but this one, purchased second hand on eBay, was well past it’s “repair by” date. On top of that the nice dry, sunny weather I had woken up to at 5am had been replaced by … rain and lots of it. Oh yes a great start to my trip!

A quick stop at Brecon to Cotswold  Outdoor found me making another discovery, Cotswolds were no longer supporting the Scooters in the Sahara Project with a nice fat discount and at their full retail prices an nice new Garmin Montana was somewhat out of my budget.  However help was at hand; a quick call to those nice guys at Adventure Spec saw a new Montana winging its way to meet up with at niece Helen’s place by overnight courier.

As I’d previously ordered some new alternator bits from Motorworks to meet me there, I’d already changed my Eurotunnel crossing from Thursday to Friday afternoon as “just in case” time so that gives me today to sit out the rain (hopefully!) in nice comfortable surrounding with good company and also to play with and set up the new GPS when it arrives.

So first day on the road and as usual the unexpected bites. No big drama though and if that’s the worst I encounter you won’t hear any complaints from me!

Otherwise the ride down was uneventful other than lots and lots of heavy traffic, but then that’s fairy usual along the south coat. The bike is handling like a complete pig and I may well have to re-think my loading strategy. I’ve always carried the relatively heavy cooking kit in the front panniers to help offset the weight of the boxes at the rear, but the front feels very unsettled and vague, and the Airhead is not exactly renowned for it’s handling at the best of times. However, I’ll probably leave it until my first nights camping when hopefully the weather might be a little warmer and drier and everything will have to be unloaded anyway… Meanwhile another cup of tea beckons !   

It's Saturday morning 1st June and at last I'm about ready to roll. Bike is all serviced, loaded and reasonably clean !!! Open Street Maps are all down loaded both to lap top and GPS, so hopefully with that and the pile of maps that I have packed I should be able to find my way to Dover!!!!  Well, Folkstone actually as I'm crossing by Chunnel; it seems to be the best value at the moment, although knowing my luck by the time I depart it will have changed !

So the million dollar question, when do I hit the road? I reckoned that Bank Holiday weekend would not be a good starting point. Jubilee or no Jubilee. Roads too crowded, too many complete numpties and prices on channels crossing much higher. Also, I'm not due down to Girona in Northern Spain until about the 11th/12th June so plenty of time to do what is in reality only a two day ride. A few loose ends to sort out before departure seems to make Wednesday or Thursday sensible options.. I'll just have to take a little chill pill over the weekend and see what transpires; however it's going to be a very long weekend as I just can't wait to get on the open road!