August 6, 2022
Reflections.
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Now that we are home, there is no trace that we have been on a trip at all. The bikes are out of their boxes and have been reassembled, the panniers have been stored away, the washing has been done; and life back home in Vancouver quickly slips back into our normal daily routine. We both are left now to reminisce about our shared adventure, and we are grateful for our photos, this journal and for our memories that serve as reminders of another wonderful tour.
And, now that our trip has come to its conclusion, this might be a good time to wrap this journal up.
Let's start with an update with that tick bite, shall we? As you recall, I discovered the wretched little bugger on the inside of my right knee at the top of Passo Fedaia. A few days later, I began to feel fatigued and developed a nasty headache. Of course, these symptoms all could have been attributed to the extreme heat, or my imagination, but I wasn't going to take any chances of allowing a lifetime illness like Lyme Disease to potentially develop. After some 'Googling', it looked like the course of treatment was a round of antibiotics. So, I walked over to the local pharmacy in Tessara to ask if I could get antibiotics without a doctor's prescription here in Italy.
No luck. Fortunately, Sue found a website called DoctorsinItaly where, for a 75 Euro fee, I could meet a doctor online at a scheduled time. Easy. So, at the scheduled time, the doctor called and a prescription for antibiotics was emailed to me. I'm on a three week round of anti-biotics, and am happy to report that I feel just fine.
We are also happy to report that the trip home went smoothly as well. We arrived at Marco Polo Airport early, checked in, passed through security and headed to the lounge for a couple of hours before our flight. What we didn't anticipate was the fact that we still had to go through a second level of security called Passport Control. If it were not for the reminder on the departures display, we would not have known and, as a consequence, we could have made things very complicated for ourselves. While we were in the lounge, we looked online about what this was all about, and read about the nightmare line ups, and the horror stories about people missing their flights. Many people online were critical of this extra step in security, and considered it to be a useless bureaucratic hurdle. Regardless, it put us into 'haste-mode'. So, we cut our lounge time short, and thought we better get through this process sooner rather than later.
There was no lineup, and we passed through Passport Control without any delays. But, we soon realized that in our haste to get through PC, we now found ourselves in a crowded, hot and cramped gate (without amenities) for the next two hours, and we cursed ourselves for leaving the free food, free drink and comfort of the lounge so early. Better safe than sorry.
Our flight out of Venice was delayed by an hour, but we were soon off for the 9.5 hour flight to Toronto, after which we had a three hour layover before another 5 hour flight to Vancouver. It was a long travel day, and anyone who travels to Europe from the West Coast of North America has experienced the pleasure of this added travel time and distance. Again, a long day of travel.
What is odd about travelling west, is the fact that we never did see the night sky. When we left Venice at 2pm it was, of course, daytime, and when we landed in Vancouver the sun was just setting. We chased the sun across the sky all the way home.
We must admit, that we love to go away, but we also love coming home too. There is nothing like seeing our local mountains, breathing the fresh and cool ocean air, and sitting having coffee and making breakfast in our own home. But, we must admit that we do miss the incredible hotel breakfasts so so much.
So. What are our take-aways from this trip?
As we mentioned, this was our first trip where we stayed exclusively in hotels instead of camping; and it was wonderful in so many ways. Here is a list just to serve as a reminder for us:
- Lighter bikes
- Comfort/better sleeps/quieter/more rested
- BREAKFASTS!
- Ease of charging electronics
- More time and comfort to write the journal
- Location: Hotels are close to the center of villages instead of campgrounds, often found outside of them.
- Security-we could easily leave valuables/gear/bikes in the hotel
- Air conditioning
Important Add ons:
- Aperol Spritz and appertivo snack time.
- Early morning walks.
- The feeling of getting to the top of a pass.
- Wildflowers, butterflies, beetles and bugs.
- Smooth tarmac.
- The soaring Dolomiti mountains
- Getting through Passo Cereda construction zone.
- Sitting under an umbrella in a piazza watching people.
- Gelato and Pizza.
- The gear ratio on Sue's bike.
- Distressed buildings, medieval lanes, walled towns and cobbled streets.
- Terrazzo floors.
- The drone of the Cicadas.
- Stifling 42 degree weather.
- Apples, Kiwi, Grapes, Pears, Apricots, Peaches, Nectarines.
- The Adige.
- Spending time together.
- And, of course the coo of the Wood Pigeon
We will add more items to add to this list as we think about them, but for now, this is a good start.
Our two year absence from travelling made going away this year extra special, and we are so very grateful for having had the opportunity to do this once again. We are also grateful that we are home safe, and that the trip really could not have gone any more smoothly. Not even a flat or a mechanical. What more could one ask for, eh? Finally, I have the best travel companion and life-long pal, my best friend. Susanna. The heart, brains and planner behind this whole trip. And, I take on the all too underrated role of influencer, instigator, and 'flame under the butt' motivator.
So. Thanks for following along. We have very much enjoyed the comments we have received, and the encouraging hearts for our photos from family, friends and the Cycle Blazer community. Now, we look forward to reading other cycle touring journals for inspiration. Where to next year?
Patrick and Susanna
Some parting reminder shots. A quick re-cap of the trip in images. I chose *one photo per day for the following shots.
*with some exceptions
And, a special Sláinte goes to Muppy and Pappy for making this trip that little bit more comfortable for us. Love you guys.
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When I was a young man (I turn 80 in October) I got tick bite fever and I had a shocking headache for several days.
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