I think I have got the hang of cycling in Italy. It goes like this...

There are bike lanes on a LOT of the roads. They can be on the left side of the street or the right side of the street, are usually separated from car traffic and run next to pedestrian lanes. Stay off the pedestrian lanes and stay on the right half of the bike portion, there is room for one to pass on either side. Riders of all abilities and speeds and bikes ride on them and there dont seem to be any issues. It is fine to pass a slower rider if there is space to pass. Nobody rings a bell or says, "on your left" before they pass, they just pass.

On city streets without bike lanes and on city sidewalks and town squares anything goes. Ride wherever, horizontal, vertical, diagonal, whatever, just pay attentiion. No one wigs out that you are on the sidewalk or on the street, it all seems perfectly normal and runs smoothly.

Dedicated bike lanes need no explanation.

I did have one encounter though. It happened today on the way to the hotel where I plan to spend a good amount of time doing nothing but lay around in the AC, watch the BBC and update the journal.

I was on a side street with a bike lane but the bike lane was blocked by a man who had parked his car in the bike lane in order to get out and test his drone (no I didnt make that last part up). I couldnt get passed on the bike lane so dropped down the curb to the street to ride past. Except I didnt know it was a one way street so a car came towards me in the other direction.

I didnt have time to lift my bike back on the curb so I stopped and leaned over so he had room to get by. But he didnt seem happy with that. In a serious of arm gestures that were what I think of as stereotypical Italian, he said something that was clearly something like, "Hey you idiot! What are you doing on the one way street!? Use the bike lane!?"

So I decided to arm gesture as well and gestured towards the guy with the drone and in my best English shouted, "Hey! He was in my way!"

Then in my best Italian, "Scusy!!"

I rode off and he must have accepted my explanation because he drove off in the opposite direction. I am guessing the drone guy got a good laugh.

Tomorrow I will take the train to Venice and have a looksee. See you then.