Italy continuum

After Rome things were just getting better and better.
As I arrived at the Gargano National Park, en route to the port of Bari, searching for the ideal campsite, I already knew that I would stay at least a couple of days. The evening sun was shining and the lagoons and sandy beaches I occasionally cought a glimpse of from the road on one side and the hills and forrests on the other were a welcome contrast to the numerous overcrowded cities I have visited in the last three weeks.
The Gargano by the Adriatic sea is relatively remote from the well-travelled areas which meant that the beaches were not crowded and the densely vegetated, mountainous Foresta Umbra was just  a short ride away. With my tent pitched no more than 80m from the beach, and with the best possible neighbours, I could't have picked a better spot. After the 6 days there (which were over before I knew it) I was sad to leave for Greece.

Here are some pictures from Italy. Don't I look great?

                                         

 

 

Italy

Until about three weeks ago I had an idealised view of Italy as a country of eternal sunshine and full of grand monuments. Instead, for the first week I found myself cought up in torrential rain for one day after another and to see the sights of interest usually required queuing up for hours and paying way too much.
Due to the heavy downpour my first stop after leaving the German speaking north was Cortina d' Ampezzo, only about 50km south of Brunnico. The next day I made it to Verona, which I found hugely overpriced and very touristy for the fact that there is nothing there but a balcony. In fact all of Italy is expensive! - subsistence costs are usually higher than in the UK! But then that's because I go to touristy places... So to begin with I was rather dissapointed but as I rode on my mood improved with the passing days and miles. Most of Italy is mountainous, so riding through is a joy. Some roads in the Alps and Tuscany were just wide enough for one lane and a brook and the views were fantastic!
I stayed in Tuscany for over a week with visits to medieval towns like Lucca, which was by far the most interesting due to its very charismatic historic centre hidden behind monumental Renaissance walls and its handsome alleyways and piazzas. The others, like San Gimignano, Voltera and Siena (which as legend has it was founded by the sons of Remus) now all seem to blend into one. They are almost the same and have been a little spoiled by tourism. Florence was well worth the day trip though, despite the inevitable high costs,  crowds and queuing. All of Italy's towns have numerous fountains with drinking water and most campsites, although double the price of Austria, have decent sized outdoor swimming pools which makes the evenings very pleasant.
I have arrived in Rome two days ago. It certainly is the highlight of Italy! Perhaps because I was not really in the mood for any more cities. But I am very impressed with Rome's monumental metropolis and the sheer amount of history packed so close together. I'll probably stay a couple more days and then head over to Bari to catch a Ferry to Greece.


The bike is proving to be a very versatile mode of transport when it's not raining. Most city centres have restricted access to cars but scooters and bikes are allowed and usually have designated free parking areas. As I sit on it almost daily now for over a month I am increasingly discovering its various uses. I have dried clothes on the silencer and warmed up canned food next to the cylinder head. To me at the moment it is the most important thing. It carries my bedroom, library, kitchen, bathroom and me to wonderful places in comfort and at my pace.


Connection is slow so I gave up on uploading pictures

Vienna-Krems-Melk-Salzkammergut-Salzburg and the mighty Großglockner Hochalpenstraße

I could live in Austria. The landscape is amazing and varied, the people friendly and helpful and it's in the middle and very close to everywhere else. There is a feeling that everything is well organised and so nothing could possibly go wrong. There was more bad weather than good on this trip so far, but luckily I could spend two evenings in the rainy Vienna with an old friend...(danke Eiko)
The sun was trying hard on the Sunday morning when leaving Vienna, and by the time I got to the Danube Valley, it came out in its full glory (which was most welcome).  The sudden change in the climate made me spend a very relaxing couple of days in the tranquil medieval towns of Krems and Melk just by the Danube, where I have gone swimming and also went to see Melk's very impressive Benedictine monastery.
I thought I would then spend a few days in Salzkammergut, Austria's lake District, but the weather turned against me once again and so just after one night I packed my soaking things and rode into Salzburg. I was craving a hot shower, some company and a lovely cup o' tea... And I got all that in a very lively hostel with a pleasant bar scene and very cheap beer too.
Salzburg, Mozart's hometown, is that cool, lively and small kind of a city with cobbled streets and baroque architecture, overshadowed by the Salzburg Fortress. Despite the crap weather there was a lot to do there. Especially as it is the kind of place where you bump into people you know from the hostel and then it's impossible not to go for a beer...or three..
Yesterday morning I left Salzburg, going south through the Tirol mountain range- and boy- what an experience!
The Grossglockner  High Alpine Road is the most famous Alpine road in the heart of the Hohe Tauern National Park and leads to the highest mountain in Austria- the Grossglockner (3,798m). The road was built in the 1930s and is now a cultural monunment. You have to pay €19 (€29 for cars) to ride through it, but in return the experience is an unforgetable 48km of high Alpine ride with 36 bends amongst cliffs, mountain forests, and snow capped mountains! Within minutes of entry into the park I was above the clouds and my ears were popping  with the change in pressure. I have never seen so many bikes at once either...
At the end of the road, in Heiligenblut I met two Czech bikers, who turned out to be great company for the day and just at the right time to share the experience! We rode together into Italy where the roads suddenly turned a little worse and the petrol more expensive. in Toblach we said our goodbyes and I rode a few more miles into Bruneck where I am now staying with a friend from Germany (diky Rene).

The main language in this part of Italy still seems to be German, as this used to be part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Signs are in both Italian and German and people seem to be speaking both.

You're up to date, and I am gonna get some Pizza, or Schnitzel... oh- and it's raining again