Po River Bike Ride

The Po is Italy's biggest river.  You know it when you see it because it is so much wider than any other.  It flows through a very flat valley in the northern part of Italy.  For bike riding, the operative word here is FLAT.  None of the constant Tuscan hill climbing, in other words.

We did two previous European bike rides organized by Eileen Sanford through the San Diego Council of Ski Clubs.  Since this year's ride was nearby, we arranged to hook up with the group for the first two days of their bike & boat trip down the Po.  On Saturday of Easter weekend we schlepped our bikes to Mantova and met up with the group for the first night's dinner.

The merry folk of the good ship Ave Maria

The morning of the first day's ride was cold with a threat of rain, but the San Diego skiier/bikers were undeterrred, although *some* *people* did not get the memo about red jackets.

Trip leader Eileen and Mike survey the group readying for the first ride.

Caffe break

Day One was a ride in a loop through Mantova, out into the countryside, then back to the boat.  The major stop was at the Sanctuario della Beata delle Grazie in the comune of Curatone, 9 km outside of Mantova.  This church is famous for the stuffed crocodile that has been hanging from the ceiling since the 15th century.  It was Easter Sunday morning and mass was in progress when we got there.  We were able to go in the packed church for a while, but of course could not take pictures of Croc.

Exterior details of Sanctuario della Beata delle Grazie

By midday the weather improved, making for a pleasant ride back to the boat through agricultural fields along a series of canals that parallel the Mincio River, which flows into the Po.

After the ride, it was time for a happy hour, shower and clothes change, and dinner; a time to renew old friendships from previous rides, and make new ones. 

Donny, Chris Gill, Pip

Ron, Pip, Barbara

Bernie, Jim, (sorry we didn't catch your name!), Judy, Chris Polta

The schedule for Day Two was for the boat to motor down to the little town of Governolo where the Mincio meets the Po, arriving around 9am to start the bike ride.  Since we had our car and were not staying onboard, our plan was to get up early and drive down the short 15 km to Governolo.  No problem, right?  Well, not quite that easy.  We always allow for getting lost when going somewhere in Italy for the first time, and Monday morning was no exception.  We finally got to the river in Governolo about a quarter past 9 and...no boat!  Are we in the wrong place?  Did they get there early and take off without us?  And our bikes are on the boat!  We drove a short ways up and down, and talked to a few locals to whom we couldn't get across the idea we were looking for a big boat with lots of bikes.  It really was not that long, however, when the Ave Maria came around the bend and moored.  Our momentary panic was forgotten as we geared up for Ride Number Two.

And Day Two was a beautiful day.  We rode half-way with the group to the coffee break spot, said our good-byes to old friends and new, and then had a sublime ride back to our car.

The mighty Po

Spring fever?

Primavera

After what for us Californians was a long cold (but not lonely;-) winter, spring has spectacularly sprung in Italy.  

All of the photos in this post were taken between March 29 and April 9.

One of the first blossoms to appear is Forsythia, unmistakable by its abundant bright yellow flowers.

Bulbs are popping too.  Daffodils...

Tulips...

Including this unusual (for us) multicolored tulip:

We really got into the spring swing on the first Friday in April.  Our friend Paola Salvioni invited us to her family's country house to help prune her olive trees.  She has 250 of them; we probably did a dozen.

The Happy Pruners

Everywhere you go in Italy you see tall slim poplar trees planted in rows, in various stages of growth.  They are grown for paper pulp and are clear-cut harvested after 16 years.  Bare sticks all winter, they now are starting to leaf out.

We are used to yellow and pink poppies so the deep red ones that grow along all the roads here were a surprise.

And now dear followers of our blog, it is time for another contest.  You must think I have lost my mind after the underwhelming response to the last contest, but here it is:  We see not one, but two different kinds of flowering trees that we refer to as yellow puffballs, and have no idea what they are.  So the contest is:  Identify the yellow puffballs from the following mug shots.  The winner will get an honorary degree in horticulture from the Tanya Keener Botanical Gardens, Crawford, Colorado.  And, no Tanya, you cannot enter the contest because we need someone who has a clue to be the judge.

Yellow Puffballs number 1:

and yellow puffballs number 2:

To close by bringing it back home, the road to our place is lined with small plants with profuse flowers (at right), while some of the trees have turned out to be fruit trees that have burst into bloom.

Spring is wonderful just about everywhere, and for us it is especially wonderful in il nostro anno italiano.

Austrian Ski Weekend

It was four years ago, when our year in Italy was just a vague concept, that we had dinner with Dave Kaufman and Keena Butcher.  They were preparing to move to Aviano in northeastern Italy for Keena's work, and we agreed then that when we moved to Italy, we would get together and go skiing.  We finally made good on our vow on the last weekend in March.  On Friday we took the train to a town near them and spent the night at their lovely apartment, immediately making friends with their cat Daisy.  Since the calendar had moved into spring, Dave suggested that we forego some of the local mountains and make the two-hour trek to Nassfeld, just over the border in Austria.

Phone cameras are great when you don't want to lug the big camera around, but it is hard to get the subject lighting right when the background is dazzling white.

Gary, Carmen, Dave:  Action Ski Club, Divisione Italia

Lunch slopeside

On Sunday we made a point to take a long run down into the valley at Hermagor to Jokl's Hutte, which has a decor that is unique:

On the way back on Sunday afternoon, we stopped by Lake Barcis, a popular resort area known for the unique green color of the water.  Located in a valley carved out by a glacier, the color is due to the special glacial sediment.

Time flies when you are having fun.  We must be having fun, because it seems impossible that it was four years ago that we first talked with Dave and Keena about doing this.  We cannot thank them enough for hosting us in their home, driving us to and from Nassfeld, and guiding us on the slopes.  Mille grazie, Dave and Keena!

Palermo

Last installment of the Great Southern Italy Tour:-)

When Carmen's nephew Michael Murphy heard that we were going to Sicily, he insisted that we hook up with his second cousin-in-law, Liana D'Accardio who lives in Palermo.  We are so glad we did!  We got in touch with Liana, who very much wanted to take us on a tour of her city.

Carmen and Liana

Carmen had never met Liana before, so we felt funny about imposing on a total stranger.  Not to worry, we were treated as family.  We met Liana a few blocks from our hotel.  To find each other, the clue was:  red jackets;-)   We then started on a walking tour.

Our first stop was a nearby major intersection distinguished by nearly identical buildings with concave facades at the four corners.  The arrangement results in the sun shining progressively on all four facades during the day.  My impression is that the style of the statuary and decorations is distinctly Sicilian, as is the closeup of the gargoyle below.

Just around the corner was the Piazza Bellini with the Fontana Pretoria and two churches.  The fontana has a profusion of statues.  You can imagine them talking to each other...

The two churches next to the piazza offer an interesting contrast.  

Chiesa Santa Maria dell'Ammiraglio, informally La Martorana (left), commissioned by a Greek admiral in the service of the King of Sicily in 1143, has a strong Byzantine influence.  Another admiral, a Norman, wanted a church more to his culture's tastes so he commissioned the Chiesa di San Cataldo (right) in 1160.  The interior of San Cataldo is severe to an extreme.  The interior of La Martorana is anything but--every surface is painted with images and decorations.  Gold paint was used extensively.  Behold Carmen's photographic feast for the eyes:

the altar

Liana invited us to lunch at her apartment, and we drove over to her local district in town. We walked with her to the fruit and vegetable stand and individual shops where she bought bread, lunch meats, cheese, and pastries, at each stop chatting with neighbors and introducing us.  We could sense a buzz spreading around the little piazza, and by the time we got to her apartment, other neighbors were greeting her with "Ciao Liana, we hear you have two visitors from America."  It was a wonderful old-world village experience that you just can't plan or buy.

Liana's mother-in-law Teresa joined us for lunch.  She had visited the relatives in the U.S. and we talked with her about meeting them.  It was by far our longest conversation in our rudimentary Italian.

On Liana's balcony with Teresa

Our tour of Palermo continued after lunch.  Here are just a few more photos of things we enjoyed seeing.

Teatro Garibaldi

The world's largest magnolia tree!

Teatro Massimo

Sicilian ceramics

We cannot thank Liana enough for making our short visit to Palermo memorable, and Michael Murphy for putting us in touch with her!