On Wednesday, the 19th of April, I rode out from the Locanda della Franciacorta to Giovanna’s house, 13 km away. Giovanna then led me on a pastoral ride on the Paratico bike path to Lake Iseo. The path was mostly gravel and dirt, but the only tough grades were downhill. Continue reading
Holy Saturday brought clouds and afternoon thundershowers. Emauele and Olmo went out during the day, but basically, we all worked indoors. I read and wrote; my hostess did chores and read. It felt good to rest, and to turn in early. Continue reading
On Tuesday morning, I set out for Pavia, but when I crossed the Po leaving Piacenza, I changed my mind and decided to head for the Adda River and get on with my trip. The knee still hurt, but I studied my leg movement, and determined that the fit on my new pedals was wrong. I stopped just over the river, and adjusted the cleat so that my right foot could point outward more naturally. That seemed to make a big difference, so that I was able to ride back along the left bank of the Po (opposite the side I rode from Cremona) to the confluence of the Adda River. Continue reading
Palm Sunday morning, the sun bathed my shoulders as I walked to the high spots of downtown Cremona. The town was smaller than I expected from the night before; before long, I was several blocks past the Violin Museum run by the Stradivari Foundation, and doubling back. The air felt fresh and traffic was almost non-existent. Continue reading
Friday dawned sunny and cool, but warmed as I rode the Piana Padana to Modena and then to the little town of Rolo near the Po River. I wore my short-sleeved pilgrim’s bicycle jersey, but long pants. My hosts would not be home until 1830, so I had time to stop in Modena at the Enzo Ferrari Museum, a modern complex built around the famous car designer’s birthplace. Continue reading
On Saturday, April Fool’s Day, I shut off the water, closed the gas bottle under the sink, opened the main power to the flat, and locked the door. After dropping the key in the mailbox, 
I rode to World Bike Formia for a final farewell to Vincenzo and Benedetta, and to pick up the WBF cap that they had waiting for me. Then I stopped by Tempo Prezioso for another quick farewell. River Run 2017 was about to begin. Continue reading
Trip update: This week has featured visitors. I hosted Couchsurfers Agus and Santi from Argentina, then Warmshowers guests Harrie and Dianne from the Netherlands. Very interesting and wonderful people in very different ways.
I am very glad that I decided to open my little flat in Formia to the Couchsurfing and Warmshowers communities. There has been a healthy demand (at least someone every week), and the travellers coming through have enriched my life. Continue reading
Two weeks ago, I changed my status and profile on the Warmshowers (www.warmshowers.org) and Couchsurfing (www.couchsurfing.com) websites. I have been “unavailable to host” since leaving Charlottesville almost two years ago. I decided to try hosting in my totally inadequate place in Formia. Almost immediately, I had three requests. I accepted the second two, when I realized that we could make it work. Continue reading
The Freewheeling Freelancer 