Finding Italy

Well first time in this country, and it is overdue. Today was a bit different in that my purpose was to relocate near Mont Zoncolan and Crostis which involved some uphills, some downhills, some proper pasta for the first time,  and a lot of trouble finding accommodation which meant going further away and farther down hill than I wanted. But still, there were some great moments of course and an all round superb day again.



So from Heiligenblut it was an awesome downhill into the outskirts of Lienz - nice sweeping turns, not much traffic, and not too steep. A great start to the day!

The view just before Lienz

From there it was a gentle cycle down a valley before the first of a few speed bumps where to hit me after about 20kms in. All was going well until, in my new found concentration on feeding on the bike, I realised that nothing was open to restock with. I had enough to get over the first hill but wanted a pit stop for water and food before I needed to get over the two that came in quick succession after that. Sometimes you forget how liberal our laws and way of life are really, or is it better for society to be a bit more constrained?

Anyway, after some sheer luck I came across an open petrol station but held very low hopes after yesterdays efforts in one. Well this was a totally different kettle of fish; it had a bar as well as the normal alcohol for sale, and it was being used by quite a few people. Ummm, what was I saying about being liberal again? So, they also had a great supply of freshly made sandwiches and donuts as well as a lot of non alcoholic drinks, so that was a great needle in a haystack find me thinks.

That held me for the first climb, which was surprising for me as I thought after how my legs felt yesterday that I may struggle a bit today. As I started to climb though I concentrated on keeping my heart lowish and cadence highish, and it felt good! Wow. It was a relatively benign climb (still with a few 10% sections though) but I was very happy with that.

The second climb felt good as well, and by the third, the rise up over Plocken Pass, I just got in a slow rhythm and got up there in my own time. The pass was a lot steeper than the others and a lot less consistent in the gradient so it was a bit tough to keep the rhythm at times. As far as recommeding anyone else to do it, I wouldn't go out of my way.

At the top of the pass though you are greeted by the most amazing site....Italian food! It was about 2pm by this stage so thought it would be in my best interests to stop for more fuel (no other reason of course). So on walking in to the diner I suddenly realised I had very little knowledge of protocols for dining (do I wait to be seating or just sit down, do I tip, how do I speak Italian?). Luckily, the little German I know that has done me well up to now continued thankfully...phew. Anyway, 20 minutes later and I had had my first ever Italian coffee, pasta and tiramisu (although I know no Italian, I could tell from the chef's reaction that the tiramisu was a weird one at that time of day). Anyway, it all worked out, my stomach was full, and I was in heaven.

Italy is quite different to Austria in that it felt like I hadn't really been into the country side at all, and it was just a string small towns almost joined together. Also, in German you can generally see church spires dotted around the horizon, less so in Austria, but in Italy they seemed to be everywhere - even in inaccessible places. The mountains were still as high as ever though and still all around.

Two churches on a small hill in front of a MASSIVE mountain - why do you need two up there with no towns around?

I rode down to a little place called Sutrio where I was going to stay for the night, but in getting there I saw some houses and not much else. Gutted. I had toyed with the idea of going straight to Ovaro last night (which is a town at the base of the hard side of Monte Zoncolan) so knew it was only 10kms away, and assumed it would be a bigger town and have accommodation. I put the directions in to Mr Garmin and away we went. What I did overlook though was the 400m climb in there as well. Still, with the deliciousness of the pasta still in my stomach I cracked on.

On getting to Ovaro I once again could not find accommodation but did stumble on an information site thankfully. So with a mixture of Italian, English, German and charades the lady at the counter and I concluded that there were only two accommodation places in Ovaro, and both were booked. Bugger. She suggested the next town just down the road as they had four accommodation places. What choice did I have? She did offer that it was a much nicer town as well though so off I went.

Thankfully in Villa Santina (thee next town) I did manage to find some accommodation and in no time was organising a room in German (they didn't know English). I also took the time before, during and after my meal to study as much Italian as I could as it is really embarrassing not knowing any.

Still, besides me being unprepared for entering a new culture, and the additonal 13kms and 200m of ascent I need to do to get back to Ovaro, still a lovely day. will rest up tomorrow and then have a look at Zoncolan and Crostis the day after.

Highlight: Pasta just past the border into Italy.
Lowlight: Not being able to find a squeak, or fix it with oil, in my pedals and/or cleats.
Lesson learned: Italy is quite different in how they do things compared to Germany and Austria (I thought there would be a grace period after the boarder where I could ease into it).