If you would like to see details about our journey, check out our itinerary and our bike route.
We had a huge good breakfast in the hotel with Meghan, then Ken and I took off on our own again. We will miss Meghan., who flew back home from the little airport outside Ancona.
The ride up the shoreline to Pesaro was easy, partly on a dedicated cycle path, jogging up into an agricultural region for a few miles. The day seemed to drag a little, with a headwind and long stretches of heavy people and bike traffic, but it was sunny and just nicely warm in the low 80s.
We checked in to our minisuite around 14:30. We had a beautiful large room on the ground floor of a carefully renovated fisherman’s cottage. Our host, Carolina, served us fresh fruit and cold water, made reservations for us at her favorite restaurant, gave directions to nearest beach with chairs and umbrellas, suggested we visit the duomo in the old town to see ancient mosaics that were discovered during restorations and preserved under glass in the floors. We did it all. starting at the beach. As in Senigallia, the coast here was sandy, shallow a long way out, with waves to play in.
Properly roasted and rested, we went back to room for showers around 17:30, then walked about half a mile to the old town, which is pedestrian-only, with shops and stone buildings and piazzas, were crews were setting up for live music.
The duomo was beautiful. On our way to the restaurant, we passed a little craft fair on a side street, with local artisans displaying their wares.
The restaurant had just 10 tables (Carolina said we had gotten the last one when she called for our reservation), with a small menu and fantastic food. We were seated outside, right on the main walking street, surrounded by restaurants and bars and lights. We are finally slowing adapting to the Italian way of eating, later in the evening, slowing down, stretching our meals out over three or four courses and two or three hours. We watched families and friends and dogs, strolling and biking and meeting and eating.
After dinner, we walked the length of the street and then back to our quiet room.
On every trip, we meet a few people who we just click with. Carolina was one of them. She is a lovely person, a jewelry artist working remotely in tourism marketing to support herself. Carolina's boyfriend is a guide for biking and trekking. He asked for our email address so he can talk to us about our travels. The two of them are renovating an old tower near Urbino to rent on Airbnb. We asked Carolina to let us know when it is done; maybe it will be a good place to take friends or family.
 |
| Good people watching during dinner. |
 |
| A dedicated bike path stretches almost the whole way from Senigallia to Pesaro--24 miles. And so does the beach. |
 |
| It was hard not to smile and just enjoy the ride. |
 |
| Out little part of the beach. It is surprising how private that little spot of shade under your umbrella feels, even surrounded by thousands--and thousands and thousands--of strangers. |
 |
| The duomo. The mosaics inside were beautiful. There were two layers of mosaic floors uncovered during restoration of the church, on two levels, from two eras. We didn't take photos because there was a mass in progress. |
 |
| Ken has been practicing his smile for photos. I'm not sure what look he is going for, but I think he looks pretty good in this shot. |
