If you would like to see details about our journey, check out our itinerary and our bike route.
We have started working our way out of the Dolomiti toward the lakes, still following the EV7 on dedicated cycle paths along rivers, as autumn cools the temperature and brings a crunch of brown leaves under the tires and wafts of dry vegetation in the air.
Starting in Bolzano, we will be slowing down, staying in each of our destinations for three or four nights instead of one, only riding a few days a week instead of six or seven days a week. We are looking forward to the change.
We were not sure what to expect when we arrived in Bolzano (we never know what to expect ;), but were surprised at the sophisticated, newly paved and painted cycle freeway system that led us right to the edge of the old town...where it tangled in a big mess of construction that took a little figuring out. We backtracked once and then just headed in the general direction of the piazza we were looking for, ending up in front of our apartment on yet another crazy busy shopping street.
It took us a bit more work to find the actual door to the apartment, hidden in plain sight in a wall of glass next to a trendy women's clothing shop. By the time we got the door open and carried the bikes and bags up two extremely steep flights of steps, we were saying not-so-nice things about the rude, pushy, tourists flooding the city.
We have spent time in crowded, touristy places--like Florence, the Amalfi Coast, Cinque Terre, and Rome--in the past, at the height of summer season (to travel with our daughter, who taught school). While we prefer smaller, quieter crowds, we still felt happy surrounded by other people doing the same thing, enjoying the jostling to a certain extent, sensing that we were all there for the same reason and doing our best to make sure everyone could get something good out of the experience.
We have never before encountered the kind of tourists that we are finding now. These are not people seeking to absorb history and culture and getting a little lost and preoccupied as they marvel at their surroundings. These are people in groups, with arms linked, filling up streets and sidewalks, carrying shopping bags, pushing other people aside, never making eye contact, apparently not even seeing where they are or looking at their surroundings, running into other people, stopping to pose and take videos and photos of themselves with no thought for others trying to get around them or take their own photos.
I'm ranting, but honestly, we were so sad to arrive in yet another city that was so uncomfortable. We totally understand why residents of these cities are tired of tourists. And yet, here we are, two more tourists...
Anyway, our apartment was large and had all the necessities, including a washer and a kitchenette. And a shower and a bed. We settled in, intending to get some rest over the next couple of days.
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| Views like this keep us coming back to Italy. |
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| The shopping street just outside the door to our apartment. |
