Diana had planned to meet me in Istanbul to spend a couple of weeks together exploring Turkey.  But when my shipping plans changed, she changed her flight to meet me in Milan instead.  So all of us met in the mountains above Lake Como to spend a couple of days visiting - and eating.  I've found that Italians love to eat - long meals with several courses, followed by excellent coffee and dessert.  I couldn't keep up with all the eating, but the long meals gave us more time to spend together.  And I was always able to find something vegetarian - pasta, salads, soups, or pizza.

 We spent several days visiting with my Mom and Doc, Craig and his family, and a large group of their wonderful friends.  We did some hiking in the mountains around Lake Como.  The trails were all excellently marked and the pleasant surprise is that at the top of the mountains there are restaurants where we enjoyed several-course lunches (naturally!) 

 While at Lake Como Craig helped me find a shop that repaired my sidestand with their hydraulic press.  After straightening the stand I had them weld some braces onto it to prevent it from folding again.  They sprayed it with some black paint and bolted it back on - all for only 10E or about $12.  It's held up so far, knock on wood.

 After several days at Lake Como, we said goodbye to my Mom and Doc and the rest of our new friends, and Diana and I headed down to Florence.  Diana took the train and I rode the bike.  I was going to park the bike and take the train with Diana, but parking the bike was very expensive - about $25 a day in Milan!  So it was cheaper and safer to ride the bike.  Diana and I met up in Florence at a pre-determined hotel that we had picked out of the Lonely Planet guide.  It turned out to be a good choice - the hotel was just a couple of blocks from the Duomo in the center of town!

 Florence is an amazing city.  It was the heart of the Italian renaissance and it's very beautiful and filled with incredible cathedrals, museums, and towers.  There was so much to see that we could only visit some of the numerous sights.  We picked a handful of interesting places and set out each day to see as much as we could.  We saw so many frescoes, paintings, and sculptures that I eventually reached art-overload.  You can only look at so many paintings of Christ and Mother Mary before they all start looking alike!  And we saw only a small portion of what the city has to offer.  Quite overwhelming!

 It was in Florence that I finally started getting into the Italian routine.  We would get up late, have a several-course buffet breakfast in the hotel, then set out to see the sights, followed by a mid-morning coffee break.  Then more sights, a late lunch, more walking, and an afternoon beer break.  Then we'd go back to the hotel to get cleaned up and head out for a late dinner at around 8 PM, getting to bed around 11 or 12.  I think that with all the eating and drinking here in Italy I've even managed to gain back some of the weight I lost in India!

 After several days in Florence it was time to move on.  We traveled to Siena, one of Italy's many medieval walled cities.  Siena also has its share of cathedrals and shops and we spent a couple of days touring them and enjoying the more relaxed atmosphere of this smaller town.  On our last day in Siena we rented a small car and drove around the countryside enjoying the beautiful rolling hills and other walled cities in the area.

 Then it was back north to Bologna - another city full of cathedrals and museums and historic sights.  In Bologna we climbed 690 stairs to the top of the 12th century tower that overlooks the city center to enjoy the amazing view of the entire valley.  All the climbing and walking around the city had my feet quite worn out!

 After Bologna it was time for Diana to go back home to her house and cats and job.  Relaxing at home sounds pretty good to me after being on the road for 4 months!  But home isn't to be for me right now - I still have 8 months to go.  Diana and I had another difficult goodbye and she left for the airport.

 After so much walking during the past 2 weeks I was ready to do some riding, and give my feet a rest!  I loaded up the bike and headed south.

 Story