Zatím sbohem Danća

It was bittersweet this morning when we had to say goodbye to Daniela. We boarded a bus for Italy and she a train for home. It was hard to remain stoic. Daniela’s nick name is Danća( like don’t cha’). All her friends call her Danća Worry for her innate abilities to plan the smallest of details. Her father even relies on her for travel plans. We were blessed with her skill to change plans on a moments notice due to, say 8” of unplanned snow. 

She is already planning her next visit to the US for next year.  

CZ is experiencing 100 year flooding with devastating effect. I believe Daniela’s family is safe, but the flooding did delay her trip home. Many trains were cancelled. I just read that a pastor friend and his family escaped the mud by moving up to the second floor with no power or drinkable water. Pray for relief. 

Buon giorno Italia

Our travels From Ljubljana to Florence were uneventful. We made all our connections and found our hotel without issue. Florence is a busy place. We found a nice pizzeria for our first meal then went on a quick stroll to see things before it got too dark. After a good night’s sleep we ate a typical European breakfast and had time for a quick walk to a piazza before our Trek Travel met. 

By 10:30 our two guides and 12 cyclists had gathered and we boarded a bus for a 90 minute ride to the Tuscan countryside where we enjoyed a light lunch and an introduction to our week. Julie and Max are already setting themselves up as great guides and hosts. After lunch we did a quick bike adjustments. I sent in our bike measurements earlier and the had them dialed in our our Trek Checkpoint SL7. Maybe later I’ll nerd out on the bike specs. But for now let’s say they road and felt great. I see another bike in my future. 

Then we took off on a 16 mile shakedown ride through Cyprus tree lined strade bianca, weaving through vineyards and olive plantations, rolling up and down until we arrived at our Villa Curina where we will stay the next two nights. The ride was so fun and enjoyable. We are sharing it with 10 other cyclists and you’ll get to know them soon. Most are from the US and one couple from Queensland, Australia.  All are fun to ride with. Oh, Max is from the UK, Bristol and Julien is from France. 

We are awaiting a social hour at 6:30 with dinner at 7:30. I will need to adjust! The country side is all that I had thought it would be. Enjoy the scenery.