01.10.08

Florence, Italy

Where to begin!I have had this blog entry swirling around my head for the past couple of days and just have not had the desire to get it out until now.Since I left Nimes, I have had some of the most amazing rides and seen some of the most amazing places.

The French Riviera was just amazing and the riding on the cliffs following the coast was spectacular.After leaving Nice I headed to Monaco and then finally crossed the boarder into Italy. I must say neither Monaco nor the first 150 miles of Italian coastline impressed me.Actually, I was wondering why everyone loved Italy so much because what I was seeing was filth.I pressed on in hopes of finding the Italy that so many have dreamed about.Well I am happy to say just 25 kilometer south of Genoa I found it, and am in love.Every mountain corner revealed a new harbor filled with beautiful boats and surrounded by quaint hillside towns.I stumbled into Rapallo and found an incredible place to spend the next two nights.Not only was the hotel in the center of the U shaped harbor with a balcony, spectacular view, king size bed and long flowing white curtains, it was also half price!I had the most fantastic time exploring the harbor and the neighboring hillsides.

The next day after a lot of advice and urging from Amy and everyone else I spoke to, I hopped on a train to explore Cinque Terra a series of 5 hillside villages just south of Rapallo that are located in a large national park.Amazing!Not only was it nice to just get on the train and go, I arrived to see some of the most spectacular views and cityscapes that I have seen.I hope you find the pictures.I hiked the trails in between the villages which let me tell you was no walk in the park.It felt like I was back on the Appalachian trail!I spent the entire day just wondering around.I have truly fallen in love with this part of Italy and am looking forward to hitting these spots by boat some day in the future.I awoke the next day and hit some of the smaller villages to the north like Portofino and St Margharita; again spectacular little villages with the most amazing colors and character.The Italians are by far the most friend people I have met along the way.They seem to have a very simple and laid back lifestyle.Taking time to sit on a bench and chat with a friend or stroll on the promenade are so important.The food is spectacular and there is just good feeling about every little town.I am very impressed and look forward to the rest of Italy.

I headed south to see the leaning tower of Pisa before finally arriving in Florence. Let me tell you besides that old leaning tower there is nothing else to see in Pisa. My first impression of course of Florence was not particularly good, but then I got an email from Kathryn and sat and spoke with someone at the hostel who has done quite a bit of traveling and it hit me that you can visit the same place over and over and have a different journey through it.A different experience of it!

My journey now is not so much about seeing all the major sites and attractions of a particular place; it is more of a spiritual journey.Being on the bike and seeing incredible places and views is just the way I am getting there.I can't even describe to you the feeling of being on the bike, maneuvering around mountain corners and just going and not knowing where you will end up.Some days I just want to get on the bike and ride and it does not even matter where.I really enjoying passing though the country side and seeing the country and not so much the sights.Of course stops at the Eiffel Tower or the leaning tower of Pisa are almost obligatory, but for me, now is not the time to experience those attractions.

Kathryn and Adrian have made plans to head this way in May and hit many of the same towns that I will be passing through and my experience of the cities tagging along with them will be completely different from the experience I will have on my own.Although the journey that I am on now is about the journey and not so much the places, I am really really looking forward to stopping and going into every museum and analyzing the sculptures and sitting at café's and enjoying watching the world go by.These sorts of experiences I will not only look forward to in May, but for the rest of my life.I look forward to coming back to some of the beautiful places I have passed through and spending time enjoying them with my family.

So it is interesting to think about the different ways you can experience a place and how not one experience is better than the other.This journey is amazing and a once in a lifetime thing.Traveling alone on a motorbike for a year through some of the most beautiful country side, figuring out where to go, how to get there and how to go to the bathroom with 6 layers of clothing on is what it is all about.Thinking more about it actually this journey is not a once in a lifetime thing, it is a lifetime thing.It is what we should all do everyday.You don't need to be in Italy to do it or on a bike riding around.You could go to the same coffee shop every day of your life and have a different experience of it each time.Pretty amazing to think about.

I think I just hit 10,000 miles on my bike although I have to do some math to figure it out exactly since I did not have an odometer from Barcelona to Paris.It is pretty amazing to have come so far in such a short time and have seen all the things I have seen.I can't wait for the next 10,000 and I hope you all will be there with me along the way!Thank you for taking the time to see what I am up to and even if no one is reading this, it is truly amazing for me to take a moment, sit down and look back at where I have been and what I have learned.I even learn things as I type!