West Balkans - Switzerland - Italy moto trip (part 7)

Italy (2/2)

As I rest myself at the balcony sipping a cheap strong grappa while overlooking the port of Genova and a wonderful sunset in the background, my host comes to me and says "you're lucky" with a promising look in her eyes. Before my imagination would spice my thoughts she added: "I give cook lessons and tonight I have my students here so you will try some pasta with pesto if you don't mind". It's times like this that decisions are made at lightning speed. Not much later I had one of the best pestos ever escorted by quite considerable amounts of red wine. Almost a whole bottle of grappa and almost another one of wine dropped me almost dead but super happy on my bed at the end of this night.

Next morning that cheap grapa really made the difference over the fine Italian wine resulting in a dizzy head on the brink of a headache. Sometimes over the brink. I manage to put myself together somehow, load my bike, set the route on Google maps on my phone and time to leave Genova behind. Well, not as easy as it sounds. Even for Google. Remember that spaghetti of streets around Genova I talked about in my previous post? Embarrassing enough I just couldn't find my way out of dead ends without violating one way streets. Luckily I see two girls on a scooter so I ask them for help with a "sorry for my incompetence" face. "Don't worry, even locals fail on that" they said with one voice and a pair of smiles. "We also go out of the city so just follow us". Betcha I will! Just to give you an idea about how narrow the backstreet I met them was, I had to do a few maneuvers to make a U turn on my loaded bike. The street's width was almost the length of my iron horse.

After a few minutes we make it out of the city and I thank and wave goodbye the two smiley girls as I make my way South riding on the SS1 for the most part. The hangover was getting worse so I'd better say "trying to make my way". My head was too busy struggling with that chemical turmoil in my head to enjoy one of the oldest routes in the world by the sea. Traffic didn't help either. I stop at some point to regain some strength and hydrate myself. Weather was threatening me with rain but I guess I looked so pathetic that mercifully enough it didn't rain except for a few bits.

I arrive at my AirBnB outside Pisa fortunately in one piece. My host is a German guy with high appreciation for the ancient Greek heritage and delicious cherries he had just picked from the forest so this made me forget his rather mediocre place. I can't wait for the next day to have less alcohol in my blood and more fitness to explore Pisa.

I wake up in almost perfect shape, take my bike, park it outside the historic center of Pisa, walk behind the wall and see...this:

I mean...I couldn't believe that the most popular destination of my trip would be so impressive. How many times have I seen the leaning tower of Pisa? Like most of you countless. But when I finally got myself there I went speechless to the sight of that thing:

It looks much more inclined in real life than in pictures giving an extraterrestrial impression. That brought tears to my eyes. It happens to myself after many days on the road so maybe it was about time but I do believe Pisa really triggered it (later my host agreed on the extraterrestrial dimension of it.) I am double triple sure I was the only one around affected this way though. There was a sea of tourists feeling obliged to do all these stupid poses pushing the tower, holding the tower...you name them.

Apart from the crowd this small historic area is really a gem, impossible to regret. Except maybe that girl who lost her earring:

Pisa was over, my Italian days were almost over so I had to make my way South East to get closer step by step to the port of Ancona from which I'd take the ship back to my birthplace. On that rainy day end of June I find myself at Passo del Muraglione,

and later at Rocca San Casciano just for an overnight which gave me the chance to hangout with my host Silvio and chat about various things, among others the fact that this place is very close to Predapio, birthplace of Mussolini, where at his memorial his grave used to have guards for 24h. They ended this custom years ago.

Umbria was next on my way and Foligno would host me for my last hours in Italy before I'd reach Ancona. Typical Umbrian city with its medieval old center. Nice:

As I was done walking around exploring Foligno I went to the local supermarket in order to buy some fresh pasta and put my cooking skills in action back at my AirBnB. This would be the last Italian dinner for that trip. Next morning, on a nice hot(ish) weather I ride my way to Ancona to catch the ferry to Greece. Around 20 km West of the port, I stop. It was time to part ways with my motorcycle boots. They were too worn. Ladies and gentlemen, put your hands together for this lovely pair that rode with me through all the trips of mine you read so far:

I left them watching the sunset. Are they still looking west? Or someone else is now walking in my boots? I only wanna thank them for following me that long. As a payback I took them to so many places that they sure have stories to tell.

The ferry trip to Greece felt like we were crossing a pool called Adriatic. Next day started like this:

And ended like this:

That's how my trip ended before I found myself riding in Greece on my way home after almost 5000km in 5 countries experiencing one of the coldest Junes some places had ever seen (locals bitched more than I did). Here is a map with the whole trip. Almost:

And here is the summary video of the whole trip with music from the mighty Ozric Tentacles:

Thank you so much for reading my travelogues. Your support is super appreciated and much needed for a totally self financed sponsor free traveller like me. Stay tuned cause there's more exciting moments to be published.

See you on the next one(s)!

Orestis

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