Monday 13 June 2016

An Unexpectedly Easy Transit to Venice

We woke in Belluno - the beautiful one - to rain. With the weather threatening thunderstorms, Dylan prudently made an executive decision to move the start of today's ride down out of the mountains onto the the Po Valley plains. The reason for this was to avoid the twisty descent through numerous tunnels that would have been spectacular in good weather but diabolical in a deluge.

Given the high probability of rain, Di, Roberta, Don and myself decided that an extra day of complete rest would not be a bad option. Richie who was injured, and Sarah who was sick, also opted to be transported all the way to Venice. The other 10 riders thought they might as well get some exercise, rain or not. They would still get to ride about 80 kilometres but on coastal plain past numerous towns, so not so dire if the weather packed it in.

Roberta, Dianne and I jumped on the train, while the other non-riders piled into the van. Upon arrival in Venice, Di and Roberta thought they'd like to wander the streets, whereas my main motivation was to get to the hotel and see if I could watch a bit of the Criterium du Dauphine on TV. 

Di took a few photos on her wanderings, including the Basilica Cathedrale Patrircale di San Marco ...

Basilica San Marco
Entrance detail of St Mark's Basilica

...  a series of canal shots ...










... and the Doge's Palace ...

Doge's Palace

Di and Roberta had a very enjoyable walk apparently, and surprisingly didn't come away with bags full of shoes and purses.

Meanwhile, I dozed most of the vaporetto ride to The Lido, before walking to our hotel along the waterfront which is in a very nice location ...

Our home for two nights

I arrived just in time to order and drink a beer before Dylan, Don, Richie and Sarah pulled up in the van. We got everything unloaded and packed away before a powerful front ripped through with a gale force wind slamming the hotel and rain dumping down by the bucketful. Our thoughts were with those out on the road, but it turned out most of them were able find shelter before becoming too soaked.

Our rest day off in Venice has been very restorative. After a leisurely breakfast Di and I wandered over to the laundry, meeting - surprise, surprise - Kay, Sharon, John and Patrick. Birds of a feather?

We all thought it was a great move having our hotel out here in Lido di Venezia which, incidentally, is home to Thomas Mann's classic novel Death in Venice. It's  very peaceful compared to the hustle across in Venice and just what most of us need, whereas the culture vultures can easily catch a vaporetto across into the city.

On the way back from the laundry Di took a photo of a typical - and wonderful - fruit and vegetable stall ...


Later, while out walking Di noticed an attractive flowering shrub ...



We walked past a very large, derelict building which surprised both of us. We thought that real estate would be so valuable on this island so close to Venice that all unwanted structures would be either under renovation or get knocked over for something new. It looked like perhaps an old hospital. Here's a bit of detail ...



Back over by the beach I liked the look of these two contrasting bikes snuggling up to one another ...



As we came back into the main downtown district, we stopped to look at this rather overdone hotel, which was, apparently, where Patrick was due to have a massage ...



Patrick's Patdown Palace

He did disclose the outrageous price he was paying for his patdown, but I won't pass that on for fear of giving readers a heart attack. At the price he is paying, I expect his massage will be restorative enough for him to tow me the 140 odd kilometres we will ride to Ravenna tomorrow. Should be there by lunch. Maybe in time for another massage?

Patrick won't mind me taking the mickey. Unlike Neil Young, he's not searching, he's already got a heart of gold and is raising money for a young New South Welshman who lost most of one leg to a shark attack. If you think you too might like to help out Brett Connellan, please click here.

Before finishing, I'd like to bid farewell to Richie and Sarah who are leaving us prematurely. Richie had an altercation with a motorbike while descending Stelvio a few days back and his insurance company is sending him home. Sarah has caught the cold that most of the rest of us have got but perhaps worse, and has elected to bail as well. We wish them both a speedy recovery and hope they will be back on their bikes sooner rather than later.

1 comment:

  1. Nice Doug, I now have the time to read your blogs which is great, I'll enjoy the last week with you!

    best,

    Sam

    ReplyDelete