26 July 2012

Venice to Eggen through the Dolomites.

The day started off as pretty run of the mill but once we hit the start of the Dolomites it was unbelievable riding and the scenery was awesome.  We had a couple of little stops for coffee etc and all in all had a great day.  We stopped at Hotel Moonshine which is one of a group Hotels catering especially for bikers in Summer.  The prize of the hotel included dinner which was a great BBQ spread with all the trimmings, including really good  Tiramisu.

Giddyup!

It is hard to take photo's of the road so you can see how windy it is but maybe this shot of the GPS will give you a little bit of an idea.

Somebody told them we were  coming.

They reserved a park for us at the top of one of the passes.

The whole area is popular with bikers.

Morning coffee stop.

Just a couple of photo's of 
Hotel Moonshine.

24 & 25 July 2012

Venice

Finally I got to go on a Gondola ride.  Last time we were here one of us thought it was too expensive and they were probably right but I figure we won't be back so why not.  

I think the place was even more crowded than last time and it was definitely hotter.  I not sure if I just didn't notice last time but there seems to be an awful lot of deserted houses.  According to our Gondolier it is because people can't afford to restore them in accordance with the regulations.  What ever the reason it seems a shame to see old buildings falling apart.  Of course there are always the popular significant buildings that constantly have scaffolding covering them up while they are being renovated, at great expense to the tax payer & tourist no doubt. 

The Rialto bridge.

The bridge of Sighs.

Another thing I had waited ages for, Tiramasu.
Unfortunately it wasn't that good. 

The masks in this ladies shop were beautiful and her
family does all the work on them.  She was very nice
and, unlike most of the shops, let us take pictures
and told us about some of the designs.

Arrivederci! until next time.

23 July 2012

Rimini

As the t-shirts say I love Rimini.  It is one of those places where the locals holiday and you hardly hear an Australian, English or American accent.  The beaches are full of lounges & umbrellas which unfortunately we didn't stay long enough to take advantage of.  We did find a place to get a new front tyre and a great little bar that kept bringing us food gratis every time we ordered a drink.  Lucky it was about 10 steps from our accommodation.

Beer, Wine and food.  Yum

More Beer, Wine and food!  All that and
more for the grand total of 26 Euro.

The view from our room.  The weather doesn't look
that good but it was quite pleasant.

Umbrella's as far as the eye can see.

But I don't want to get back on the bike, I like it here!

22 July 2012
Sorrento to Marina Di Citta
(through the Appenine Mountains)


Today was one of those days when it was all about the ride and not the destination.  We had an early start to beat the heat and the traffic around Naples.

Our last view of Mount Vesuvius.

Okay so it wasn't just about the ride.  Coffee was also high on the agenda.  We even made this cafe's facebook page!

Back roads across the Appenines.

Yes! Back roads.

You got to love Zumo (the GPS) navigation.

Our stop for the night.  We just missed the rain.

20 & 21 July 2012

Sorrento, Italy
(The Amalfi Coast)




The Amalfi coast was a ride we had been looking forward to for quite some time as we had driven part of it 11 years ago.
As we expected it was very busy and Maurice & Kev required a fair bit of concentration to avoid the buses, cars and every other type of vehicle that seem to require the whole road not just their side!
We decided that we needed to do it again the next morning when it was a bit quieter.
  You will have to forgive the quality of some of the pictures as they are taken from the back of the bike while we were going along, so framing and focusing and all those other good things don't happen!

The view of Mount Vesuvius from our cabin balcony.

A long the road.

The view from our early morning coffee stop.  It was so nice we had to stay for two coffee's.

The beach (or what they call a beach) at the camp ground in Sorrento.

Sorrento is where we said goodbye to Kev & Karen for awhile.  We are heading up the east of  Italy and towards Switzerland to spend a couple of weeks with the Roos family.  Kev & Karen are going off to do the cultural thing in Rome etc.  We will meet up with them again in Edinburgh for the Tattoo!!  Safe travels you two.