Day 62 - Lunedi 10 Giugno 2013

From - Trieste.
To - Grado.
Distance - 60km
Time - 2.5 hours
Total - 3863km

Please do not get Grado mixed up with Gondor (fictitious country from Lord of the Rings) or Gonzo (a small muppet with a long bent nose!). It is a small resort about 50+km north of Trieste toward Venice. By complete coincidence Janice has been to Postojna, Trieste and Grado about 32 years ago (so that makes her 40 this year, have I got the maths right Jan?).

Well a slow start to the day. I waited in Trieste so I could get to a cycle repair man when he opened at 2.30pm. I checked out of the hotel around 10am and my plan was to cycle to the public swimming pool and have a nice refreshing swim. Just the thing to do on a nice hot day. The pool had its normal batch of oldies swimming slowly up and down. I got in and was hit by two things, the pool temperature was so warm it was like swimming in a bath. Secondly, the water was extremely salty. I was trying my best not to get it in my mouth but its not so easy especially if you want to swim properly. My mouth was burning with the taste of the salt. I also got in trouble again for swimming without a swimming cap. you should have seen the glares i was getting from other swimmers, you would have thought I was a leper! I had hoped to pass a good hour in the pool but I could only manage just over half an hour and even then I had to get out three times to rinse my mouth out with tap water, it was so bad. After the swim I towelled down with my luxurious flannel and later pegged it to the back of my bike to dry off.

I headed straight to a bar and ordered a drink of cold Fanta to clear my mouth of the salt taste. I couldn't believe it when the waitress brought the drink with a bowl of ready salted crisps! I spent the rest of the morning alternately sitting in the sun and then moving to the shade waiting for the cycle repair man. I think Monty Python did a sketch with 'bicycle repair man' as a super hero who wore underpants over his trousers and appeared from nowhere t help cyclists in need. That would be worth looking up on You Tube.

I cycled to the bike shop and found it nice and early before it opened. It is in a part of the city that isn't normally frequented by tourists but it was a normal business district. Now, I have deduced that he is the only cycle mechanic that works on a Monday because all the checking I did on the Internet showed that other placed were closed all day. This belief was backed up by the queue of people that arrived with bikes before the shop opened. I was the first but of course the guy didn't speak much English. He understood the problem because I showed him and he said it would be one hour which is probably fair as he had to talk to the other people as well. I went across to a cafe across the road but was already getting fed up of waiting especially when there were over 50km to cycle before i got to my next hotel. The cycle guy was good to his word and he had it fixed and I was riding by 3.30pm.....much relief!

I set off and found there was a small beach north of Trieste that was popular with the beautiful young things. I wasn't looking honest! I stopped at Miramare Castle which was beautifully placed on the coastal rocks. It was built by Maximilian, brother of the Austrian Emperor but he later became Emperor of Mexico (I think he won it in a royal lottery) and didn't personally get much use from it. I continued the ride along main roads that are signposted with blue signs which made me think I was cycling on the motorway. The Italian motorways use green signs like our main roads! They do like to be different!

The hotel I am staying at is at Grado Pineau which is a couple of kilometres outside the main town. I has a nice pool and jacuzzi. The room is nice and the place looks quite posh, I don't think a sweaty cyclist is quite the right sort! There is also a decent beach nearby and a section is owned by the hotel so I hope we have a sunny day tomorrow so I can use the facilities. As soon as I got to the hotel I showered and had my second swim of the day. It was much more pleasant (is that bad Englsh?) than the first swim.

I grabbed a Quattro Stagionne Pizza for my evening meal at a small bar nearby. I nearly said 'fire up the Quattro!' like Gene Hunt from Life on Mars but i don't think the waiter would have understood. There didn't seem to be much choice of places to eat nearby. I'm definitely on the Med now because the mosquito's were very active and they certainly liked the look of me. I was fresh meat for them. I'm sure one mossi was up front distracting me whilst another was having a good feed round the back! It rained again whilst I was eating, just like last night. I don't mind as long as it nice during the day.

Just in case you think I'm slacking with the cycling I am slowing down so that i get to Venice on Thursday. I'm staying here one more night and then one more night closer to Venice and then Rebekah and John fly out and we stay in an apartment at Mestre which is just outside Venice.

I know that there are still a few people who haven't yet made a contribution to the charity. It's not too late. Log on to www.justgiving.com/Richard-Vernon and complete a simple registration process and pay using a credit or debit card. You can even gift aid it if you are a tax payer. I'm not naming names yet but it's getting very close to the time when I will name both my brothers!


Photo 1, Statue of Maximillion of Austria who became Emperor of Mexico! This is where I spent time waiting in Trieste.
Photo 2, Picture of the cycle repair place before it opened.
Photo 3, Looking back along the coast to Trieste.
Photo 4, Miramare Castle, built by Maximillian. Wonderful location overlooking the sea.
Photo 5, Cormorants on a rock.
Photo 6, Italians tried to fool me with the signs. I thought I was cycling down the motorway!
Photo 7, No sea view from the balcony!
Photo 8, OK pool though!
Photo 9, Nearby beach, hope its sunny tomorrow so I can have a swim in the Adriatic.