Day 34: Monfalcone, Italy

Stats... 132.72km in 6hrs 48mins... highest mileage so far! We left at 8am and found a quieter road which ran by a nice canal. We stopped after 40km at a supermarket for lunch and mossie candles! We then stopped 40km later at a deserted petrol station for a fuel stop and to charge batteries in the loo. After 20km we had a quick leg ache stop then 30km later we found a campsite just in time before a humungous storm arrived! We set up the tent in record time and jumped in to let it pass. It never did! There was so much water our tent started to float so Kris jumped to our rescue and hand dug a trench around the tent whilst I showered! We spent the rest of the night not wanting to leave the tent and reading up on Slovenia and our next leg of the journey.

Day 33: Venice, Italy

We had a very productive morning doing the internet, laundry, supermarket, foreign exchange etc. Our plan for today was to explore Venice so we tried to catch a bus to the port but they ran every 4hrs and funnily enough we missed the last one. So we walked 3km in the boiling hot and caught our ferry to San Marco Square. We were swarmed by millions of tourists doing the same thing! We strolled the very tiny windy streets for several hours and soaked up the Venecian spirit which was very impressive. We made our way back by ferry and walked the final 3km back to the campsite. We headed straight for the beach and to cool off in the sea. However, as we were about to dive in we spoted hundreds of dreaded jelly fish! It appears they may have not been stingers, as children and Kris were picking them up and playing with them! We went for dinner and got attacked by mossies again which made us leave there pronto and we came across a games room where Kris smashed the record on the basketball game!

Day 32: Venice, Italy

Stats... 89.78km in 5hrs 8mins. We had an early start as it was very hot in the tent. We were on the road by 8am and had a quick breakfast stop. We made it Padova fairly quickly as the road was straight and fast but in our heads it took forever. There was a headwind and not a cloud in the sky. We had a mare leaving the city as all roads were busy being Monday and everywhere we wanted to go, no bikes were allowed. We finally got on the right road and had an hours lunch stop and siesta in the shade. We then followed a pretty road alongside a river all the way to Fusina ferry port with the intention of getting the ferry to Lido then onto Sabbioni however when we arrived we were told that it was a person only ferry, again no bikes. This was extremely frustrating and meant a 20km extra journey over a 5km long bridge into Venice city to catch a different ferry. We finally boarded the ferry with help and advice from a nice man in a green t shirt who was interested in our trip and took a photo of us. We changed ferries at Lido and took a small locals ferry to our camping destination. There were 27 campsites along the stretch and we took the first one as we were desperate to run in to the sea! Had a good time chilling on the beach then made our way to dinner for huge pizza and watched Italy get beat by Holland! The campsite is 4 star and very Hi de Hi!

Day 31: Vicenza, Italy

Stats... 90.78km in 4hrs 54mins. We woke up bright and early to a swarm of mossies munching on our legs! We got on the road and out of there as quickly as possible. We followed a fast road East to Verona which is one of Italys prettiest cities that has an ampitheatre and is associated with Romeo and Juliet. We stopped for an ice cream and continued into a head wind for a while then had another quick stop in a petrol station for a power nap. Again we headed into wind and at a set of traffic lights we chatted to a lovely couple who did not speak English but gestured us to follow them, so we did. We let them be the wind breakers and followed them into Vicenza city centre where they bought us an ice cream each in a cafe. We continued to follow them as they delivered us to our campsite which would have been a nightmare to find without them... thanks! We set up camp and visited the hotel next door to use their internet and have a beer. We got to use the internet for free in reception and chatted with some nice staff who helped us with various questions about Italy and they were very interested in our trip. The weather has been amazingly hot today so we have definately topped up our tans!

Day 30: Lake Garda, Italy

Stats... 79,50km in 4hrs 42mins. We had tinned fruit cocktail, half a roll with jam and hot chocolate for breakfast. We were on the road by 9am and we took a more tranquil route East again just kissing the edge of some hills. Our route has been flat since leaving the Alps and we like it that way for the moment! We have struggled today with slow roads, and the weather again turning for the worse. It rained so hard on several occassions we had to shoot under the nearest tree for some cover. We had to dress up in high vis outfits at one point after a couple of hairy roundabout moments where cars were not being the most observant. We had originally planned 2 days to get from Milan to Venice but by the way things are going it is more likely to be 4! We found our campsite again on the lake edge where the water is looking rather choppy and we already have several mossie bites...evil things! Why do they exist?

Day 29: Lake Iseo, Italy

Stats... 80,19km in 4hrs 36mins. We packed up the bikes and car, had breakfast said fairwell to parents and wished eachother a bon voyage. We headed East out of Milan and took a breath of fresh air as we left the smog of the city. Although the roads leaving Milan were still extremely busy and still no bike paths it was a fast road and enabled us to get our heads down and clicks under our belt. It was tiring concentrating so hard due to the traffic and having our bags back on the bike was a shock to the system. Stopped at 3pm after the supermarket reopened for some lunch. The weather started quite nice and sunny but ended raining. We arrived at our campsite on the edge of the lake and had a paddle. We camped on solid ground as the grass area was swamped. We showered and went to bed at 8pm as we were shattered. We missed dinner and slept right through til 8am! As an aside, we would like to thank everyone for their comments and we would love to reply to them but we are having trouble doing so. Also, thanks to Jackie and Freddie for my birthday present!

Day 28: Milan, Italy

We had a day off today to explore Milano in the terrential rain! We managed to find an internet shop, a map shop and the all important postcard for our collection. We walked most of the way to the city centre until the heavens opened and we dived into the nearest cafe for a drink break hoping that it would be a passing shower. Unfortunately, it just rained harder so we ran to the metro and took the underground to the church which housed the famous last supper painting by leonardo d vinci however there was a two week waiting list... very disappointing! We had a good look around a huge decathlon store and bought some vests and a bell with a compass which is very handy. We went to the main tourist square to view an amazing church and again take a break from the rain. We were forced to take the metro back to the hotel for a siesta and spent the afternoon cleaning the car and bikes to avoid rusty chains and went through all our gear and gave various unused items to parents to return home. We went to dinner which was not the best service as the pizzas arrived approx half hour after the pastas! Another delicious jack frost ice cream for afters and back to the hotel for beers and cribbage.