Florence to Greve in Chianti

This morning I visited the Duomo in Florence and hiked up the many, many steps to see a beautiful view from the top of the dome out over the city. I thought it would be rainy, but it was very sunny and beautiful. Then my friend Dave and I biked out of the city via the South Gate of the old walled part of the city, past the Roman Gate, and up, up, up into the countryside filled with many olive gardens, forests, and several vineyards.
At some point there was a common theme I often discover when I am biking (in my experience bike touring especially) -- we seemed to be somewhat lost, yet somewhat on track. In one of the little towns we had difficulty finding the right route because there were many one way streets with no sidewalk and no shoulder -- you had to ride your bike along with all the traffic and it was quite heavy. Even with Dave's phone GPS, my GPS (that admittedly didn't have the downloaded detailed maps), and with my book's map and directions, we had difficulty figuring it out. Like what usually happens on my bike trips, Dave and I gave up on trying to match up with the supposed directions and decided on the best way to get where we wanted to go next. Also typical, it was uphill all the way! :)
However, I did enjoy some of the uphill (for a change) because there were beautiful views out over the valleys. There was something interesting to see every few moments, whether a picturesque, old church, a mountain view out over olive tree groves, or a town on the hillside in the distance. As we went on like this, making the best of it, there were sporadic sprinkles that kept us cool from the humidity while climbing the uphills. Those sprinkles eventually turned into a steady rain, which eventually turned into a steady downpour. As Dave and I took a break under some roofed gate, we decided to don our rain gear and that helped make us more aerodynamic. During this part of the ride there were several downhills, although a few climbs again as well.
By the time I got to Greve in Chianti (~22 miles or 35 km) I felt like I had done a good workout, and (surprisingly) wasn't completely beat. We are staying at a place know as the Old Spaghetti Factory, so dinner and wine from this famous wine growing region should be great tonight!

Florence

Florence is larger than I expected, but easy to walk and the city even has a few bike lanes. I toured the city by foot today, some of it in the rain (early) until it cleared off. I loved the architecture and the people were very friendly -- what more could you ask for?

In the afternoon I waited in a long, but worth-the-wait queue to get into the museum that houses the statue of David by Michelangelo. There were also quite a few pieces of sculpture by Bernini that I enjoyed. They didn't allow photography or else I'd be posting those as well.
Tomorrow the biking begins and I see there is an 80% chance of rain. I suppose I'll not overheat when biking up the mountains. :)

On the Way to Florence

While it wasn't too, too terrible a day (or couple of days -- I feel like it took a few days what with the time change and loss of sleep), I am shooting for a positive outlook and hoping this was the worst day I'll have. I love to travel, but 20 hours of taxis, planes, and trains while lugging luggage isn't my favorite part.

Enough complaining, though. On the flight in, we could see the Costa Concordia out the window of the plane. It still is upside down and not very different than when I saw a picture of it in the news several months ago. Even from the air, it looks massive next to the island. I also saw the island of Corsica with it's beautiful snow-topped mountains, possibly Sardinia, and several other islands in the Mediterranean. The weather is very nice -- somewhere between 85-90F, sunny, and with a lot of humidity (which could be better, but ahh).

Here is a picture of me at the airport bar toasting my friend Dave on the embarking of our trip.

Also, here is a picture of our bikes on the train in the bike compartment en route to Florence from Rome. 

It took us several tries and several trains until we figured out how its done and which car you are supposed to be in with your bike.

Apparently, the train that goes from Rome to Florence that allows you to take your bike is a regional train that takes four hours, not the first class super speedy train. And, when a train that is supposed to go to Ancona breaks down, the same train we were taking gets very full and the conductor tells you to get on wherever you can and fast before the train leaves the station without you. Under these circumstances, we originally blocked a bathroom and several doorways from getting off the train and getting to another train (not intentionally -- there just wasn't any room), though that did not stop determined people from squeezing by and nearly hurting themselves on sharp pedals. I met some very nice people on the train who helped us figure out the logistics and where we needed to get off, etc. It was nice meeting them and hearing about where they were travelling, but it is so nice to be here to the hotel and showered! I look forward to a relaxing evening on the town.

Getting Ready for Flight -- Part 2

It's tough posting without having a connection in your apartment. Thanks Dan and Tara for letting me borrow your connection!
Here's the bike all packed up!

Tomorrow, I'm off!

Getting Ready for Flight -- Part 1

I am able to fit everything I'm flying with into two luggage items (with the messenger bag as my carry on). One of my luggage items is a pretty durable duffle bag.

In this I fit my two panniers and the dry bag. Once I have it zipped up, it appears to be just a normal duffle bag, but when you go to lift it you find it isn't. On one trip I got a BE CAREFUL LIFTING tag in dayglo orange as a souvenir. I have to be very careful that it comes in less than 50 pounds or else I'll get a huge extra charge along with my dayglo orange souvenir.

Bike and Gear Set-up (In a Safe Environment)

I find it is best to load as much of my gear on the back of the bike as possible. That way, it's not too difficult to pop and ride a wheelie down an autobahn somewhere. Usually, if people think you are crazy, they tend to keep their distance. Plus, it permits me to rest those muscles that keep both tires on the ground.

Full Side View

Don't let all my smoke and mirrors (not pictured on this post) fool you -- this is a super-stable set-up that I have road and off-road tested many, many times with only myself being launched off occasionally...on purpose...yeah, err, uh, or something like that...

Side View Close-up

Top Angle

Close-up Bungee

Cockpit View

Here are a couple other views to hopefully help it make sense how I plan on toting all this luggage along on my journey. Not shown are rain covers that I take along to help convince the weather not to rain -- thus far, on previous trips, I have been successful!









Also, you can see I have easy access on how to right myself when I'm lost (my GPS), my odometer to see how fast I'm going down the mountain, and my camera for taking pictures of (hopefully beautiful) distractions.

Supe-stable Looking Rear View

Just the Bike

Here is a nice clean picture of my (light) bike with no luggage. I was happy to get it back from the bike shop a week or so ago and it rides great! The Christmas colors help keep it from getting stolen (or at least I like to think so).

In the past, it was nice when I had more than one night at some destination on a bike tour and I could ride my bike around without the luggage. It's a completely different feel to it, but I also do enjoy riding it fully loaded (more so than a fully supported bike tour). There's something to be said for knowing you could head off in any direction -- prepared.
Fully loaded pictures coming soon...

Early Stages of Packing

How does one pack light, try to have enough clothes to both not look too touristy and yet be comfortable, avoid doing as much laundry as possible, and, or yeah, pack light (>30 pounds)?
Currently, I'm coming in under 50 pounds for both the duffle bag (not shown) which will carry most of what you see in the picture below through the flying stage of my trip, and for the bike box which will carry my bike, tent, and tools (through the flying stage).

I rode my bike fully loaded to work and back today. Somehow, coming back (UPHILL) was easier. I seem to have a lot of rolling momentum with this much weight on my bike! However, I think I still need to unpack a few items to lighten the load. I think I will be much happier that way and hopefully won't miss any of what gets unpacked too much.