Journey to Athens

Acropolis At Night From our Hotel

The trip from Riccione to Athens had a few twists and turns.  We had purchased train tickets from Riccione to Bologna.  Our flight to Greece originated from the Bologna Airport.  We were scheduled for an 8 am departure on Sunday morning from the hotel.  Everything seemed quite straightforward.

By chance on Saturday night, Warren overheard a “just arrived” Belvedere guest talking in the Bar.  He mentioned that his arrival journey (the reverse of ours) had hit a snag.  It turns out the Italian Railway was using a few days on the route to complete some track maintenance.  Just like the recently arrived guest, our train would not be running all the way to Bologna.  Instead it would run part way, all passengers would be transferred to buses and then taken to Bologna.  We would then catch a cab to the airport.  The complicating factor was that it would mean a longer trip and we would miss our plane to Greece.

After much consternation and a lot of help from the hotel staff, we managed to arrange a private car hire to take us all the way to the airport from Riccione.  So much for the investment in train tickets.

At 8:30 am we were picked up at the hotel in an 8 passenger Mercedes SUV.  The entire luggage fit in the back and off we went for a smooth ride to the airport, arriving two hours before flight time.

Checking in proved problematic.  We lined up at the unmanned kiosk but no one was successful checking in and getting boarding passes.  We assumed that language was an issue and we were simply not doing it right.  We gave up and joined the cattle corral lineup to manually check in.  After much waiting, Deborah and I made it to the front o the line for the Alitalia flight.  Much to our surprise we were told we could not check in due to the fact out Internet purchased ticket did not include luggage.   We sighed thinking about the extra cost but accepted the fact quickly and pulled out the credit card but alas, we could not purchase the luggage pass at the counter.  We had to leave the line and bag drag to an Air Alitalia ticket counter a few hundred meters away.  The other six couples waiting patiently in line only to be told the same story when it was their turn at the front.  Needless to say it was quite frustrating but away we went and then returned with the proper documents in tow.  It was an extra 40 Euros per person to check bags but we have learned to accept that travel is not always smooth.

We still had a few minutes before boarding so some went shopping while others sipped a morning beer.  We went to the gate at the start of boarding and were surprised to see almost no one there.  It appears that Air Alitalia boards early and as soon as we boarded we took off (a full half an hour before departure).  As soon as all the passengers were there, off we went.  Italy is not Germany.  Nothing happens exactly when they say it will.

The two flights (Bologna to Rome – 1hr., Rome to Athens1.5 hrs) were smooth.  We arrived in Athens and discussed how we would get down town - 9 Euros each for train, 35 to 50 each for two cab rides.  Warren spotted another Mercedes like the one we used in Italy and started a negotiation.  The Driver asked for 120 Euros and we pay the 10 Euro toll.  Warren negotiated 100 total, no toll.  We jumped in only to discover this Mercedes only had 7 seats so it was a tight ride.  Only later when we checked into the Metropolis Hotel did we discover the standard van cost should have been between 60 and 70 Euros.  Oh well.

Athens Airport

Smoking Is Still Prevalent Here 

Acropolis Is On The Hill in the Background 

Park Across the Street

The Metropolis Hotel is an old hotel that has undergone renovations.  It is located within walking distance of the trains and the Acropolis in the heart of historic Athens.  There is a park across the street.  It is small.  The bathroom floor is also the drain for the shower.  The view is great from our balcony.  It also has an upstairs terrace where breakfast is served.  In the evening the terrace is used as a gathering place for drinks with nighttime views of the Acropolis.

Sightseeing at the Acropolis in the morning.

Last Days of Italian Cycling

We are winging our way somewhere over the Adriatic Sea on our way to Athens, Greece at the time of this writing.  I know it has been awhile since we last made an entry.  I can’t say that we were “too busy” to write because there has been some down time since our last epistle, a more descriptive comment would be that we were simply “too tired”.  The week consisted of sleeping, overindulging on the breakfast buffet, riding, drinking cappuccino, returning for post ride beers, more buffet lunch, a nap, pre-dinner drinks followed by a sumptuous dinner that included multiple courses, more wine, then bed, sleep, repeat!  The only addition to this routine was Deborah’s occasional forays into the local shops in search of some Italian fashion. She did manage to snag a few.

The Belvedere In the Morning

I had trained somewhat for this trip and managed six rides for a total of 450 kilometres.  I lost track of the elevations climbed but suffice to say every ride left our seaside resort and climbed into the mountains.  Deborah translated her tennis training into bike riding and managed five rides for a total of over 250 kilometres.  I alternated between riding with the “Explorer” group led by Nola, Glen, and Phil, and the “Panorama” group where Deborah, Warren, and Marci joined me.  Linda and Diane stayed with the “Leisure” group. Keith never recovered from the first day and was his own guide for the week toodling around Riccione.

The Panoramas Pondering the Next Hill Climb

Unlike the Explorers - Panoramas Stop to View

Morning Gathering Spot to Start

Langois-Brown Senior's Racing Team- Thanks James!

One final comment about the bicycle riding.  A person cannot withdraw money from a bank without putting some in.  Try as I might to keep up to Phil, Glen and Nola, I simply could not.  I tried to ride my bike at least three times each week during the winter but most Saturdays when I was home sipping coffee and reading the newspaper, those three were taking a ride to Ryder Lake outside of Chilliwack.  It is a one-hour ride, straight up. I tried to climb with them in Riccione, but I was two to three hundred meters behind on any of the three to five kilometre hills.  On the fifteen-kilometre climbs … well you know the story from the last entry.  Next time I’ll try to tackle a few more long hills pre-trip so when it comes time to withdraw, there will be something there.

I can’t speak for Deborah but I was surprised when I put my jeans on last night before we packed.  Surprise, surprise, I had to struggle to close the clasp at my waist.  In a perfect world all that exercise should have balanced the over-intake but alas, the world is not fair.

Party Night at the Belvedere

Deborah & Nola

Body Painting

Warren (Ragnar) Got Into the Spirit

Keith & Marci

Dinner on the Pool Deck

There were too many highlights to list in their entirety.  Certainly the food, drink, and hosting by our hotel was first class.  The guides were both encouraging and helpful.  The inspiring scenery in the Italian hills was well worth the work it took to get to them.   There were certainly a lot of interesting people here to meet.  Most were Canadians but there were others from the U.S. (they call themselves Canadians over here), Malta, South Africa, Holland, Germany, Britain and elsewhere.  Every level of riding was represented from a woman that was a four time Iron Man Triathlon champion, in four different age brackets, to partners there simply to support their spouse and had never ridden.  Even Nola, Phil and Glen were warned not to join the elite “Road Bike” group populated by 20 and 30 something speedy climbing demons that never rode less than 100 kilometres a day at speeds averaging in the middle 30’s and climbs of over 2000 meters.  They are all crazy, hard body stick people with the exception of a man in his 70’s from South Africa that fits right in.

Guide Danilo Clowning at Lunch Spot on the Road

Best Ride - Seaside Exploring

Last & Longest Ride

Lastly the best highlight were the folks travelling in our group.  They make it a joy to tackle each day with a positive attitude toward what it might bring.  On the days when the body was not feeling 100% they were there in support.  As Deborah said, “we are a family, everyone looking out for one another.”

We waved goodbye to Marci and Keith this morning.  They are off to trek in the Dolomites in northern Italy.  

Looking forward to Greece.  Deborah and I have never been.  Our first few days will be spent in Athens sightseeing and then we are off to the islands of Santorini and Naxos, then over to Hydra to check out why Leonard Cohen spent so much time there.

First Two Days at the Belvedere

Our first two days of riding in Italy are in the bag.  Our experiences were mixed.  Deborah had a very enjoyable first two days with rides of 63 and 64 kilometres.  My first day was a 95 followed by a ride with Deborah of 64.

The routine here at the Belvedere Bike Hotel in Riccione is centred on choosing the ride best suited to your ability and mood.  Deborah made good choices while I challenged myself with a ride a little outside my comfort (and ability) zone.  The usual ride takes you to a hill town for a cappuccino and a great view of the fertile farms and mountains.  If you are high enough you can see the city of Riccione nestled by the Adriatic Sea.

To say that my ride was challenging would be an understatement.  The 95-kilometre distance was not the issue.  I sometimes do multiple 100km rides at home in a week.  The challenge of this ride was the elevation.  We rode to four hill towns with road gradients between 8 and 13 degrees.  The climbs were between 9 and 15 kilometres of switchbacks but always up.  There was over 1800 meters of elevation gain over the total distance of the ride.  That is a greater elevation rise than the highway from Vancouver to Whistler.  The first two climbs were “okay”.  I was last but at least in sight of the pack for the most part.  At the halfway point one of our group of 10 surrendered and a taxi was called.  I was offered an escape seat but in hindsight, stupidly declined.  Town three was even harder and the group was forced to wait at the top while I inched my way to the peak.  Town four proved to be my undoing.  With 4km to go on a straight uphill climb of 15km, my body broke.  I had cramps in both quads and calves.  Even my triceps went into spasms.  Just when I thought I would have to stop, I felt the hand of our Italian guide in the middle of my back.  He encouraged me in his broken English and I kept pedalling with everything I had as he gently pushed me up the remaining kilometres.  Our friend Keith was struggling as well but with the help of our guide we reached the top to the cheers of our group.   Day two was much better.  Keith was unable to ride but I gave it a go and after the first 15km my body seemed to forget the previous day.

Our Day two ride was to the country house of our Belvedere Hotel hostess Marina.  Regardless of the distance of the morning ride, all groups converged on her beautiful hilltop villa with views of the surrounding vineyards and farms.  She had her hotel staff dressed in farming attire and served a lunch with everything from burgers, sausages, pasta, champagne, beer and dessert.  After an hour and a half of lounging around we made a quick 23 km (downhill for the most part) back to the hotel for a post ride beer and snooze.

Marcie and Warren

Many More Smiles For Me on Day Two  

Deborah's Day One Ride to a Cheese/Wine Presentation.  They have been Ageing Cheese Here Since the 14th Century.

Deborah's Group Posing With The Head Cheese Maker.

Don’t know what tomorrow will bring.  It depends on how much wine we drink at dinner before committing to a new ride in the morning.

Munich

Munich was everything we thought it would be.  It is a city of great beers, sausages, pretzels, and culture.  There were no disappointments.   Our three and a half days were filled with sightseeing, eating and drinking beer.

Our direct flight from Vancouver to Munich took a little over nine hours.  We breezed through Customs and Immigration and after a half hour taxi ride, arrived at the Hotel Mirabell at 3 pm.  The hotel is located in the Middle Eastern immigrant district, an easy walk from the Central Train station and two blocks to the gates of the historic centre of the city. 

The first evening was spent drinking beer, nibbling on pretzels and people watching on the historic Marienplatz at the end of Kaufingerstrasse.  Our goal was to stay awake for as long as we could to acclimatize ourselves to the new time zone.  We finally stumbled (not an exaggeration) into our beds around 1:30 am.

We were up at 9 am the next morning and off to explore the city.  We took at Hop-On-Hop-Off open bus tour (but as usual, we never hopped off).  We started with the city’s historical district and then the surrounding area including the Olympic Park, site of the 1972 Olympics. 

We spent the rest of the afternoon tasting different beers and sausages at the various beer halls in town.  We (the girls) met some traditionally dressed Bayern men at the world famous Hofbrauhaus.

Our second full day was spent touring to the Neuschwanstein Castle area.  Most people know Neuschwanstein as it was the inspiration for the Sleeping Beauty Castle at Disneyland.  We booked on to a tour organized by Mike's Bike Tours.  Our guides were South African Brad and Bulgarian Natalia.  (They explained to us that Germans don’t work minimum wage jobs like tour guides.)  It included a two-hour luxury bus ride to the southwest tip of Bavaria.  The manicured farms covered the hillsides as we approached the foothills of the German Alps were well worth the trip alone.  The mountaintops of Austria were visible just past the castle.   

Yellow Castle (Home) - Sleeping Beauty Castle Above

To get a little training in for our cycling the following week, we chose to participate in a bicycle tour of the immediate area surrounding the castle.  This bit of biking was followed with traditional Bavarian food (sausage of course) and more beer. 

We Biked Around Swan Lake

We were second-guessing the lunchtime beers as we began the 500-meter hike up to the castle.  Bavarian King Ludwig II built Neuschwanstein in the 1800’s.  Not that many folks were building medieval castles at that time but Ludwig was a bit of a character and had led a sad life in isolation with his family in the Yellow Castle.  After the death of his parents and the loss of his only sibling to mental illness, Ludwig began building his castle.  It has a fairytale theme.  It took about 14 years to construct but he didn’t get to finish it.  He too was arrested for alleged mental illness and was found dead in a lake along with his psychiatrist under a shroud of mystery.

Our final day was a journey to Dachau.  We hired James our guide at the train station and took a short 20-minute train trip out to the village of Dachau.  After a short bus ride we were at the entrance to Bavaria’s World War II Concentration Camp, Dachau.  Over 42,000 people lost their lives in this place over a 12-year period ending at the close of the war in 1945.  It is not an uplifting story but one that remains important to be told if for no other reason than to shine a light on a horrific example of genocide.  At the time it was homosexuals, mentally handicapped, communists and of course the largest numbers were Jews.  Not necessarily folks practicing the Jewish religion but an entire race of people.  We had a chance to observe the original administration building, the jail within the jail, and two replica prisoner barracks.  The guard towers, gas chambers and crematorium are still standing in their original condition.  It is a somber tour but worth doing.

The Captives Were Met With This Saying On The Gate
"Work Will Set You Free