It's been a little bit since a blog post due to spotty internet access and tiredness. However, here's a brief update from the last few days...
After our long car transfer, we prepared to head towards Pompeii. However, traffic conditions made riding to or around Pompeii just about impossible. So, we decided to drive to the camp and then climb Vesuvius from there. We ate a fabulous lunch (as always) and headed out to climb the mountain - only to find it closed about 1/3 of the way up! Not just our road, but the whole mountain was "closed" for the night... Major bummer!
We spent the next morning touring Pompeii, which was amazing. Here's a shot of all of us hanging out in the "plaza" area of ancient Pompeii. Many and incredible sights to see there.
We had another "off" day on Friday as we moved toward Rome (due to crazy traffic around Naples), staying in the beach town of Mondragone. The ocean was beautiful and it was forced relaxation - no internet connection there, hence no update! But a beautiful sunset...
Saturday morning, we woke up very early to get ready to ride. The bummer was that we woke up in the rain! It was a lousy looking morning. However, we donned our cold weather and rain gear, and took off anyway - we had 175k (about 110 miles) to ride to get to Rome. Not even an hour into the ride, the clouds parted and the weather changed - ultimately, this meant that while we had a few scares, we were NEVER rained on during this trip! Amazing!
We picked up the "Appian Way" about 100k from Rome, and followed that in for a majority of the way. It was incredible to ride and contemplate the history of the road and the idea of pilgrimage as we pushed towards Rome. There are still many spots where trees are pruned to shade the road for weary travelers, as below...
Finally we made it into the city itself, and on to Coliseum!
Our journey is now officially finished. However, we'll still be in Rome for the next two days taking care of some final details and getting bikes prepped and ready to head home on Tuesday. While the trip updates are finished, I will plan to post some observations from the trip, etc. over the next few days. I've personally learned a ton, and the experience was a great one from so many different perspectives.
Thanks for following along with the journey! I can't promise that I will continue to update this blog, although I may - and I also can't guarantee that you'll continue to be interested in what you find here, although you may! However, looking forward to reconnecting with many of you who have following the journey. Peace to you all!
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