I survived my epic and perilous journey

We started in Bolzano

If someone had said to me a few months ago ‘Would you like to cycle in the Dolomites for 7 hours in the blinding rain and freezing cold I would  probably have said

‘Not really!’

However, that is what we did on Day 1 of our epic and perilous adventure. The countryside was - I think - glorious - but it was a bit hard to tell through the pelting rain and mist - and it was too wet to take photos.

Surprisingly -  we all enjoyed the first day it immensely even though we were cold and as wet as shags all day. 

We particularly enjoyed the stops at the little Bicycle Cafes that  popped up along the way and for lunch on day one we all had a fabulous Würstel mit Senf. 

Day 1 was an aberration and for the rest of the trip we sweltered in the blazing and merciless sun. 

The trip was just delicious and we had so much fun it was indecent. 


But - there was not a single one in our group who could read the detailed trip route instructions so we got lost often.

I have always considered myself to be the world’s worst navigator- but I met my match with Gwenyth and Llama who could easily get lost in a paper bag. 

The good ship Lollipop proved to be a grave disappointment. When the instructions said ‘close your portholes to allow the air conditioner to work effectively’ I - and a few others naturally thought that the cabins were air conditioned. Fools!

There was indeed an air conditioner wheezing away in the corridor and this was intended to cool 10 cabins if you left your doors open and portholes shut. In this endeavor it failed abysmally. 

Gwenyth achieved some relief by standing under it naked in the dead of night but the rest of us toughed it out and lay naked in our tiny hot bunks. 

The main feature of our cabin was the toilet in a small annex. It was perched on a pedestal so you climbed up to it. It had a ceiling about a meter above it. The access was so narrow that one had to insert oneself into the space backwards. The final indignity was that it was a ledge toilet. The most heinous invention in the history of Crappery.

The Internet on the boat - and indeed in most places - tended to be elusive  -but this was not the main reason for not posting. 

Normally I was so buggered after cycling in tremendous heat that I and everyone else crashed soon after dinner to the sweat boxes below decks. 

But I do have some exciting things to tell you.