Switzerland to Italy

August 13th, San Remo, Italy
It has been a while since we have had Internet access. I broke another spoke yesterday (only two so far) and this one is on my rear wheel, cassette side. I rode another 30 clicks with no problem. We are staying in a great campground right on the Mediterrean Sea, Italian Riviera. We have been biking pretty hard since we took the train from Lugano to Genoa. I rode to a bike shop this morning, and the guy says he cannot fix it for a few hours. We have decided to spend two nights here, so I said no problem. I am in the hotel Firenza, across the street from the bike shop. Now let me get back to the happenings since the last post.
Vic picked us up from the train station on Friday night. We went out for pizza with a bunch of his friends. Afterwards we all went to Vic's place for wine and song. Ended up going to bed around 3PM. Spent Saturday running errands with Vic. He always cooks a big meal on Sundays for his family, ex-wife (Monica) and her two year old daughter, Charlise. Around 9PM we went to the film festival. We did not watch any of the movies, since it was more fun to just got to the parties. We ended up at a cool place. It was almost like being in the Hocking Hills and somebody putting a night club in Rock House or Cedar Falls! It was another late night.
The next day we got up late and started cooking. I made a banana cream pie for dessert. Vic's meal was amazing... Pasta, mussels, fish. Jordan made a great tomato/avocado/feta salad. We ate around noon, cleaned up, swam in Lake Lugano and relaxed. A little later, Giordano wanted to play tennis. He really has the bug, so Vic, he, and I went and played. Vic has an excellent game, but Jordy is catching up to him. After tennis, we stopped by the basketball court, where Keeno was playing a little 3 on 3. Vic, Jordy, and I formed a team and played one game. The Italians really got a kick out of playing basketball against Americans. We almost beat them, but sadly, our advanced age was too much, despite our more skilled play!
We went back home and barbecued pork ribs and chicken. It was another late night (3AM). We got up early and said our goodbyes. This was a very relaxing week, but I am antsy to get back on the bike. We had to take local trains to Genoa because of our bikes. We ended up having to switch trains 3 times. We ended up almost missing connections because we both fell asleep. We arrived in Genova (Italian spelling) around 4PM and rode to a campground on the western edge of town. Genova is a big port city, pretty industrial. The campsite was up on a big hill overlooking the city. We set up camp and then rode back down to the city. The only decent restaurant that we saw open was a Chinese place. It was actually really good!
The next day we did some serious riding, about 60 clicks after getting up really late. We stopped at lunchtime to swim in the Med. Sea then we bike to another campground that was again on a hill overlooking the city we were in. This time we camped in an olive grove. We walked down to the Med Sea for a swim and then had a nice Italian dinner, gnocchi with gargonzola and some sort of fresh baked fish. The town was really lively with a festival. A lot of magicians and games for all the kids.
We got up fairly early yesterday and started biking for San Remo. On the way I stopped at a little book shop looking for a map of the Riviera. The old woman in the store spoke English well. I told I was looking for a map of France, in my typical Ohio accent with a very hard "a". She looked at me and said, we say "Fronce". I then said "You say tomato, I say tomoto". She then smiles at me and says, "Let's call the whole thing off!" I started cracking up.
Arrived at our campsite around 4PM. We set up our tent which is right on the Med Sea. What a picturesque setting! After swimming in the ocean and then the pool, we showered and went back to the tent. I guy about my age was setting his tent up next to us. I said hello, and he replied in English. Turned out he was from Australia and his name was Boyd. We exchanged the usual info... How long you been on the road, where you going, etc. He had just come from Paris and asked me if I needed some maps. I did, and gladly accepted a great map of the French Riviera. I then invited him for a beer. The three of us went to the local restaurant and had a great time. Boyd is between jobs, too. He decided to take a 6 month bike trip. None of his "mates" could make it, so he is doing it alone. His bike was kind of old, but it had interesting gearing. His granny gear had 34 teeth and the small gear on the front was the smallest I have ever seen. He said that when he is going uphill in the low gear, cockroaches can pass him. It is really cool to see another old coot our there "living the dream". Taking a day off today and tomorrow we push on to Cannes, France.