You bet, and thanks for joining us. It’s nice to be home and off the road for awhile too, though I have to admit experiencing some sunshine envy, looking at you too down in AZ.

Thanks for taking us all along for the ride with you both on this adventure. What a trip!

Thanks, Kelly. And congratulations as still being able to even walk at your age! Very impressive!

Check out El Charro in Tucson. Unless something’s changed, they have both food and beer.

I think flight prices are moving up, though we’d only casually checked in on the Nice flight a few times over the last month or two and didn’t keep notes. I think we could have saved a few hundred if we’d bought a month ago, but we weren’t really ready to think about it yet.

Welcome home!

Have you been tracking the price of plane tickets? If so, did you notice a change now that international travel has opened up? The news says air travel is surging and prices are going up accordingly.

I have a story for you - I was chatting with a new teacher from Ohio (?) about what we had done over the weekend. I had ridden my bicycle, which impressed Thomas greatly. He went on and on about how wonderful it was that I was getting out and about 'at my age'. Why, I was the same age as his parents, and all they did was watch TV. We had a little discussion about Coloradans being active people. Thomas did admit to seeing gray haired people on the ski slope (his sport). Fast forward to the end of the year - Thomas' father passed away unexpectedly . . . . talk about incentive to keep moving!

I'm excited to see you in Tucson. We have to sit down and have a proper meal and a beer. Maybe at one of those outside cafes you enjoy so much?

I will be in Tucson three times this winter - Thanksgiving, Christmas, and a month over January/February. I should know by then if my infatuation is the real thing or not. I've had an offer of a garage to leave the bikes in, but so far haven't been convinced that my affair with Tucson is serious enough to commit my bicycle long term.

Enjoy all of your favorite spots in Portland!

Thanks again, Bill. Hopefully next time we’ll find something new for you to research. I don’t think the UK has any Italian wall lizards, so that’s a hopeful indicator.

Great tour! to quote Bob Hope: "Thanks for the memories"

So glad to hear you both made it back to Portland safely! But I'll miss reading your journal and looking at all of your fabulous pictures. It will interesting to see where you'll go in the future!

Or it’s raining frogs. It’s the same down here. There’s flooding in the streets. Often we bring the good weather home with us, but not this time. At least I’m still so jet lagged that I’m not missing out on much anyway.

It’s hard to believe it’s been five months for me to, Greg. I’ve started backing up the photos of the tour and reexperiencing those early days in the process. Thanks again to you and the Feeshko for giving us such a warm sendoff!

Well I certainly don’t want to spoil your breakfast routine Tricia. We’ll see if we can’t conjure up an excuse to post again before long. You could do the same too though, you know. Tempus fugit!

Thanks again for following along and offering support, Bruce. It’s nice to be off the road for awhile, but I’m starting to feel twitches of withdrawal pangs already.

You as well! Rest up and relax over the winter. It’ll be time to leave for the Great Divide before you know it.

Another epic trip! You guys are legend!

Thank you for such a great journal and thank you for staying safe the entire trip. I can't wait to see you both in person.

What a wonderful trip you have had I have so enjoyed following along so many familiar and some unfamiliar places. My breakfast time won’t be so enjoyable. Get riding again soon!!
Thank you

Your descriptions of locked doors, stressed travelers, slow-moving lines, extra baggage payments, moving sidewalks that don't move, last minute Covid tests, waiting in line for complainers, and getting out of the airport probably won't do much for the European bike touring industry--at least not for Hilton Hotels, or certain airline's early check-in options.

Still, I think it would be cool to ride in Europe some day. Thank you for another fine overseas journal.

I'm happy to see you made it safely back to Portland. I cannot even believe it has been five months since we met on the very first day of your trip. Rome seemed so far away. ("Hi" from The Feeshko.)