Day 45: Ostiglia to Montova

September 4, 2015

What a wonderful stay we had at that hotel Cioe in Ostiglia. The couple that runs it made us feel so much at home, and we also appreciated their sweet cat and little dog always around. At breakfast we found their croissants and related pastries to be really top notch - crazy, like the best ever. Then an old lady also having breakfast spoke to us in German. Whoa, we thought, did we pass through a black hole to be back in Austria? I addressed the owner in German, but he admitted he spoke only a little. So the German cycling books, German lady, and German baking are just puzzles.

What's more, I found LIDL in the GPS and Dodie is in ther now, looking for oatmeal (Hafer flocken!). It's LIDL Italia, but maybe... Anyway, it's hard just standing here, because with two top notch pastries and a cappucino in the tank, I have energy to burn! Let's get on with it!

Dodie came out of the LIDL and was able to declare victory, although there were a few twists. Oatmeal remains an unreachable item, but there was official German muesli. Dodie will like this, and there is a chance that I will too. Hot chocolate powder is also not on, but there was cappuccino powder, that does contain a lot of milk...

This is our token that unlocks the shopping carts at LIDL in Germany. It worked here in Italy as well - one of the wonders of multinational corporations. Maybe the magic will work for oatmeal as well.

Well no oatmeal, but this is real muesli. And look Jeremy and Melissa - more sunscreen to help prevent burns!

Two other kind of hardware items came out hat should be a big help. For the last week we have been scratching our heads and retracing our steps at Merano to figure out what we did with our headlamps. They were really good, worth up to 100 dollars each, and in a bag with spare batteries. We theoretically know to the nearest inch where every bit of our gear is - but what happened to them? The mystery was becoming a problem too, as the days are shortening, and we really need them. So when Dodie spied a 5 euro led headlamp in LIDL, she jumped on it. It sure won't put out 90 lumens, but it will be way better than nothing!

The other hardware item was a black marker - claimed to be quick drying, permanent, and wear resistant. This French bluetooth keyboard has the keys all in different spots and with incorrect markings, when run through the US model tablet. So I need to relabel the keys. Trouble is, the new markings keep wearing off!

We left LIDL really pleased with our new treasures, and eager to try some of them out. But first it was back up on the dike, for some hours of basic cycling.

Of course, as you cycle along you see all sorts of stuff, and various things catch your interest, even if only fleetingly. Have a look at the following photos and captions, and cruise along with us for a bit, up the Po. The captions will tell why we took the photos we did, but here is a little extra story, about Learco Guerra.

It would be very surprising is you have ever heard of Learco Guerra, we certainly had not. Learco Guerra was a professional cyclist, born in 1902, who won the 1934 Giro d'Italia, also coming second in a Tour de France. He was known as the "Human Locomotive". But the big thing in his biography, as far as this story goes, is that he was born in Nicolo a Po. Nicolo a Po? Yes, a teeny tiny town that we went through, today!

Actually it's wrong to just say we went through it. We were set to go by it, but Dodie noticed on the place name sign the subtitle - birth place of Learco Guerra - world champion cyclist. "Let's go through it rather than by it", she said. "Why? We have never heard of the guy", I said. So, in we went.

Just into the town we came to a sign pointing down an alleyway and advertising the birth house of Learco. We went down the alley and ran into two women. We told them (surprising how you can communicate even without a common language) why we were there. And they told us, that this was not the place. A third woman came out of a house, and a right jolly community meeting ensued. It was decided that the original women would lead the crazy Canadians to the right spot. So off we all went, down the main street of town.

I was amazed that the two women were willing to walk as far as they did, because we went to the other end of town. It was also instructive when a large semi trailer came along a cross street. The two women looked up directly at the driver, and stepped in front of the truck. The guy hit the brakes, and shook a fist at the women. I could not hear what he was saying in the cab, but he was peeved. "Look where you're going with your stupid truck", was what we took the women's very casual response to be.

At the end of the town we took a turn and arrived at a building with a plaque on it. "There you go" (or equivalent), they said.Then they wished us "Buon Viage", and walked home.

The community meeting on what to do with the crazy Canadians wanting to see the birth house of Guerra.

The plaque on the presumed real birth house.

Anyway - let's go back to cruising along the Po for a bit:

The Via Claudia has taken us all the way down from Germany (as it was designed to do)

Here we are back again on the Via Claudia. We will part ways again in a km or so.

Crumbly houses are a common sight along the way.

Can anyone identify this caterpillar? It and I were on the road when a big truck approached. There was no way to wave the truck over, so I had to pick it up and rescue it. Ooogie!

A new plantation of poplar. Together with corn, this is the only real crop here.

Some villages, with a little paint or foliage do look quaint.

This is a riverside touristic stop - must be for cruise and bike operations. So far, we have seen only one, and no other boats of any type on the river!

Here is a church being renovated. Clearly the money for it is around somewhere.

Goats, caught our attention because so few animals of any type are on view here. We did see a few cows, and we smelled a few pigs!

About 15 km north of the Po is the city of Montova (Mantua in English). Montova is on the river Mincio, which is a tributary of the Po and runs down from the Lake Garda area. Like Verona, Montova is an amazing place with a long and complicated history. The history is embodied in dozens of gorgeous and historic buildings, many of which are in a pedestrian zone, making for a really fun experience.

We left the Po and headed on up to Montova, even though we knew well we would have to retrace our exact steps to get back on the track. Bikeline and/or Dodie found a basically safe way all the way from the Po to Montova. We were a bit concerned that as we approached the big(ish) city, traffic would be a problem. But starting from around Virgilio, there was a dedicated bikeway. Great. "Virgilio"? Yes! Virgil was one of the famous citizens of Montova. Like we said, it's a serious place with a long history. (Virgil was born Oct 15, 70 BC - in Virgilio!)

Once technically in Montova, we had to go through a certain amount of nondescript modernish city stuff. I don't even have a photo of it. There is nothing in a modern city that you really can photograph. But as always happens, you eventually enter the old city and the magic turns on. Then you get to the pedestrian zone - and, that's what we are willing to fly nine time zones to get to!

The tourist information of Montova did not try to confuse us by being open when needed. So we stood outside their door and fired up Booking.com. The hotel we chose is outside the pedestrian zone but still in the old city. It's an interesting one that is in an old building and still has the requisite marble steps, but the rooms are decorated in a modern way. We actually like it a lot - the "Casa Poli".

We stashed our stuff (including all luggage, even tent) in our room and headed into town for a quick look. There are 26 (26!) important sights, but this is a flying visit, so we clearly can not check out so many. Our first stop would have been good enough had it been all they have in town. It's the Basilica of Saint Andrea. From the outside you can't appreciate just how big this place is, because buildings surround it. To boot, the front is being worked on, so all you see is scaffolding. But inside - it's an aircraft hangar, or could be. What's more, every inch of wall and arch is covered either in paintings or in amazingly clever 3-D like paintings of columns. These painted elements, which are everywhere, are so good, I repeatedly had to walk right up to them and sight up from the floor to verify that they were not sculptures.

The Basilica has its walls all covered in either paintings or 3D representations of columns

The other big thing in the Basilica is that they have two vials of the blood of Christ. Their story is that ... you know what, here, read it for yourself:

The story of the blood of Christ in the basement (crypt)

Other important parts of Mantova are the Ducal Palace complex - which is huge, including many buildings and the Duomo, and the fact that the town is surrounded on three sides by artificial lakes, that were created in the 12th century as part of the city defences.

Other things that come to mind include our observation that in the pedestrian zone, despite the city's immense qualifications as a tourist mecca, it is mainly the citizens that appear to be hanging out, and doing so with a genuine relaxed air of pure enjoyment. With our bikes unloaded, we were so effortlessly mobile that we could just float around, enjoying the whole thing to the fullest.

The McDonalds. These guys are so on the ball that if you want to identify the centre of town, look for them.

This fellow, Oscar, works in Washington, DC and is visiting Verona and his girlfriend north of there. He was interested in our folding bikes. Oscar is from Guatemala. We were happy to talk about Tikal, so many thousands of miles away, and San Pedro, in Belize, where we both have been. Small world.

The Rotuna St Lorenzo. Built in 1082 it is the oldest chruch in the town. At some point it disappeared as it was built into other houses around. When these were demolished, it was rediscovered.

Part of the ducal palace. For centuries (14th to 18th)the ruling family here was the Gonzagas.

Tomorrow we will reload our bikes, and probably try to spot a few more of the great buildings. But the pull of the track and the need to get somewhere before night will be there, and no doubt we will pretty soon drag our heavy butts back to the Po.

Bonus: Amelia on Oatmeal as reported by her Mom

"The photo of Steve and the oatmeal was a huge hit with the kids. Amelia said, "look, Steve likes oatmeal, he's eating it! I knew that he liked oatmeal!" So, okay, she's on Dodie's side with that one. Amelia and Evelyn requested oatmeal from mom every single day we were in Victoria. That's an entire month of oatmeal. And then, in the hotel at Calgary, the AMAZING breakfast buffet every morning had oatmeal, and of the entire amazing selection Amelia chose oatmeal every single morning. "

Today's ride: 58 km (36 miles)
Total: 2,164 km (1,344 miles)

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