It was another introductory day for Cathie today in absolutely beautiful countryside. Two weeks ago, I’d ridden a similar but more northern route with Minou, but had found the journey quite bland. We had be riding through the middle of the valley and it alternated between industrial and agricultural without much to see.
Today, we skirted some more dramatic Tuscan hills while still riding on the flat. That made for superb views most of the way.
There was a tricky steep downhill on fresh gravel to start, then some quiet roads that took us to the outskirts of our destination. It was here we encountered many rally cars gurgling their way out of Pistoia in the Sunday traffic. Not knowing that the annual Pistoia rally was in progress, we were wondering if this was normal for a Sunday afternoon in these parts. I know Italians like to drive, but some of these rally cars really didn’t belong on the roads in traffic.
With the rally in town, the whole place was bustling with people, music, a wine festival … and petrol heads. Later the cars paraded in the historic town square and that whole scene couldn’t have been more bizarre – Rally cars with a backdrop of antiquity. Again, I’d been here with my daughter, Minou a couple of weeks prior and Pistoia was then serene by comparison.
We had a late bite to eat at a pasticceria in one of the central squares, then later after dinner we walked through the same square and it was standing room only with music pumping !
We stayed in a nice old place near the centre with the bikes locked in a small internal courtyard. I’m learning how Cathie’s e-bike works, how to get the cover off the battery, remove and replace the battery, and most important of all, how to best lock our bikes together. It’s suddenly not just This Moment that is the most valuable piece of equipment !