Venice to Mantova - Ave Maria

The trip described was taken on the 11th August 2012 on the Ave Maria boat. The route can be done in reverse (Mantova to Venice) and also aboard a different ship, the Vita Pugna.


A few overview comments/points.

1) If possible fly into Venice Marco Polo and leave via Verona or the other way round if doing the Mantova to Venice route. This will simplify your transfers and the amount of time you need to make them. (I flew Aer Lingus from Dublin and this worked perfectly - although the flights were quite expensive).
2) The route is incredibly flat (literally just a couple of overpasses to deal with). To some people this will be idyllic, to others (like me) a tad boring, nothing like a couple of small hills to create a vista and add character to a landscape. Consequently this attracts some families, not necessarily a bad thing, but be prepared that children could be on board. The children were all well behaved and no trouble, but they could do with direction when cycling as they tend to stop without warning etc and on longer days most kids will struggle with spending time riding beyond an hour or so without a serious break. This in turn would make me strongly consider cycling solo. Perhaps on day 1 (and with 2 boat trips to contend with) it makes sense to follow the directions as part of the group to get used to them. But on your own you stop when and where and for as long as you like and dont have to wait for the slowest rider. Of course if you are the slowest, or have kids, then this is for you.
3) Probably best to avoid August and maybe July, due to the heat or if coming those times make the effort to read the directions to ride solo and therefore avoid the midday heat.
4) If a choice exists between the boats, then plump for the Ave Maria. Vita Pugna is smaller and less modern than Ave Maria. Consequently the rooms are a little smaller too (more similar to the Croatian boats).
5) Staying on the boat and not riding is always an option.
6) The mix of nationalities I experienced was considered fairly typical of the groups.

Day 1 - Arrival Day

Arrival at Venice Marco Polo airport and buying a ticket for the Vaporetto, (Water bus) and even finding the landing stages is pretty straight forward. As always in Italy at takes a few attempts to get on the boat that is heading to the Island of Certosa. This island is a "request" stop and for reasons that are not perfectly clear to me, it is necessary to board a different boat to the one that mentions the destination you want.
The boat takes about 40 minutes (and cost 15 euro) and duly stops at the right Island. The Ave Maria is a very short walk away and it is no problem to leave bags on board.
Nearby is a small hotel with a bar and restaurant so it is possible to get some reasonably priced lunch and a beer or coffee, however beyond a 15 minute stroll, Certosa does not really offer much.
So a word of advice: when buying your Vaporetto ticket, consider getting a 48 or 72 hour pass, so having checked your bags you can head to one of the other islands or indeed Venice itself. This will also come in handy for the following day.

After a couple of hours I return to the boat and can check into the cabin. The cabin is well appointed, with a nice en-suite bathroom. There are some important and slightly complex instructions for using the toilet, but everything else seems very straightforward.

There are 24 travellers on the trip, including Australians, Americans, Germans, Austrians, English, Italian and French. Surprisingly there are a few children (with 12 being the age of at least 3 of them) , although after completing the tour I can see why. Our Tour Leader (Beatrice) is French, lives in Germany and has also lived in Ireland and USA and therefore proceeds to give the introduction in English, German, Italian and French. Although on the face of it impressive, this is quite labourious as at least 75% of what she says is aimed at someone else and (embarrassingly for us English speakers) the French and Italians have perfectly good English. There is always a suspicsion in these situations that the German content seems to contain a lot more information, which seemed to be borne out as the week went on.

Some great news (at least for me anyway) is that the boat has an espresso machine and that you just help yourself to coffee whenever you like, gratis. This is a substantial saving on my usual weekly outgoings, fingers crossed for free beer and I will be better off staying on the baot than going home. Alas this was too much to expect, but the drinks are reasonable; 2 euro for a beer and 10/12 for a bottle of wine. You just mark it up as you take it and pay at the end of the week. The one anomoly is water which is 1.50 for a 500ml bottle, however you get to take one for free each day as your lunch, so if you take two a day, then look at it as 75c each, then it is OK. The boat also has free Wi-Fi.

We were also introduced to "Il Capitano", who was a rather glamorous Dutch lady (Connie) and our two cooks. No one seemed to have any allergies etc, but it was nice to know that they at least seemed to take this and vegeterians seriously.





Day 2 - Rest Day

The day starts with breakfast at 8am (as it will every day) on the boat.
There is a choice of cereals, ham, cheeses, yoghurt, fruit, toast and some bread rolls. It is set up so that you can make a sandwich for your lunch each day, although you can always buy something en-route if you want more substantial food (or are too lazy to make your own).
Unusually (although with Venice I can see the logic of this), the first day of the tour is a rest day, giving a chance to catch the ferry to St Marks square and look around this amazing city.
Having been before a few years ago for several days, I personally find the large crowds (arriving from Cruise ships) to be rather oppressive and instead head down little back streets to find a quiet square.


Day 3 - Venice to Chioggia (30km)

Our first day of biking, and after our 8am breakfast the boat takes a 45 minute trip to the Lido, a narrow resort island. This is a nice experience as it passes by Venice with some nice views. The bikes are offloaded and set up ready for us to go. All the bikes are termed "unisex", which to most people is in fact a ladies step through frame. There are "bake pedal brake" bikes available and also E-bikes (although given the complete flat terrain this would seem uneccesary). There is a front pannier and waterproof (Ortleib) rear pannier, water bottle and comprehensive road book.

Essentially the first part of the cycle is to go around (most of) the exterior of the Island on a mix of cycle path and quiet roads.

Two Germans on the trip went solo (which you can do). I stuck with the group, which was painfully slow. A break was taken at the beach for a couple of hours (where some people took a swim). I explored the Island a bit further and met up with them later on. We then all cycled together to take a small ferry (cost 7 euro per person) to the Isle of Pellestrina. Just before boarding the ferry, despite having Marathon plus, puncture protection tyres, I get a nail in my rear tyre. Being given no tools or pump or tube, I therefore had to defer to our leader. It was clear that Beatrice was not confident at the prospect of fixing a flat (and didn't really seem to know whether she had the right equipment). So on leaving the ferry I fixed my own flat, not a big deal, but it did set me up to be asked by others to look at little issues others had with bikes.
Pellestrina was a lovely quiet island with beautiful multi-coloured houses and a pleasant path beside the water. An optional short extention existed to visit a nature reserve, before boarding the boat and then riding to Chioggia, known as the little Venice.

Day 4 - Chioggia to Albarella (40km)

The cycle today began with a 1km ride into the town. We then had some free time to explore the fish market and the town.


The cycle leaving the town involved negotiating a lot of cross flow traffic, especially random pedestrians and cyclists. We then followed a cycle path and crossed a couple of bridges, some pushing our bikes. The next section was on a road that was quite narrow and was pretty busy, especially given the size of our group. Thankfully this did not last very long and soon we were on a quieter riverside road.

We crossed the river then followed a dirt road for several kms to arrive at another beach resort, where we took a couple of hours for lunch (and again some took a dip). The route then retraced its steps for some of the distance on the dirt road before turning onto a quiet road that winded its way through the delta system where Flamingos could be seen.
We joined the boat at a nice harbour in Albarella. Tonight the dinner was of Octopus and Turbot and it was good to know that they appreciated that this might not be to everyones taste, so alternatives were available!



Day 5 - Albarella to Adria (65km)

We start with another very short cycle to take a small boat across to Port Levante. Here there was some very nice cycling along quiet roads and a riverside cycle path. To add some extra interest a metre long snake somehow managed to get caught in my spokes and wind around my tyre, before realeasing itself. We take a detour to another beach resort, which given the speed of the group (slow) the temperature (around 36C) and it being a national holiday (so the beach was packed), was probably a detour too far. At 2pm we leave with still around 40+km still to cycle in the midday sun on an exposed cycle path. When the average speed is around 15km and there were frequent stops, then this was quite painful - maybe if we stopped more and went slower we would get there quicker?

There was also remarkably few towns and villages on this section, so nowhere to go.
Finally we stopped for a drink in a fantastically well air-conditioned bar and resumed with a slight temp drop. The final 15km was a bit quicker, but it did seem that the extra 15km detour was probably too much for 12 year old kids.
On arrival we learnt that the German couple who went solo each day, had conspired to have an accident and Uwe had broken his shoulder. Details of how he had done this seemed sketchy which given the completely flat terrain, low speeds and virtually zero traffic of the day, suggested rider error/fooling about.




Day 6 - Adria to Zelo (40km)

The day commenced with 2 hours riding on the boat, so the actual cycling did not start until around 10.30am. Given the temperature likely to be higher than the day before, this was later than i had hoped for, as once again it meant being out in the harsh midle portion of the day. I might be English, but think the midday is not for us, but instead just for the mad dogs.
Again there were some nice quiet roads and dedicated paths. After a stop in a town and a look at a villa, we then joined the river embankment path. For many people this is probably great (it is 100% flat) but I personally find it a little boring and it tends to be exposed in terms of sunshine.

We arrived at the very beautiful city of Ferrera at around 2pm and had a couple of hours to spend here. Unfortunately most places were closed, so it was hard to find somewhere to shelter.
After re-grouping we cycled a short distance to the railway station (2km) where we stacked the bikes into a trailer and boarded a bus for a 45 minute ride to a Gran Padano cheese factory.
We were shown around the plant, before we enjoyed a glass of wine and some of the cheese itself.

Another bus ride (40 minutes) and we arrived at Sello, a small town.
Tonight we enjoyed a barbecue, where for the first time we sat on the top deck eating al fresco, which (some mozzies aside) was a very pleasant experience indeed.
This village also had an Irish Pub, so a short stroll involved trying to teach the fundamentals of darts to Luigi, who proceeded, like all good ringers to beat all and sundry.

Some Italian Singing to entertain us!

Day 7 - Zelo to Mantova (52km)

As this was the last day and again there was another boat ride to start the day, I determined that I would ride solo. It was nearly 10.30 before we set off, so it was great to head away on my own. The directions were very accurate, and quite easy to follow, once you got the hang of them. For me this was easily the most enjoyable day, as riding a little bit faster than our usual 15km created some breeze (with no real extra effort) and so the cycle was more comfortable.
The cycling also involved closer proximity to villages, which I found more interesting.
I arrived in Mantova at around 12.30, whch meant no riding in the worst of the heat.
Mantova is truly beautiful, but seemingly without the big crowds of Venice and other well known cities. The rest of the group arrived at 3pm, which was surprisingly quick for them, but then I discovered they made a stop off half way, where it was possible to board the boat, which all the children and some of the slower adults took advantage of.



At 5.15 we took a very interesting (included) guided tour of the city that gace a nice outline of the history and took us inside the 2 impressive cathedrals. Roberto, our guide, spoke several languages, but seemed very happy to work in English and for the first time it was the Germans who felt that perhaps more information was being imparted in different languages than their own.
It was then back to the boat for the last dinner and to settle the bar bill before departure the next morning.



Day 8 - Departure

Breakfast was available as usual at 8am, and so was the opportunity to make yourself some lunch to take away. Cabins were to be vacated by 9am, but it was fine to leave bags on the boat if you wanted to.
My flight back to Dublin was from Verona at 4.20pm, so I took the 12.28 train from Mantova, which painfully took 45 minutes to complete the 41kms, I guess at 3.30euro you get waht you pay for. It was then a bus 15kms (6 euro) straight outside the Verona railway station back in the direction I had come from to the airport.

Croatia Biking and Boating - By Sofia Hansson

Sun, Sea and Spectacular scenery - Island hopping at its best!

This autumn we were looking for something new and exciting to include in our 2009 programme and with the concept of a combined land and sea tour becoming increasingly popular we thought it would be a good idea to offer a bike/boat tour in one of our favourite countries – Croatia!

So, I embarked on a trip to the stunning Adriatic Sea and Croatia’s Dalmatian Islands.
Treasured by sailors from all over the world, these islands are dotted in a spectacular turquoise sea and display a breathtaking landscape of mostly untouched coastline, exotic cliffs, secluded beaches, peaceful forests and medieval towns rising to a mountainous backdrop – a scenic delight surely best explored by bike and boat combined!?

The tour starts in Dubrovnik, which is easily accessible from both Dublin and London. I managed to get a direct flight with Aer Lingus from Dublin, which takes approx. 3 hours.
When arriving at Dubrovnik airport there were many taxi drivers offering to drive me to the city centre for about 30 euro, but always check if there is a coach service running as this is much cheaper, and the town is only about 20 minutes away. I found a coach outside the terminal, only costing me 5 euro (35 Croatian Kuna).
However, if you (like me) have a return flight from Dubrovnik at the end of your tour, buses are only available from the city if there is a Croatian flight departing at the same time as your flight, which is pretty hard to find out and also might not be very reliable, so I would suggest to take a taxi for your return flight.

Please note that those who wish to book our featured bike/boat tour in Dalmatia should refer to the tour itinerary as per our website and brochure as this blog describes the tour with a slightly different route (but reading the blog will certainly give you a very good idea of what to expect from the tour!).

DAY 1 – Dubrovnik
The coach from the airport drops me of at Cruz Harbour, where the ship Romantica (my home for the next 7 days!) is docked.
Arriving onboard just in time for lunch (all meals are included in our tour package) I settle in and begin to get to know my fellow passengers. We are served a lovely 3-course meal that I enjoy while conversing with a friendly family from Utah – any initial nerves about the tour is now gone and I start to feel really good about what lies ahead!
The boat itself is a lovely motorised ship, with cabins above and below deck and a large dining area with fitted bar inside. There are also plenty of outside seating areas , perfect for those sunny days! My double bed cabin is nice and clean, and like all the others has a separate private bathroom and shower.
After lunch there is free time to explore Dubrovnik before the group meet up again for a guided tour later in the afternoon. I take the opportunity to walk up on the (amazingly well-preserved) town wall that surrounds Dubrovnik’s fairytale-like old city. There is a small fee to get up onto the wall, but the view from up there is well worth it! The walking tour of the old town was very useful and gave a real insight to the rich history of the city (that is also chillingly conveyed through the bullet holes that can be seen in the town wall).
Dinner in the evening onboard, with our full compliment of all 12 passengers, is followed by a presentation of the tour, our guides and the ship crew (including our private chef!). We also receive a taste of the traditional welcome drink Rakija, which is VERY strong (40 to 60 percent alcohol content!), so beware!



DAY 2 – Island Sipan & Island Mljet
Morning cruise to Island Sipan where our bikes are fitted out for our first cycle. All bikes are equipped with water proof back panniers, although the “waterproof” bit won’t really matter to us as the forecast promises warm weather with clear skies all week!
In the basking sunshine we head of with our two cycling guides (one always in the front and the other staying with the cyclists at the back to ensure that nobody gets lost). The morning is very pleasant and although we don’t receive detailed route directions (only overview maps), with 2 guides the chance of getting lost is minimal and it is nice not having to worry about “turning next right then left…”. I also appreciate the fact that there is no “rule” to cycle all together in a line and people quickly find their own pace. The route itself is relaxing and takes us through the countryside and some valleys towards the sea.
Making it across the island we stop for a quick swim before heading back to the boat – time to work on that tan on the sun deck!
During lunch we make a short and scenic cruise to the densely wooded Mljet Island (90% covered by forest). The afternoon cycle is the most challenging stage on the tour, but I do enjoy the incredible traffic-free roads, which makes the cycling much easier (coming from Dublin it is strange to not see a car for 3 hours!).
We finish up in the beautiful Mljet National Park, where I take the opportunity to cool down with an evening swim in the gorgeous lake Veliko Jez – the hills were quickly forgotten about!
Total distance today was 50km.

DAY 3 – Korcula Island
Another lovely day and a morning cruise over to Korcula Island and after a very filling breakfast we are ready for what lies ahead.
Today the boat will not meet us for lunch, but instead we are given lunch packages to enjoy at a stop along the way.
The cycle starts off with 10 km of very relaxing cycling along the sea front, followed by a 3km climb where most of us push the bikes, as it is too steep to cycle all the way. When we finally reach the top, our efforts are rewarded with stunning views of the sea and surrounding Islands and mountains. We can also see our boat afar looking tiny, which makes me realise just how high up we are!
The scenery today is really something special, and around each corner (and each hill!) there is a breathtaking view to appreciate. As lunch time approaches we arrive at Brna, where we take a couple of hours break, and enjoy our packed lunch and a well-deserved swim in the crystal-clear Croatian sea!
The afternoon cycle involves one gradually climb for about 4km, which I actually enjoy as it is not too steep and takes us through some very unique scenery of green-dressed mountain passes.
Descending down to our night-stop Vela Luka I am pleased to see the boat anchored the harbour - it is really nice to have your base to come back to each day. Onboard we quickly order some cold Croatian beer, which never tasted as good!
Total distance today was 60km, with some of the most spectacular scenery on the trip.



DAY 4– Vis Island
Today’s destination is Vis, a small (approx 90.3 sq km) and unique island furthest away from the central Dalmatian islands. Vis has been a military base since the end of the Second World War and only quite recently has foreigners been allowed to enter (no pressure then for a ship load of foreign cyclists heading for its shores!).
After lunch onboard we begin our cycle with a steep climb up to a viewpoint with stunning views of the sea, mountains and Komiza village in a distance. From the viewpoint we enjoy the descent all the way down to Komiza at the edge of the island. This is an important fishing village, but also worth mentioning is the delicious ice cream! Having refuelled we embark on another climb that takes us up to the top of the island, which again is rewarded with beautiful views.
After some (much welcomed) flat cycling through a quiet valley we descend back to Vis in time to enjoy a lovely sunset from the boat.
For the evening main course we are treated with freshly caught fish and our Croatian guide Sasha gives us a lesson in the Croatian language. Afterwards some of us decide to put our new knowledge to good use and explore Vis’s nightlife (a tiny bar with 80s medleys on the stereo) before heading off to bed for some much needed rest.


DAY 5 – Hvar Island
In the morning we head for Hvar Island where the boat sets anchor at Hvar Village, a very picturesque town nestled between the sea and mountains. With some free time scheduled I take the opportunity to explore the village, while some of my fellow travellers decide to make the most of this warm and sunny day and hang out on the boat’s sun deck.
During lunch we get the regular run through of the first stage of today’s cycle, which is very straightforward - a 10km uphill cycle followed by 10 descend to Starigrad. Later in the afternoon we have a relaxing roundtrip cycle to Jelsa, where we all enjoy the best ice cream so far on the trip! (In Croatia it seems easier to find and ice cream shop than a grocery store!).
Arriving back to Starigrad our dinner is followed by a lesson in Croatia’s geography, which involves finding out that the country boosts over 1000 islands (most of them are inhabited)!
This evening some of us visit a very cosy cocktail bar where Croatians, Germans, Americans & Swedish all swap stories, and where downstairs a room full of sailors insist on buying us the traditional Croatian drink Rakija. Luckily we escaped through the back door!














DAY 6 – Brac Island
While enjoying breakfast onboard we are transferred to Brac Island where we will begin our cycle after lunch. Before this we have time for a (very refreshing) morning swim at the nearby beach called “the Golden Horn”, named after its horn shape pointing out from the mainland. Today’s cycle, that brings us to the village Supetar, begins with a fairly challenging 8km climb followed by undulating terrain through vineyards and quiet countryside until we make a “beer stop” in the tiny seaside village of Postira.
After another 3-course meal (I could get used to this!) our guide Sascha gives us an insight to Croatia’s very interesting history.
Total distance today was 50km.

DAY 7 – Split
In the morning the ship brings us to Split, the second biggest city in Croatia and on UNESCO’s world heritage list because of its old city and the Dioclatian Palace, built from local white limestone. Today’s cycle is only 15km up to a viewpoint of the city, while the afternoon is spent in the markets where they sell everything from jewellery, art, clothes and food. During lunch onboard we cruise to our final destination, Trogir. This is a lovely village with a cosy old town where we enjoy a chat and a coffee on the main square. The final dinner on the boat consists of a spread of Parma ham, cheese, 3 different types of sausages, burgers, chicken skewers, chips…the list goes on! We are also awarded with a meringue cake that the captain sets on fire (yes he was meant to do that) to celebrate our last night and also the crew’s last night for the season.



DAY 8 – Trip ends after breakfast
I am flying back to Dublin from Dubrovnik, which means I have to embark on a 6-hour bus journey back from Trogir. The distance itself is only about 250km, but with “roller coaster” roads through the mountains and along the coastline the travel time is much longer that you would expect. The scenery is beautiful though so the trip feels shorter. On my last night in Dubrovnik I stay in a hotel by the harbour (right where the boat set off from a week earlier). If you plan to stay extra nights in Dubrovnik you tend to get a better deal when avoiding the area by the old town. You certainly get better value for your money, and the old town is just a couple of minutes bus ride away.

Portugal - Megalithic Heritage of Alentejo

After the end of what we laughingly called a summer this year in Ireland, it was with great delight that I ventured to the more reliably sunny Portugal to try out a new offering for 2009.

Day 1 - arrival Day

It was an early start to ensure making the 7.35 flight from Dublin to Lisbon.
There was no doubting the change of location when dis-embarking from the plane - the sun was shining and the temperature was a good 10C warmer!

A nice touch on this tour is collection from the airport or downtown hotel, keeping things nice and simple. There was a delay waiting for one couple who had a later arrival time, which allowed the rest of the group a chance to enjoy a beer and get to know each other a little.

On the arrival of our missing couple, there was a transfer of around 90 minutes to our lodging.

This was a true "agri-tourism" establishment with a modern twist. There were chickens and cows etc on the rampage outside. But the property was built around a courtyard and on the inside there were many of the features you would expect of a good class hotel, including a swimming pool.

Our first task of the evening was to try a little Port, whilst getting our induction meeting from Jose and Cristina - our hosts for the week.

Our talk included the handing out of a few items - water bottle, small front pannier, details and perhaps most interesting of all, a packet of wipes to assist in the using of natures toilet. Either we were cycling to remote places or Portugal did not do public toilets.

After our talk, we adjourned to the nearby dinner table where we were served with Dinner.The starter kind of resembled an English/Irish Fry up.....it was egg and bacon but without the black and white pudding.
This was followed by a tasty Spinach soup (good to get some greens in) and then crispy Duck served with rice. This was all washed down with some local Red Wine.


Our First nights lodgings and hosts for the week, Jose and Cristina.

Day 2 - AKA Megalithic day

Breakfast was served from 9am - so no need to set the alarm clock (especially as Portugal is on the same time zone as London and Dublin).

Surprisingly there was a fair choice of breakfast items - not quite the full Irish, but certainly more than you would experience in many European hotels.
Having had our fill and brought out our bags it was time to try out the bikes.

These were very good Hybrid bikes, but certainly more in the style of mountain bikes than we would have in Ireland. Front shocks, no mudguards and disc brakes and all gents frame style.
The impression was (later proved correct), that this would involve some off-road cycling.

So then it was to the cycling.
This tour was a fully guided one - Jose led on his bike and Cristina drove the SAG wagon.

We began leaving down a small track and then turning onto a quiet country road. Very quickly we stopped to take in a Dolmen that had been converted into a small chapel. This is where the megalithic heritage comes in - all around this area are many such Dolmens and stone circles.

This first day of cycling included several stop offs at various megalithic sites - some of which were really impressive - as well as the remains of a Roman Villa. There was also an ancient fertility symbol that as the parent of 3 children already, I was keeping well clear off.

There were three real surprises of the day;

1) Being the amount of off-road cycling. Make no mistake this was not mountain biking, but some of the trails were pretty bumpy and there was quite a steep 3km up and down on a dirt track (Hopefully some of the pictures give a fair view of this).

Mountain goat territory?

2) The picnic that was set up by a Dolmen. This was a welcome stop off and included some nice local cheeses and fresh fruit etc

3) The price of things. I stopped for an espresso in a small village which cost me all of 60c and also bought everyone a beer beside the Roman Temple in Evera which cost 13 euro for 9 beers.

The oddity of the day was that on arrival at our hotel, Jose and Christina left for home as the next day was our rest day. Evera was certainly a great looking town and is a UNESCO world heritage site, but it was a little strange to be left to fend for ourselves so early in the week, especially having not built up the rapore with the fellow cyclists as you would after say 2 or 3 days.

Distance - 57km

Day 3 - Rest Day

This was the rest day and a chance to do some exploring and shopping in Evera. There are a few sights in the town as well as a number of restaurants and coffee shops. Interestingly in the car park between the hotel and the walls of the old town a bustling market had popped up offering the chance to buy just about anything you wanted - especially if that thing was some knocked off Armani sunglasses or other quasi designer label items!

Day 4 - aka Cork Day!

The day began a little earlier than others with a "meet up" time of 9am. This was due to taking a small transfer, around 20 minutes, to a small hill top castle village.



After heading down hill and along the road for a few km, we joined one of the old upaved tracks that brings you into the heart of the countryside (and face to face with cows with quite large horns). Jose called this Cork day as we passed a number of Cork Trees en-route and it was a scheduled stop to explain more in depth the markings, types of tree etc etc.

A bit more cycling brought us on to another picnic, seemingly in the middle of nowhere. Todays specialilty was a quiche and a very tasty cake - of course there was always at least 2 types of cheese on hand. By now it seemed to me that cheese was the Portugese equivalent of the potato - no meal was complete without it, except even in Ireland we struggle to sneak potatoes into breakfast.

The afternoon saw us take a bit of a climb to a beautiful preserved village. There was then time for a stop in the larger town of Estremoz for a coffee/beer/ice cream before venturing through some vineyards to our rather unique accommodation at Rio de Moinhos, which consisted of small apartments made out of an old abandoned village.

Home sweet home......

The nearest village was 2km away, which we were driven to for our dinner. Other than us, there was no-one else in the restaurant, but this may have just been due to Portugal playing Albania at football in the bar next door. Emabarrassingly for Portugal they drew nil all at home......

The dinner, in addition to cheese of course, included a rather tasty wild boar and a choice of desserts that included the curiously named Camels drool!

Distance - 47kms

Day 5 - aka Marble Day

The day began shrouded in mist which gave a lovely hue to the surrounding vineyards. This made the temp. quite a bit cooler than what we had previously experienced, although it seemed unlikely to stay that way. After arriving in the nearby village, the cycle began to climb, so it was not long before we started to get warm up. Our first stop was a marble mine where you could see the marble being cut. Our journey took us past several marble mines and facilities servicing the marble trade. We stopped at the town of Villa Vicosa, which seemed to be the centre of marble country as everything seemed to be made of the stuff.

We then continue on a bit more mountain goat country (ie off road) until our well earned picnic lunch.

After lunch was a nice undulating 15kms to the town of Juromenha. Here was (another) castle on a hill overlooking the river Guadiana and the Spanish Border.
We then returned along the same road and then Jose gave us an option to take offroad route or on road route. We rather surprisingly voted for the off-road option.

The last section saw a steep climb for around 1km to our destination, Terena. We were greeted on arrival by a rather classy South African lady who owned a wonderful house.

Here we enjoyed a really great dinner with some very nice and plentiful wine.

Distance - 73kms

Day 6 - AKA Serengeti Day

Today began with the breakfast of all breakfasts. Freshly squeezed OJ, Espressos/cappachinos, fresh fruit, fresh bread. This was certainly the pick of the trip.

After around 7km on road we took a side turning to head across country. This was to experience the Serengati plain type of landscape for which the area is known for. Indeed Stella, the South African lady fell in love with this area for it reminded her of home (presumeably helped by the lack of real danger from truly dangerous animals or violent crime).

The cycle today was very short, although there was a 1.5km climb at the end to reach the village of Monsaraz. We had lunch just outside the town walls in a picnic area that gave great views over the surrounding countryside.

Again the hotel offered some very good accommodation in an interesting building. The town itself was very attractive, if somewhat quiet. It was like someone had stolen all the people, but I am sure like many countries rural flight of the young is a real problem.
Dinner that night was in a restaurant across the street from the hotel. At this dinner we were each presented with a rather snazy cycling jersey.

Distance - 41kms

Ghost-town?

Day 7 - Vineyard Day

Being at the top of a hill, the day began with a nice downhill. Our first stop was the nearby vineyard just a few km away in the valley. Here we were introduced to Simon who was to be our guide of the vineyard. What was different on this vineyard tour, was the fact that Simon had his own bike and actually took us around the vineyard highlighting various features, vines etc rather than just explaining things. This really added something to the trip. Of course we also got a chance to taste some of the wines which you naturally would expect.

After leaving the vineyard we cycled our longest on road section of the trip across a large bridge and on to Mourao. This was a pretty town, again with a castle on top of a hill.

We returned across the bridge before taking some off road trails before reaching the outskirts of S. Pedro Do Corval. Here we had our last picnic of the trip. This village is famous for its pottery so we cycled the 300 metres to a nearby pottery to check out the local wares. After which continued for the last few kms to Reguengos de Monsaraz, and the end of our ride.

That night we headed by van to a restaurant on the other side of town for our final meal together.

Distance - 50kms

Day 8

After breakfast we left just before 10am for the 2 hour drive back to Lisbon, where almost everyone had determined to stay for a couple of days to explore. I would recommend anyone to do this either at the start or finish of the ride if they have not been to Lisbon before.