Country Roads, Corn, and Rice

Viverone to Santhia today, 18.5 km, overcast and cool.

Our hotel last night, right down by the lake.

We are getting into the “long distance walking” routine…arrive at the hotel exhausted, shower/bathe, do laundry, stretch out on the bed briefly, and then head out for a drink and dinner. Last night at this hotel was no different but….it was a strange place. When we arrived, it was all dark, no-one around other than an older (very) woman who checked us in, all in Italian, a bit brusque. Every hotel so far has had English speaking hosts so it was a bit disconcerting. It was a huge place that made me think of “The Adam’s Family” mansion….dark, a bit drab, and oh-so-quiet….a bit spooky even. No shower. There was a bath but it took a good thirty minutes to fill even a third full and with not-very-hot water. The most important thing to have in a hotel room, in my opinion, is a good bathroom, with plugs for the sink so we can wash out a few necessities for the next day, good water pressure, and good beds. I’ll come back to this theme a bit later. But the worst was the “free WiFi” connection was impossible. Mike realized the next morning as we left that they really meant WiFi FREE! LOL

We headed out for a drink. There was a boardwalk all along the lake with a never-ending array of eateries and drinking places…entertainment for the kids etc etc. It’s probably a happening place on weekends but on this evening, it was quiet.

Time for dinner, we opted to go for pizza and a salad at the hotel across the street from us. We were the only ones there. They informed us that weekends were very busy. The host of the restaurant was excited to hear I was Canadian and immediately phoned a friend of his from Canada. She was from Montreal, of Italian descent, and had moved to Viverone recently. Crazy conversation. So funny. We met a few other staff members…..all from Turkey…they could speak better English than Italian. The Turks are coming to Italy for work, the Italians are leaving for work in the big cities and to the US/canada! Go figure! So, who is going to work in Turkey? Indians, Pakistanis, Nepalis??? People are migrating all over the world in search of a ‘better life’ it seems.

Breakfast the next morning was wonderful and there were English speaking hosts who made us spectacular omelettes-a first!

The walk was lovely today. Mostly level, a bit of climbing on asphalt roads, but more downhill. Here are some views…