Tour de France Training Day

Day Five - Santa Maria to Otranto - another 33 mile day billed as relatively easy. We have a guide book that gives a little overview of what to expect from the ride and we read for the next day each evening. We talk about what we are going to see and where we might stop and we look at the maps. The overall description for today said there was a 1km climb out of Santa Maria and then a 2km climb after the town Santa Cesarea - so we thought we were in for a relatively flat day, free and easy like the day before. 

Instead, we were in for the most challenging day - definitely the most challenging day of biking/working out/living that I have ever had. The saving grace was that it is incredibly beautiful - if yesterday was depressed Florida, today is luxurious California - everything blooming and well maintained, gorgeous estates built into the sides of the mountain. Gems of towns with weddings going on and lots of activity. 

The difficult part was winding our way up and down the mountain roads - there was nothing flat, we were either climbing the mountain, or speeding down. If entering a town used to mean climbing a bill to get there, on the coast, you usually head downhill into the towns and then climb out straight up for kilometer after kilometer.

We were going to meet up with Fabio in the morning, but we were running late after our night of grappa with Franz and Iris - I've actually been really jet lagged and no matter how exhausted I am or what time we go to sleep, I wake up at 2:30 in the morning and can't get back to sleep, Nancy has been fine since after Alberobello, but I can't seem to shake it. We got going and started our day of mountain climbing - we made stops for photos and to admire the view, but we didn't officially stop until about 28km for lunch at the Grotto Zinzulusa. 

Grotto Zinzulusa is a natural cave you can explore, though it was closed, with a big pool on the edge of the ocean, which was also closed due to the fact the sea was high and crashing against the edge of the pool. We ate the local specialty, rustico - a pastry filled with bechemel sauce and tomatoes (a little rich for me) and some fresh fruit and caffé with ice and almond milk. The chairs were really uncomfortable (or maybe my butt is just really sore), but we didn't hang out long afterward and got back on the road.

Santa Cesarea was getting set up for some kind of festival or parade and there were tons of light being strung downtown and activity going on. As we were cruising through town, we bumped into Fabio and he started biking with us again, even though he could have left us in the dust.

About 10-12km from Otranto the landscape changes from lush mountains to a flat, dry desert landscape. This is where we would find another tip of Italy, this time the eastern most point of the whole country. We stopped at a little bar just before entering this zone, but they were so rude to us that we left without ordering anything - we would come to regret this.

The last 10km of this ride proved to be even more difficult than mountain climbing all day - the road wasn't truly flat, more like a small incline all the way, so no coasting or taking any breaks on your bike. The sun was hot and bright and the desert landscape was dry with no protection from the brutal wind in our faces. We couldn't even see Otranto, it was just nothing out there. We didn't walk out on the Eastern point as it was quite a ways from the road, but we saw it in the distance.

Finally we came around a small forest and saw Otranto - we bikes into the main square and climbed one more hill to our lovely hotel. The room was great except that it was inexplicably two levels, with the bathroom up a steep set of stairs. So after the most intense day of biking in my life, I had to climb 12 stairs just to use the bathroom 

in my own room.

I collapsed a took a 2 hour nap immediately - Nancy did some painting and we showered and got ready for dinner. Nothing ever opens until 8pm, so we always have time to get ready and go out. 

We walked into the cute old town filled with touristy shops and eateries, we took some photos by the water and ate dinner at a wine bar - even at a relatively cheap, small place, the pasta is freshly made and the cheeses and meats are all spectacular. We ate with Fabio and had three bottles of wine between us. Nancy and I had a tuna main course that was actually a little fishy (and hugely portioned) so we were stuffed and drunk and said good bye to Fabio - I think he thought we'd all be hanging out all night - not saying good bye at 9pm. Arrivederci, Fabio!! He is staying in Otranto and going to try and sell paintings to tourists and extend his vacation. We are off to Lecce in the morning.