Lora and Lynda arrive not too long after David and I get to Pienza. A little
later, we're joined by Cindy and Liz. We walk around and do a little shopping
while waiting for the rest of the group to catch up.
We ride out to Pienza. Cindy is feeling better and will ride. It's a short ride, and I feel good. I marvel at the body's ability to recover. Also, strong tailwinds give us a turbo boost.
Lora and Lynda arrive not too long after David and I get to Pienza. A little
later, we're joined by Cindy and Liz. We walk around and do a little shopping
while waiting for the rest of the group to catch up.
After the group is together again, Nello gives us a tour of the quaint town of Pienza. He shows us the piazza and shows us the "magic spot" that marks where you can see buildings exactly as the architect envisioned them.
We do a little more shopping and walking around with the bigger group.
We take a vote on the rest of the day. Most of the group would like to go to Sant Anna mumble mumble... where they filmed the villa scenes in The English Patient. Not everyone feels like cycling, however. Only 6 of us (David, Lora, Lynda, Brian, Paulette, and myself) go on our bicycles. The weenies take the van.
We ride back to Pienza for lunch. The ride is mercifully short. We eat salads and bruschetta, which are all amazing.
Riding out of Pienza, we ride into the wind that gave us the wonderful boost in the morning, and it takes a lot out of me. David, Lynda, Lora, and myself break pretty far ahead of the rest of the group.
The headwind is truly nasty. I realize I'm in trouble when I reach a flat part of a hill and still struggle in the lowest gear. On a monstrous hill, I have to pull over and rest. A few minutes later, David catches up to me and keeps going (the showoff!).
I wait for the ladies, and we wait to catch our breath and to let our legs recover a bit. I see more people coming up the hill and suggest we get moving before they see us sitting.
At the turn just before Montechiello, I wait for the women to catch up then go screaming down a steep descent towards Montepulciano. It feels wonderful after all the climbing. I climb the next hill part way and look behind me to find that I'm all alone. The others stopped at the turn. I can make out Lynda at the top of the hill, and she's still standing there. I can't tell what's going on. I wait a bit to see if they follow.
They don't.
I'm curious about what's going on with Lora and Lynda, but I don't want to climb the hill I just came down. I continue up the next hill. The climb is horrendous with many switchbacks. It seems like it will never crest. I finally get to the top of the mountain. The descent gives me a chance to recover for the remaining hills. I feel great after that. The climb into Montepulciano feels just as wonderful as it did yesterday.
Hours later, the rest of the group starts to arrive. They all stopped at Montechiello. David had received the instructions form Claire because he was at her table at lunch. Lora and Lynda tell me that Nello drove up in the van just after I started my descent. They tried to wave and yell at me, but I wasn't looking back at the right time. Apparently, Nello didn't want to go after me because he thought I wanted to be alone. Great, I'm Marlene Dietrich today. They tell me it was the coolest stop of the week. David describes it as an Italian village that Walt Disney would make.
I can't tell if they're saying this to tease me. I decide that they went to an entirely uninteresting town with a shopping mall.
Some of our group (and most of the normal patrons) start to trickle out, but the delinquents stay and keep drinking.
After a while, Alfredo turns on some music and dances with Claire. He's quite good. So is she. We stay out very late, taking turns dancing and drinking.
| Last journal page - September 7: What do you mean I have to shave? | Next journal page - September 9: Parting |
Send complaints/comments to web weenie.
