Ups and Downs... but mostly ups

The past few days have been quite a wild adventure!
After Pisa and Luca, I had a nice, flat, straight ride up the coast in the morning. I was feeling confident, so when the coast turned mountainous, I opted to take the scenic road through Montemarcello Park to Lèrici. For some reason my map didn't show the first 250m climb that was squeezed into 5km of road. Or the second ascent of 100m in 3km. Fortunately, the road was incredibly beautiful, with panoramic views of the Ocean, montains, Viareggio (where I had come from) and La Spezia (where I was headed). Even so, when I reached my campsite at Lèrici I nearly collapsed. Fortunately, the campsite was perched above a georgeous little Mediteranean cove, and there was a ladder down to the water. I didn't even bother taking my bike clothes off before diving into the water.
The mountains surrounding the cove were completely wooded, with only the tiny villiage of Serra visible 200m above. There wasn't really a beach, the mountains just plunged straight into the ocean. There were a couple boulder-islands in the cove, so I swam out to one and contemplated my trip. I decided that the coast was much more beautiful from the water, and that this might be the time to cheat a little: there is a boat service from Lèrici to Cinque Terre to Genova.
Lèrici is the most delightful town I've been too. It is built right onto the side of the mountain, so most of the streets are actually stair-cases. All the appartments and shops are pink and yellow and orange with dark green shutters, and they are stacked on top of one another so that I can barely believe they don't just fall into the ocean. Everyone in the city and at the campeggio was sooo friendly, and I made a couple friends who gave me lots advice on the logistics of seeing Cinque Terre by boat.
Porto Vedere and Cinque Terra are really spectacular. I don't think I will even attempt to describe them, but don't worry! I took about a bjillion pictures, so I will show you when I get back. I was enjoying the area so much I actually missed the last boat to Genova, but it wasn't a problem because the train also goes there, and it was a fair bit cheaper. I got a ticket for myself and my bike, and as I was struggling to heave my bike on board, the conductor came over and offered to help. Then he offered to let me sit in the passenger seat of the (air-conditioned) engine with him. He also offered to let me drive the train, but I declined, since that seemed to require sitting on his lap. I spent the rest of the trip into Genova pleasantly enough, talking non-stop about il mio ragazzo back in the states.
When I got to Genova I was discouraged to learn that the youth hostel is actually on one of the 'hills' that surround the city. 2km and 260m of vertical later I reached the hostel. It was 35deg celcius and I would estimate 110% humidity, and starting to get dark. And there were no beds left for women. I sat down outside to collect myself and try to figure out a plan when I saw two other girls with backpacks who had also been rejected from the hostel. Marie Sophie and Armelle were travellers from Paris, and had just arrived in Italy earlier that day. We decided to try to figure something out together, but all the other options were either too expensive or too far away. At this point it was quite late and we were all absolutely exhausted. So exhausted in fact that the park benches we had been sitting on started to look pretty comfortable. We all had sleeping bags, so we ended up having a slumber party on the piazza outside the hostel, overlooking the city and the ocean. We woke up early the next morning, quite shocked at how good a night's rest we had all managed. The three of us spent the day together exploring the city, which was really fun.
This morning I hit the road again, climbing over Passo di Giovi. I had been warned that it was 'impossible' by bike, but after managing the road to the Youth Hostel it didn't look so bad. Now I've made it to Novi Ligure, home of the famous Italian cyclists Costante Girardengo and Fausto Coppi.

Al mare!

I'm back on the road, and definitely feeling stronger! All the 'hills' (cough::mountains::cough) of Siena really forced me into good shape. Yesterday I left the farm and managed 122km- all the way to the Ocean. I am camping at the Marina of Pisa. Yes, I saw the tower, and I must say it was a bit dissapointing- it's much shorter than I imagined it.
However, the area has had many pleasant suprises as well. Today I took a day-ride into Lucca, wich is yet another mideavil town. Lucca is neat though because the fortress walls that surround it have been converted into a beautiful park\bike path. You get a nice view of the city on one side and mountains on the other.
The ocean is also beautiful, if a little over-developed. Fortunately for me, I'm still on a 'farm-schedule'. At 5.30am I have the whole coast to myself! This morning I decided to relax a little after my big day yesterday. I had a private cabana with a magnificent view of the ocean. Not bad!

Happy Fourth of July!

I can't believe that my time here at the farm is almost finished; I hit the road for another week tomorrow! Just when I've finally figured out how to tell when a sheep udder is ACTUALLY empty.
Believe it or not, that has actually been the most challenging part of my daily work. Cheesemaking has been straight-forward for me, once I got used to taking directions given in a thick Tuscan accent. Herding the sheep is also suprisingly easy-
Things sheep don't like: being left behind.
Things sheep like: looking at other sheep butts.

Saturday I helped Claudio at the Rosia market, which was really fun. I'm feeling more and more confident with the language and also, I met a group of eight American 'interns' who work at a nearby farm, Spannocchia. Its a HUGE agriturismo opperation, focussed on showing foreigners what Tuscan food and farming is all about. Their main product is an heirloom species of boar, but the farm\hotel is completely self-sustaining.
Anyway, the interns invited me up to Spannocchia for a 4th of July party. Their farm is only about 8km down the road (plus another 3km up a strada bianca - dirt road - even steeper than ours) so I could ride my bike there. It was a wonderful evening. The farm had brought in all sorts of traditional american cuisine. AKA hotdogs, burgers, potato chips, potato salad, sweet baby rays BBQ sauce, rice krispie treats, apple pie, and of course watermellon. The intern coordinator even put together an 'America Mix' which featured every song that mentions the name of an American city. Lastly, we had sparklers and bottle rockets after watching a (Tuscan) sunset.
It was great to be reminded of home, especially on the holliday, and it was nice to be around other young people of my culture for a change. However, the party also made me really greatful for the experience I have had with Maddalena and Claudio. Its so easy to fall into all the tourist traps here: places designed to make Americans feel comfortable. I am definitely spending a fair bit of time outside my comfort zone & while it is often stressful, I am really lucky to have found a rout off the beaten path.