We woke up to another bright cloudless day. After a quick hotel breakfast we resupplied with 9 litres of water and diverted our planned route to take in the sights of Milan's ancient town centre,even though this meant braving the dreaded cobbles again. It was well worth it though as apart from witnessing the magnificent Duormo di Milano cathedral and La Scala Opera House, Tom managed to get an Internationale shirt to add to his collection!
All this sightseeing meant a less than ideal late start and we peddled our first miles of the day beneath a fierce midday sun. The first section of the day meant retracing our route back up the canal, we dived off into one of the many small villages along the path to replace some burned calories.
The unexpectedly named Banjo Bar provided the perfect venue, and after some classic international mime communication, we we're tucking into toasted sandwiches, crisps and of course the mandatory ice-cream. As we were preparing our bikes to hit the trail again, the gentle giant of an owner presented us with an English guide book of the area. It was a very kind gesture but we couldn't help wince at the extra weight cost of the gift!
Once we had left the idyllic setting of the canal and joined the road network, the day's ride became more and more brutal,with roads getting bigger, the heat more oppressive and Tom's bitten leg more swollen. Thankfully we soon arrived in Ghemme and after consulting a couple of locals we were directed up a very steep track to our agrituismo hotel - a very popular form of hotels in Italy, using converted farms as guest houses.
After showers and a quick nap, Team Probert were treated to aperitifs out in the old farm's courtyard then a 7 course meal of farm produce accompanied by local wine and capped off with a digestivo grappa. We retired to our grand room and drifted off to the rumble of thunder and hiss of heavy rain outside.
Ice Cream and long distance cycling...the two go hand in hand?
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