Food Coma

Wow, I need to lay down after that meal! I went back to Antica Cereria for dinner again tonight. After a 60 mile ride including a 3000ft climb, I was ready to eat. Tonight I decided upon the Gnocchi di Ricotta al Forno, Parmignana di Melanzane, and to top it off I went for the Begne con Crema Chantilly e Ciocolatte. In English, that giant gnocchi made of ricotta, eggplant parmesan, and beignets filled with chantilly cream in a dark chocolate sauce. I'm going to have to go on a diet when I get home.

Besides eating like a pig, I spent my penultimate day in Italy on my bike. I had a bit of a slow start to the day, but in reality, what else am I to do? I have no intention of riding more than 100km and that only really takes a little over three hours. I've walked more than my feet can handle and I'm pretty confident I've seen damn near every street and sight worth seeing in Parma centro. I just kind of hung out and took it easy. That's what vacation is for, right?

Once I embarked on my ride, I was immediately distracted by a little market going on at Piazza Ghiaia. There were only a dozen or so vendors, but they had some nice little artisan items, so I was able to pick up a few gifts that I've been on the hunt for. I am only missing one thing on this trip, and it's a new belt. I've given up on that pasta machine, I guess I'm going to just have to take a trip to Bari in the next few years to learn how to make orecchiette from the masters. I digress. I checked out the market, rode back home to put the things I bought in a place safer than my jersey pocket, then I was finally off for my ride.

The ride itself was interesting. The first bunch of miles were of course on flat busy roads. By flat, I mean climbing at 1-2% for 25 miles. Finally I got off that road and then things started to go vertical. At first, the climb was steep. 12% for at least two kilometers. Then I hit the switchbacks and things went down to a resonable 6%. It stayed there for a while, then reduced a bit more. Then I went downhill slightly, only to go back up. The last part of the climb was steady 8-9%, but I finally reached the top. Of course, when I reached the top, it was raining ever so slightly and the roads were wet. Leave it to the last day for it to rain and for me and my bike to get filthy.

The descent was not as much fun as it could have been, since the roads were wet. The clouds were very low today and at the top of the climb, only a little over 3000ft up, it was foggy. I really wasn't feeling so great on the climb and I wasn't sure what way I wanted to go back. You see, once I got to the bottom, I had three options. I could take the long flat road back to Parma, I could take the low road or I could take the high road and end up on that SS62 which I took to La Spezia the other day, just going in the opposite direction. The initial plan was to take the high road. I wasn't really feeling it, but once I started climbing (the choice between the high road and the low road came after climbing a bit), I started to feel good. So, I took the high road and I'm glad I did. It was a short climb compared to the last one, and before I knew it, I was up on SS62. Honestly, the only reason I wanted to take the high road is because I wanted to do that descent down into Salita.

I had climbed up there on Monday and knew that it was wide and smooth and featured lots of sweeping turns. It was awesome! It would have been even more awesome if it didn't rain half way down, but luckily it stopped after a few moments and I somehow didn't really get wet. I knew the storm was looming though and based on the tailwind I had heading back towards Parma, I knew that the storm was chasing me. I absolutely flew on the flat roads back to town. Thirty kilometers went by in a flash, but it really hurt. I was on a mission, I was flying by cars stuck in traffic, taking cues from the mopeds zooming through the gaps. It was a blast and I won't give up until I hit the river in Parma. Finally I did. From there I cruised around the road that circumnavigates the city then took Strada della Republica straight to Grom for a giant cone of gelato! And damn it was good.

With my final ride for this trip done, I can say from a cycling perspective it was great trip. I may not have ridden every day, but I did some great rides and I think the shortest day I had was still 40 miles. If I counted all the miles I spend rolling around towns, not to mention the miles I accumulated walking throughout the last few weeks, I'd say I got a pretty good workout. We'll just have to see when I get back home and ride my familiar roads whether I gained some form or whether I gained some fat. Either way, I rode far and I ate well.

Tomorrow, I have to pack, which includes cleaning my bike too, but there are still a few things left to check out here. It'll be a chill day. I have a lot of strategic packing to do, I have to plan what I am going to eat on the plane (no way in hell I'm eating plane food) and I have to get to bed early. I am taking the first train out of here at 5:20 Sunday morning to get to the airport in Milano.

It's really been a great trip! It was certainly so much different than last year, but I'll sum up more tomorrow. For now, I'm going to relax and digest my giant dinner. Most of you reading (on the East coast anyway) are about to start on yours, so enjoy and eat something Italian! Buona serata.