Laundry night again. I’m in the most beautiful place, Sapri, about 150km south of Salerno. Once again it was chosen only on the basis that it was a 2 hour ride after a late lunch and it was time to book a hotel.
Had to get up early this morning, 06:30, to meet Filippo, and go retrieve my bike from his Mum’s garage, before he went off to buy breakfast supplies. His breakfast was probably the best yet. No coffee for me.
Filippo deserves his 9.6 rating in Booking.com. He does not have a day job, running the BnB is it.
Then, a comparatively early start, 9am. It would be good to have brekky at 06:30, at least on a transport day, and hit the road by 7, or leave at 7, brekky 2 hours out. I wanted to lose no time getting to the ferry at Messina, as missing one would cost me an extra hour.
As it was, Zumo took me off at the wrong exit, and I ended up at a freight transport depot. I was told there: Autostrada Palermo, Uscita Boccetta.
Shortly after, I saw a servizio and decided to fill up then, rather than finding something on the mainland. There, I asked directions again, Autostrada Palermo, Uscita Boccetta. Twice now, it must be right. The exit was clearly signposted as the ferry terminal exit. Then it dumped me into the streets of Messina. There were signs saying Embarco Villa San Giovanni, which is the remote ferry terminal on the mainland. I followed the signs and ended up at a defunct freight terminal. The man there said 2km that way (north). I didn’t believe him, because the signs were so clear to here. In the end, Google maps showed the ferry route ending 2km north of where I was, so I had to believe it, and it was true. Maybe it’s just me, but I can’t quite believe how hard it was to find that terminal. Of course, the time I lost caused me to join the queue in time to watch the ferry I would have been on just setting sail. You can always squeeze onto a ferry on a bike, even with long vehicle queues. Those Polish cars are everywhere. Makes you wonder how many anonymous cars you repeatedly encounter without knowing.
I had been thinking of taking the coast road north after Nocera, where the road diverges from the autostrada. Google said it was 12 hours to Paestum instead of 6, so an extra day. But I was in Italy on a bike for a reason, and it wasn’t to ride autostradas. The haze had cleared between Catania and Messina and on my right the sea was brilliant sparkling blue. The view was magnificent, with the terra cotta coloured houses, the azure sea, and the mountainous mainland beyond.
I could imagine that sea on my left for 300km to Salerno. It might be like the Great Ocean Road, or perhaps highway 1 in California between San Francisco and Eureka, just about my favourite road anywhere. I had plenty of time, and I hadn’t booked anything in Paestum.
The reality was a bit different, the road was limited to 70km/h, 50 in the towns and for much of the time between them. The cars mostly did 10-20 above the limit, so 80k wasn’t too bad, but I was considering the occasional option to turn right to the A3, which was along way off now, across the coastal range. The ocean was visible much of the time. At Paola I found the Centro and ordered a panini con mozzarella in a cafe. She suggested adding prosciutto. Did I want two (due)? I imagined the usual panini at home and agreed. When they arrived, I realised I had dinner as well. With Google Translate I asked her to put one in a bag. It must be the wrong dialect, she puzzled over it and asked her friend, but it all worked in the end.
Where to stay tonight? Paestum was too far, and Sapri seemed to be in the right place, about 100km north, just before the road got really interesting for tomorrow. The road had been running north on a narrow coastal plain with many towns, 3 star hotels and bars. All a little down at heel. Most shops seemed to be closed, very few people around. Very mountainous inland. Lots of petrol stations, almost all unmanned, self serve. For a bike you need €5 and €10 notes, I never seem to have any.
The good thing was that there was very little traffic. At one stage I snuck past a few cars and saw the lights on a Carabinieri car ahead, dropped in 2 spaces behind. They were having a little joke, cruising at 60k in a 70k zone, where most cars would normally do 80 or 90. The car in front of me, about 2 metres behind the police car, would not overtake, and I certainly don’t need any more interaction with the Carabinieri. The procession continued for several kilometres while the cars queued up, then the Carabinieri pulled into a servizio and normal driving resumed.
In Italy generally, the speed limits are absurdly low, a reason why they are uniformly ignored, except where enforced by radar or police. There is certainly no shortage of police in this country. I have passed many radar cameras on overhead booms, mostly over the speed limit. Nobody seems to worry about them, unless there are also signs saying speed is electronically enforced. They aim backwards, at the front of the vehicles, so I think I’m safe. I do dread receiving a sheaf of speeding fines from the rental company after I get home. A few times, I have found a car travelling more or less at the speed limit, with a driver who does not hesitate to overtake whenever necessary, and I just cruise 2 seconds behind, letting him worry about the speed limits and the radar. I do this at home too, on the Hume freeway.
The tone of the towns visibly improved going north, and the hotels looked better too. Eventually the coastal plain ended, the road got really curvy, started to climb, and the speed limit increased to 90k. This was serious fun on a bike. The last 30k to Sapri were some of the best I have experienced, without even exceeding the speed limit. Wonderful mountainous scenery.
Like the eastern part of Sicily, it was greener and had trees, including eucalypts.
Then the 10km descent to Sapri. Zumo guided me to the door of the Hotel .
Another beautiful, spotless Italian hotel. The man suggested I park the bike in the beer garden, how could I refuse that? There was a Boxer dog dozing on his own bed near the reception desk La dolce vita.
The stain on the two shirts faded a lot in the wash. They are at least wearable now. Perhaps a few more washes will get rid of it.