Albarella to Chioggia

We started out after breakfast, going along a very busy and narrow road. I didn't have any lunch with me because they had run out of the gluten-free bread I have been eating, so I already knew it would be a difficult day, at least from the point of view of eating. What I didn't realize was that I had also forgotten my extra bottle of water. It was a hot day and we didn't have a lot of places to stop, so that wasn't good.

Once we turned into the protected wildlife area things were easier in terms of riding. We saw a large colony of flamingoes from a distance although you had to look through binoculars and even then they were difficult to identify because they were all clustered together.

We continued riding and looking around, eventually coming out onto other roads. We were able to stop for coffee after we crossed the Adige River, using a very narrow footpath on the bridge. You couldn't ride on the bridge because of the very heavy traffic. Then we had to ride in another busy highway and then another bridge over the Brenta before stopping for lunch in the area around Chioggia.

Most of the bars were closed but there was a grocery just getting to close where we could get a few things and a bar with a few choices. I got some porchetta and cheese but they didn't have any wheat-free bread or crackers. Then I had some gelato and a bottle of water to replace the one I forgot. But I should have had even more since it was such a hot day. Then we rode into Chioggia, where the traffic was very heavy and the roundabout not as effective as I would have liked.

We did ride the bike path around town, which was fun. Then we found the Vita-Pugna and had cold drinks. Peter and I walked into town and I got some cortisone, some gluten-free crackers (not a taste treat!) and a very nice Alviero Martini bag. I have wanted one for a long time since they are decorated with old maps. Then we had a great fish dinner with mussels and clams as a first course. And I got a lot of potatoes to make up my carb deficit. After dinner Alex took over my iPhone to check the Danish stock market.

My biggest disappointments on this trip are that while we are on a barge, it mostly sails while aren't on it and that we don't do more sightseeing when we bike. I don't want to ride fewer miles, but we ride pretty slowly most of the time and we see most things at a distance. We have a good written guide but we don't get the chance to ride up and see things close up and have people tell us about them. I guess this bothers me more because I won't get another chance. Peter will go on barge trips again, but not any that include biking.