Giulianova

About ten o' clock last night, to try and cool off, we walked out along the promenade, which was lit by soft orange lighting, housed in conical shades. We welcomed the coolness of the breeze coming off the Adriatic sea.

This morning, around seven thirty, John took a walk out to the beach, where a local fisherman was selling his catch, but it was a case of too few fish, for too many people. After our breakfast, we watched the same fisherman and his wife, winch their boat over some wooden rollers further up onto the beach away from the incoming tide. The wife, who was of slight build, had the job of operating the wooden pole on the winch, which involved walking around in a circle in the sand, in a pair of oversized wellington boots!

By eight thirty, the sands of the beach were peppered by prostrate bodies, wanting to catch some rays before the heat of the midday sun.

Before we left, we walked along the seafront, away from the town, spotting a woolly caterpillar moving at a frantic pace, clearly on a mission.

We arrived at tonight's destination at Giulianova around two o' clock, after one of the best days travelling, if not the best day ever. Although Marge, did manage to lead us into one backwater! There were quite a few vans already here when we arrived, including one from England. We have not seen any English people for nearly three weeks, so were really suprised. There is a fantastic cycleway, right beside us, which stretches for some distance along the seafront.

We took it to access the town, where we needed to source some contact adhesive for a floppy sandal sole, and a pin, for a bracelet watch strap. By the time we reached the shops, it was nearly half past three, so most of them were still closed, but luckily, we came across a Chinese shop, that sold everything. So with our purchases complete, we cycled down to the marina and along the harbour wall, passing the fisherman, fishing with large drop nets.

At the end, by the harbour entrance, we stopped to take in the hazy view, realising that sat amongst the rocks, and on the wall, were quite a few older men. Was this some kind of gentlemen's club? Some of them had obviously been there all day, as their skin was lobster red. Returning to Marge, we decided to cycle a little further on, where we spotted a family of European beavers. Their five young responding to Johns whistle, and scuttling out from the greenery.

This evening is once again warm and sultry, but when we took a late evening walk out, we noted the air seemed a little fresher, so hopefully we will have a more comfortable nights sleep. As we walked along the seafront, we passed many restaurants, all fairly quiet, as it was nearing closing time. Unlike the Spanish, who do not go out to eat before ten o' clock at night, the Italians are all done by nine, to nine thirty. Sat with three other people, at a table in the window of one of the restaurants, was a monk. Why wouldn't you see a monk, in a pizza restaurant in Italy?

We now have about four weeks left before we return to England, so tomorrow we must decide when and where, we will re-enter France.