Looking forward to our Bałkans Tour!
Tomorrow we fly to Sofia, Bulgaria, where we'll meet our guide, Branko Bosilkov, and gladly allow him to handle everything for the next month.
Thursday, 8/26: While breakfasting outside in the garden in Marseillan, a bee wanted to share our meal. He didn't want any lovely fruit nor the delicious preserves. He wanted ham. Yes, really. From one little sliver, he cut a big piece and flew away with it. We cut the remaining bit into smaller pieces, and he flew off with them. We then departed for a nice drive to picturesque Nice, and we stayed at a lovely hotel on the Promenade d'Anglais at the Cote d'Azur. We were here 5 years ago. Four months after our visit, following a fireworks display in celebration of Bastille Day, a Tunisian man terrorized the waterfront by mowing down dozens of merry makers with his large truck, driving down the wide promenade. He killed 86 people, half French, half foreigners, and injured dozens of others.
8/27: Today we visited the Old Town, admired some cactus and yellow and varigated hibiscus, and had lunch. I ordered Pave (pronounced paVA) du Thon, which is tuna. I didn't expect it to be covered with bird seed, but it was (thus, the pave). Anne loves eating seeds, but she was enjoying her lasagna. I tried like heck to scrape those seeds off, but I ended up eating half of it. Yuck! Later on our balcony, we're amazed at the number of airplanes landing at the seaside airport just west of us. I looked at the flight info online, and the flights were scheduled every 5 minutes for hours! The planes were coming from everywhere but the USA. We see a couple planes that have to fly off because the runway hadn't yet cleared. My friend Roddy, sister Claudia, and Allan would be thrilled, I think, being able to watch these flights so close. There are also ferries coming and going to various locations like Corsica, Sicily and Sardinia. There is constant auto traffic on our street.
8/28: We left Nice and drove along the coastal highway towards Genoa. We also drove these roads 5 years ago. Three years ago, a 210 meter span of the Morandi Bridge collapsed, killing 43 people. We turn north towards Milan before we see its replacement. We return our rented car.
8/29: We've returned to Milan to see Leonardo da Vinci's 15th C The Last Supper. Tickets are purchased weeks in advance, and you are allowed in the room for 15 minutes max. It's on a wall in the former refrectory of the Convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie, and it's 15'1" x 28'10", larger than we imagined. It underwent a 20+ year renovation from 1977 - 1999. Leonardo never worked on frescoes, so he went about painting it in his own way. Our guide pointed out things we'd never noticed. This site was bombed in 1943, destroying the ceiling and adjacent walls but not the painted wall. It was, however, exposed to the elements for 5 years with only a temporary roof on some scaffolding. The weather is pleasant now, not like 10 days ago when it was hot and humid.
8/30: This morning we are taking the bus to the airport hotel for tomorrow's flight to Bulgaria. The taxi asks us 'bus to Malpensa airport?' Yes! We stow the luggage under the bus, buy our tickets and board. A minute later, Anne realizes we are heading to the wrong airport. So, off we go, crossing to the other side of the train station for the bus to Bergamo airport. She is now threatening to make me handle all the arrangements. I know she'll eventually calm down. She loves making plans, scheduling stuff. And I'm just as happy to follow. I'm glad Branko will have all the responsibility for the next month. Arrivederci, Italy! See you again in 6 weeks!
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