Biking Walking and Eating across Italy

Bietola a Costa Fine. The local "green" that is ubiquitous in the area.   Somewhere between spinach and chard.  We blanched it whole in boiling salted water for a minute, then sauteed it in lots of olive oil and garlic.  Yum. Home made Italian dinner:  that funny vegetable with Umbrian pork sausage over Polenta, served with local wine and salad.  It's nice not not have to eat out every meal, airBnB kitchen challenges non-withstanding In 1995 Spello was adding a new parking lot when they discovered the remains of a 1st-ish century Roman villa.  Only the lower foot or two remains, but the mosaics on the floors are amazing.  They constructed a building on top of the old floor, called it a museum , and (as with everything in Italy) charge admission to look at the floor. Our airBnB in Spello has lots of space, mostly in the horizontal direction.  If we'd bothered to bring our own bike helmets, I'd be wearing one inside. On the trail to Collepino, along...

 

We haven't had the time or patience to deal with blogger, so here are some photos that go with the posts we haven't made yet. A typical 3 legged Florence lamp post Part of a Mosaic tile floor discovered underneath the Duomo in Florence, from a 12th century church underneath From the patio of the Duomo museum, in a driving rainstorm The David We stopped at the local market on the way into town (Florence) Just your run of the mill keep off the grass sign Reflecting on our walk along the Arno river Florence, from a gap in the trees The baptistery. The coolest building in Florence A deeply moving sculpture portraying the plight of immigrants, in St Peter's square We circumlocuted an entire country today: the back side of Vatican city Public outdoor restrooms at Ostia antica Roman flat arch construction in Ostia Antica Mosaic floor in a (former) pool in Ostia Rape of  Persephone  by Bernini Medusa as a roman-era mosaic Notice Kerberos, the 3 headed dog that guards the entrance t...