When Right Feels Wrong

Cruising around Italy in a hire car sounds like a whole bunch of fun. Burnouts in carparks, 120kph in reverse... a hire car is the chance to do all the things that you would never do to your own car. These were all the things we planned to do until we discovered that driving in Europe is no walk in the park: there are just so many strange traffic signs in a foreign language, the steering wheel is on the wrong side of the car, and most of all, the crazy Italians drive on the wrong side of the road. On top of all this, the local drivers and hordes of motorbike riders are all nuts. Speed limits are a thing of the past in this neck of the woods. It has been a bit of a laugh though, cruising around Italy (well, Venice and Tuscany anyway) in our brand new Fiat Punto.

Venice was beautiful. We spent a day and a half wandering through the canal lined streets, soaking up the unusual city. It was awesome. It is a very nice place to just go and get lost in. We visited Murano, where venetian glass gets made. It was all very beautiful, but hideously expensive. Andrea had to get a smack on the bottom after throwing a tanty as it was all well out of our price range. We spent one night watching the Italians play the Yanks in the soccer. It was a good night, as Venice is full of Italians (well durr) and Americans. It was a good night out. Go the Aussies.



After we left Venice, we cruised around Northern Italy. Tuscany was just spectacular. Rolling hills, castles, vineyards and medieval towns all combined to create a marvellous landscape. Dennis has RSI in his right finger after giving the camera a workout. We cruised through towns where it felt as though time had stopped. Nonnos sat outside coffee shops watching life go by while the nonnas sat in the park gossiping and chatting. It is too hard to put into words. Just beautiful.

Florence, Pisa, Pompeii and Rome are our next targets. Stay tuned for more adventures from your favourite duo.