Today's ride

Ciao ragazzi. Just a short update about my bike ride today.

I was supposed to meet Pat, the director of school, at the piazzetta where the cycling group gathers at 8:30 this morning. Pat and I were going to say hi to the group and go for a nice leisurely ride of 40 to 50 km. I got there to find that Pat had bailed.

It was wicked cold this morning. One of the Italian men in the group (there were only 6 of us today) said that it was around -2 degrees Celsius as we started up the first hill towards Bagnaia. We headed off on what they had said was a ride to Bassano in Teverina and back, about 50 km. For these guys this sort of ride is more like a stretch. It is certainly manageable for me too, but I always worry that the Italians are going to outpace me. Little did I know that at some point on the ride the decision was made to extend the ride to Orte. This added about 25 km and a long, steady climb at the furthest point. By the time I figured this out we were almost in Orte, and there was no going back. The climb went reasonably well, but it took a lot out of me. By the end of the ride the Italians had to slow their pace on the last two hills to let me catch up. It was very humbling, especially since the closest in age to me in the group was about 50 years old.

My feet had gone numb in the first ten minutes on the bike, and I quickly realized that those goofy neoprene cycling booties are actually really important when you ride in freezing weather. At various points I felt like I was getting some feeling back in my toes, but as the ride went on I gave up hope of sensation and focused on getting home. When I did get here it took my toes about an hour and a half to warm back up.

Now I am fully warmed up. Caroline and Eli are napping (they are both pretty sick), and we are excited to have a lazy weekend here in Viterbo. Tomorrow is the Host Family Holiday Party at the school. By all accounts this is a noisy, crowded affair with copious amounts of food. Very Italiano. One week from today we are headed off to Germany to stay in Luca's mom's house in Ehingen where I spent a summer back in college. We are excited for a cold and cozy Christmas, and we are planning a few outings to Ulm, Munich, Tubingen, and lots of castles. On the way there we are going to visit with Luca in Zurich. On the way back we might stop in Austria and in Northern Italy, maybe Mantua. We hope that you all are well and are having a great holiday season. We'll try to post again before we leave for Germany. Ciao e Buone Feste!