After five days of trekking up and down a long, steep hill at our house sit here in Italy we broke down and rented some wheels. While the hill alone was doable once we added in groceries and the dogs it became a bit rough. And besides that was the mere fact that we'll be here THREE months and to miss out on touring the country would be a shame.
Renting the car online was fairly easy since Clyde did all the work. Then there was the feat of getting from the little town of Giavera del Montello (pronounced Jah-vera) to Treviso Airport to pick up the car. With the help of some nice man who spoke English at the phone store, where we picked up chips for our cell phones, we had the directions. We simply had to wait for the bus at the bottom of the hill in front of a restaurant. The first bus we tried for was at 10am but it never came. We waited another two hours for the next bus but again, nothing. Finally a bus appeared out of nowhere and as I climbed aboard and asked, "do you go to Treviso?" the driver said, "no." He told us the next bus to Treviso would be at 2pm. Frustrated after waiting four hours and getting no where we decided to try for a taxi. Now this is a small village with no public transportation so we'd never seen a taxi here but decided to look online. Eventually we made a connection and within another thirty minutes our ride showed up.
The ride to Treviso took around 35 minutes at a cost of 50 euros but at this point we really didn't care. We made our way into the little airport and quickly found Europcar, the rental company. Next we were given two options: to take the car they had there but we might have to bring it back since someone might want to buy it. That's a lot of mights. Or the other option was to wait for one that should be returning in fifteen minutes. We opted to wait the fifteen minutes which turned into about 45 and still no car. We ended up taking the one they had that we might have to bring back if the person that might want to buy it might want to look at it. Whew!
Then we had to head outside and walk quite a ways to find where the cars were parked. Not like renting a car in the US where the car is brought to the customer, here we had to go find it. But eventually we found our little car and off we went, very happy but tired.
Today we headed out early with Billy, the three month old tiny puppy that we're taking care of since he can't be left home alone. Surprisingly, he travelled well and slept most of the way in his little carrier. We found out he had never walked on a leash as we tried to walk him around while sightseeing. By the end of the day he was doing better walking along with us.
We headed up into the green, lush mountains of the Veneto Region of Italy to explore some castles and villas. Our car whizzed past miles of grape vineyards, olive trees and through tiny villages. Some of the villages were old and historic looking while others were more modern.
When it came time for lunch we spotted a place called Pizza World that offered menus in several languages. Looking through the large array of pizzas we settled on one and off I went to find a bathroom. To my surprise this lovely, modern restaurant lacked something in the way of fine facilities. What I found was a room with TWO stalls, one for men and the other for women. Each one featured a squat toilet on the floor. Now I expected squat pots in Asia but had no idea that I'd find them here in Italy, but this is the second one I found here so far.
Well even though I'm not a fan of squat toilets I did have to go so I made the effort. Apparently though there is only SO much time allotted and before I was done the lights went out leaving me in total darkness. There I was pants down in the dark trying to figure out how to open the door without falling over. My thinking was perhaps if I opened and closed the door the timer would reset giving me more time. But the door swung IN so I had to almost step into the toilet to let the door get by me, not something easy to do in the dark while half dressed. Finally I managed to open the door and there was a light switch that turned the light on and I quickly finished up and got out of there.
Returning to the table I was surprised to say the least at what the pizza looked like. The cheese was not melted, the topping was just tossed on there and the whole thing was not cut into slices at all. But this is Italy and things are different here and we REALLY did enjoy the pizza after all. And since in Europe there is a charge to USE the table a cost of 1.20 euros per person was added to the bill.
We really enjoyed the sights, sounds, smells and beauty of the mountain towns not too far away. Having a car will allow us to get out and explore the REAL Italy full of interesting people, places and things.......along the gringo trail.
Terry and Clyde are able to "Travel The World House Sitting" and so can you! We have created a website to help people who want to learn about house sitting. Information for both the prospective house sitter and for someone who needs a house sitter.
the New Website --> CLICK HERE
How to Get Your First House Sit --> CLICK HERE
How to find a house sitter ----> CLICK HERE
Renting the car online was fairly easy since Clyde did all the work. Then there was the feat of getting from the little town of Giavera del Montello (pronounced Jah-vera) to Treviso Airport to pick up the car. With the help of some nice man who spoke English at the phone store, where we picked up chips for our cell phones, we had the directions. We simply had to wait for the bus at the bottom of the hill in front of a restaurant. The first bus we tried for was at 10am but it never came. We waited another two hours for the next bus but again, nothing. Finally a bus appeared out of nowhere and as I climbed aboard and asked, "do you go to Treviso?" the driver said, "no." He told us the next bus to Treviso would be at 2pm. Frustrated after waiting four hours and getting no where we decided to try for a taxi. Now this is a small village with no public transportation so we'd never seen a taxi here but decided to look online. Eventually we made a connection and within another thirty minutes our ride showed up.
The ride to Treviso took around 35 minutes at a cost of 50 euros but at this point we really didn't care. We made our way into the little airport and quickly found Europcar, the rental company. Next we were given two options: to take the car they had there but we might have to bring it back since someone might want to buy it. That's a lot of mights. Or the other option was to wait for one that should be returning in fifteen minutes. We opted to wait the fifteen minutes which turned into about 45 and still no car. We ended up taking the one they had that we might have to bring back if the person that might want to buy it might want to look at it. Whew!
Then we had to head outside and walk quite a ways to find where the cars were parked. Not like renting a car in the US where the car is brought to the customer, here we had to go find it. But eventually we found our little car and off we went, very happy but tired.
Today we headed out early with Billy, the three month old tiny puppy that we're taking care of since he can't be left home alone. Surprisingly, he travelled well and slept most of the way in his little carrier. We found out he had never walked on a leash as we tried to walk him around while sightseeing. By the end of the day he was doing better walking along with us.
The Village of Vittorio
and it's Castle Veneto
Castle Di San Martino
also in Vittorio
also in Vittorio
Castle Conegliano
Various Churches and
Church Towers
Church Towers
We headed up into the green, lush mountains of the Veneto Region of Italy to explore some castles and villas. Our car whizzed past miles of grape vineyards, olive trees and through tiny villages. Some of the villages were old and historic looking while others were more modern.
When it came time for lunch we spotted a place called Pizza World that offered menus in several languages. Looking through the large array of pizzas we settled on one and off I went to find a bathroom. To my surprise this lovely, modern restaurant lacked something in the way of fine facilities. What I found was a room with TWO stalls, one for men and the other for women. Each one featured a squat toilet on the floor. Now I expected squat pots in Asia but had no idea that I'd find them here in Italy, but this is the second one I found here so far.
Well even though I'm not a fan of squat toilets I did have to go so I made the effort. Apparently though there is only SO much time allotted and before I was done the lights went out leaving me in total darkness. There I was pants down in the dark trying to figure out how to open the door without falling over. My thinking was perhaps if I opened and closed the door the timer would reset giving me more time. But the door swung IN so I had to almost step into the toilet to let the door get by me, not something easy to do in the dark while half dressed. Finally I managed to open the door and there was a light switch that turned the light on and I quickly finished up and got out of there.
Returning to the table I was surprised to say the least at what the pizza looked like. The cheese was not melted, the topping was just tossed on there and the whole thing was not cut into slices at all. But this is Italy and things are different here and we REALLY did enjoy the pizza after all. And since in Europe there is a charge to USE the table a cost of 1.20 euros per person was added to the bill.
We really enjoyed the sights, sounds, smells and beauty of the mountain towns not too far away. Having a car will allow us to get out and explore the REAL Italy full of interesting people, places and things.......along the gringo trail.
Terry and Clyde are able to "Travel The World House Sitting" and so can you! We have created a website to help people who want to learn about house sitting. Information for both the prospective house sitter and for someone who needs a house sitter.
the New Website --> CLICK HERE
How to Get Your First House Sit --> CLICK HERE
How to find a house sitter ----> CLICK HERE
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