Tour guides of the highest order

Going on your 2nd guided bike tour is a special place, where one feels qualified to comment on the in's and out's of arranging and/or biking a bike tour -- after all, at the end of it all, I have TWICE as much experience! (Doncha love statistics? It reminds me of what my dad has said all these years -- a statistician is someone who can drown in a foot of water -- which I believe means the statistician is either dumb, or regrettably and highly accident prone...)

Anyhow, this bike tour is a bit different, in that Lorenzo arranged all the bike routes and hotel arrangements, though he has not been physically with us as we bike (to date) our 80 kilometers. This is not to say he is any better or worse than My Favorite Bulgarian Guide ever, Andre -- moreso that we were on our own upon biking toward Montabano, and thus, what a relief to come upon the happiest non-yippy super-fast guide-dog of Northern Italy, whose name is Snoopy! (Pictures to come)

Super-fast Snoopy is most assuredly is not a beagle as one might think -- something much more fluffy (which is about as close I'll likely come to knowing his breed...) He accompanied us over hill and dale to, and through, Montabano, where we had hopes of finding a comodo cafe to sit and read our books. Mind you, we did not find said cafe, though he did give us a nice looped tour through the town, waiting patiently at each turn to ensure we were going the right way.

I found out his name was Snoopy as we were finishing up our loop, and an adorable Italian nonna was calling his name from her balcony...though on 2nd thought, he didn't stop, turn around, or give any sign of having heard her, so maybe his name isn't Snoopy...or maybe he's just the typical adolescent.

Tonight, we are having yet another wine tasting. Barbera Superiore is thus far the winner -- but keep in mind this judgement come from a girl who rates and accepts classical music on how bombastic it is.