After “suffering through” our Business Class flights, and having a spectacular view of the Swiss Alps from the plane, we arrived in sunny Italy!
We picked up our car, another Citroen , which we have named “Luigi” as it sounded very Italian! Unbeknown to us, we arrived on a “long weekend public holiday” , so the traffic was horrendous, but Greg did his usual job of getting us safely to our first stay.
We are staying in the village of Refrontolo in the Veneto region , north of Venice , and at the foot of the Dolomite Mountains, AND the home of Prosecco…..needless to say there will be a few bottles drunk!
Our little house is very comfortable with a fantastic outdoor terrace which will be used often due to the warm temperatures …sorry all you Melbournites!
The whole area is full of vineyards all over the surrounding hills making beautiful scenery.
We have begun to drive the Prosecco Road, which winds through all the villages reknown for the production of Prosecco. We haven’t visited any vineyards yet, that’s on the “to do” list.
We have already visited some “walled villages” and pretty towns.
Castelfranco is a small medieval walled town with the walls and towers constructed in 1211. The City Tower bears the Venetian winged Lion. It was a small village but pleasant to wander around.
We also went to Asolo, one of the “Most Beautiful Villages of Italy” , and we could see why! The arched walkways were very pretty , it was a nice place to wander.
On Sunday morning we needed to find “our Brunettis” , and we did in the neighbouring town of Conegliano. It was good coffee and great pastries , so that will be our Sunday morning outings.
Greg decided to drive to the town of Belluno for lunch, but as usual he decided to take the scenic route, through the mountains with a way tunnel and as well as narrow roads we had to dodge motor bikes and cyclists but it was a stunning drive.
Belluno sits at the foothills of the Dolomite Mountains so the vista was pretty spectacular. We arrived on Republic day so lots of Red white and green everywhere!
Our lunch was rather good , some pasta for Greg ,and Rhonda’s first spigola (sea bass) washed down of course with an aperol spritz and beer!
We had forgotten how big the supermarkets are here! In particular the alcohol aisles!!!! It is a difficult choice but I am sure we are up to it. Today we did 2000 steps just trying to decide which beer to buy! Ridiculous!
So that is the first blog down! Temperature has been high 20’s each day! Perfect. Lots planned , in particular lots more drives up those mountains!
It’s that time again!
Ciao and cheers
Greg and Rhonda.
greondastravels 
Looking forward to reading all your posts. This one great as usual and such lovely photos. Enjoy yourselves and have safe travels.
Hi Pam, So far so good , but not sure about al these mountain roads that Greg wants to drive along! Maybe I just shut my eyes and pray! xx
Hi Christine, yes the business class was rather nice! You will definitely enjoy it, and there is no going back now ! Its business from now on. The weather is apparently quite warm for this time here, they are thanking us for bringing the sunshine, even though we know there is none in Melbourne!!!! xx
Lovely start to your trip. It is extremely cold here. I am looking forward to suffering through the flight when we go away next year. Keep up the posts, I love the photos & hearing about the places you visit. Love Christine xxx
We enjoy reading your posts, continue to have fun! Craig and Lyn
Hi Craig and Lyn! That’s the plan! Only been here one week and we are already sick of the Italian drivers!!!! They drive so bloody fast!!!! Cheers Greg and Rhonda.