Orta San Giulio - Monza (eventually!)

Today's Route

We moved from the car park/over night camping spot to another car park a bit down the road as soon as we got up. It was quite late – 9:30am, but we had been mostly trying to steal back some of the sleep that had been robbed from us because of the extra hot weather. You know how it is, you just lie there thinking that if you don't move you will some how get cold? Well, it's like that in the van, except that the bed is only ¾ width and we can only have so many windows open due to the risk of insects/murderers that sort of thing. Last night there was also a bit of a rain storm – which is franckly cruel, because we were then waiting for the cool that usually follows – it didn't.

Also, further bad news – the fridge has either completely packed up or it just can't cope with the temperatures (I know how it feels). It's been pretty rubbish since we started out – more so than on our pre-Europe test trips. We can't figure it out. Anyway, last night it wasn't even trying, and by midday today everything in the fridge may as well have been outside. The cheese had melted, the margarine was long gone..........I'm sure you get the picture. It's a real problem. Jon tried to take it out – apparently if you take the fridge out and turn it upside down it often fixes it – unfortunately we don't know how to take it out, but if anyone has any ideas??

Anyway, that aside, the car parking place had a really nice little terrace beach type thing next to it – so we were straight in the lake for a cool off. Pretty much we spent the next 5 hours alternately swimming and reading, and maybe getting a little bit sun burned – but only a bit. Honest.

My worst sun burned bit is where my watch was for the first week. I admit I have taken my watch off now and am trying to get rid of the tan line at least a bit – it was just too obvious. This is incredibly vain I know – and really annoying for Jon because I just can't live without knowing what the time is, so I am constantly asking. I keep thinking that I will have to put my watch back on, and now that the mark has had a bit of sun to it, maybe I will.

At about 3pm we headed off – next stop Milan, or at least the idea was to head for Monza, where apparently there was a camp site, with the plan to catch a train into Milan tomorrow and see what it was like. Of course, things are never quite so simple.

It was all going so well – Jon was driving, I was navigating – we were going alright, we even saw a sign for Monza and then............. it all went wrong, and we don't even know how. The thing is that Italian sign posts are, quite frankly, crap. At one junction the place you are heading for will be signed, at the next – it won't, so you think that it must be just straight on, otherwise they would have told you – right? Nah. Course not.

We ended up in Milan, although we really wanted to avoid it, and we were there for nearly 2 hours, trying to find our way out! Now I type it I want to laugh, it was so ridiculous. We were trying to follow signs in the general direction of out of town, but then we would see a sign pointing us back the other way, or wouldn't see a sign until we drove past the junction, and the traffic lights – well, we have decided that – hang the expense – we are going to take the toll motorways from now on, it's just got to be easier. (This photo is of the 2 lane road we were on - how many lanes of traffic can you see???)

Luckily (miraculously) despite me being in a faint state of panic, our senses of humour didn't leave us today, and – against all the odds – we not only found Monza, but we also found the campsite – right next to the Formula 1 racing circuit (I can see the stands as I sit here outside the van). The fact that it took us nearly 6 hours to cover 50 miles can be quickly skirted over, as can the fact that I am being bitten even further to death (I had a bad one last night) because I am sat in my chair outside the van. These insects seem to respect neither citronella candles or 50% DEET insect repellent. Aaaaargh.

Dinner was a little inpromptu – burger and mashed potato (it was supposed to be potato salad but the potatoes cooked faster than I expected), with a bottle of extra warm rose wine (think mulled wine temperature and you wouldn't be far off), our first, and original gas bottle finally ran out (we were beginning to think it was magic) and the fridge appears to be working in some shape or form now we are plugged into the electricity (all mod-cons here you know, and rightly so at €22 a night!). It's a nice place though, and now we are here things are back to being pretty relaxed.

The van is doing us proud – the engine only really gets hot when we are going up hill, today it was braving the 40 degree heat (I kid you not) without any trouble at all. Not bad for a 21 year old!

Tomorrow our plan is still to go into Milan – if we can find a train station – and then head off so that we make it to Verona on Thursday, to give us time to scout it out before Will & Jo get there, or, more realistically, to find our way there and out to the airport in time!!

Italy is still not going that well for us :(

Then again - it beats work :)