The Villa Pepoli was a delight - dinner, bed and breakfast for 110 Euros - location is not great but the food is so good you will stay in anyway.
No toll roads please - a rainy day - ideal for slow tourism - To Piacenza along the Po River levee for 120k - narrow smooth bitumen - quiet - where are our bikes? - 20 feet of flood restraint for a hundred kilometres - protection for small village after small village - protection for crops of poplar, rice, wheat, maize and pomadore - the greens and yellows sprinkled with the reds and oranges of Italian wild poppies - a food bowl - a significant river - a delightful drive.
Approach Piacenza - young, rolling hills surround - nice - clean - pleasing merge of old and new -
Seek out Casa Rebecchi - no room at the inn!
Seek out Trattoria Rebbechi - closed - park - Bernie prowls - returns with Andreas Rebecchi - mother appears - wife appears - brother appears - children appear - talk in hand signals -shattered English - shattered Italian - try the Apple translate solution - no connectivity - revert to mime in support of the shattered English and Italian - more and more sucess - show them the family tree - great interest - pose for a photograph - exchange email addresses.
Roberto, Andreas' wife, mother Angela, Andreas, Mike, son and daughter Michelle
On our way - sneak back past to enhance the digital record.
Photograph the countryside back towards Piacenza.
The Hotel Mantis with antique Lancias and motorbikes waves us down as we pass Fiorenzuola d'Arda - we stop.
Nap - dinner at Hotel Mantis - local meats - Parma ham - salami - delightful - Richette - speciality of Piacenza - pasta and beans - delicate - delightful - sweets - icecream and strawberries - simple - delightful - a stunning meal made so by stunning ingredients.
Relieve the hotel of an excess supply of Rebecchi branded stuzzicadenti
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