The plan had been to travel 12 kilometers to a medieval farmhouse located 500 meters beyond the town of Visnjan. Well, we finally reached the farmhouse and stopped at the 4-6pm marking the end of our trip for the day.
Visitors to Lombardy needed no carrots; the locals showered their generous assistance. Well, I can’t really call it “generous” as there were carrots on offer everywhere.
There was a diverse bunch of folks out on the ride, but we were happy to squeeze in the ride before dark, so we could reward our hosts with a good meal and a great view out onto the glorious Mediterranean.
The way from the farm to Marmaris is like an adventure, even for a novice like me. We followed a path that I thought must have been an access path to somewhere else, but it turned out that we had to follow it like a ladder. At first, the ladder appeared to be going up to a roof, but then we climbed up between rocks, which looked even steeper. Finally, we reached the top – a wide side road that led to a farm and some restaurants.
There were some nice restaurants, but not enough to serve dinner to a family of six. After a couple of hours trying to persuade the locals to open up their restaurant to us, I was beginning to calm down. It is not their fault – they had all the food they needed just as much as we did. Plus, as we were full-timers, deliveries and pick-up was our business. If they only knew how to open the restaurant, they would – but as they didn’t, well, well, I was forced to do the cooking.
Well, that was an easy enough day to make it through. It was a dramatic, beautiful day of sunshine and pink (well, pink was not entirely right) sunsets. Perfect for cycling, and seeing some of the most gorgeous country this side of the world has to offer.
Once we finally arrived at the farm, it was already 4pm. We parked the car and went to explore. Visiting the large farmhouse was beyond belief. It was huge! Very modern looking, and precise – like it had been freshly dug out.
Large, farmhouse like structures are common in Italy, and are usually decorated with many coats of arms. The houses are set on grounds that are covered with lush, white, and usually red (Neapurpur) trees. It was just amazing to see – not only the variety of the colors they could choose, but also that each tree could be matched with its neighbor.
While General Franco was forcing the Jews into gassed, the fighting was happening just a few streets away. Somehow, I knew that the Jewish community would not allow the General to run rough shot his way into eating at their table. I watched throughout the entire invasion and was amazed that there was not a truck full of German soldiers lining the streets.
My curiosity got the best of me, so I asked a local from one of the restaurants if he would tell us about the war. He readily agreed and introduced us to another local, who told us of the terrible events of the war. Seemingly, we were given a short monochanneled leaflet, which incorrectly stated that all the Jews of Amsterdam were required to stand in a specific place. Of course, we knew that there were certain narrow streets that only Jews were allowed to walk.
With many of the local Duives now very rich and abroad, only the Jews remain of the streets of Amsterdam. Most of them emigrated to Israel, Italy and the United States. Over the years, many of them have built up large properties and multi-million dollar mansions all over the world.
Today, the Netherlands possesses a highly developed tourism industry specifically designed to target foreign tourists. Unlike the majority of countries in the world, most of the money flows right through the government. Not only is there a large difference in the prices of hotels, the companies that offer vacation packages actually operate on a per-person basis. This means that you can have a group of people holidaysing with you, but the hotel company as well as the travel agent are each guaranteed a good amount of money.
Ixturing Dutch abroad, it is not unusual for them to own a beach chalet abroad. However, it is not something that most people are aware of. When you are planning a vacation in Dutch, it is best to check if your hotel company allows you to stay in a holiday villa abroad. This will save you the cost offinding hotel rooms at the holiday villas, as well refocusing your attention on the tourist sights and Valencia instead of searching for hotels in Amsterdam.
