97km Roverto to Verona

Camping in VeronaGrapes almost ready for harvestWe’ve started feeling the heat again so we made an extra effort to get up and rolling early before the sun began working its magic. Cloudy skies helped us along and we made good time along the wonderful Via Claudia cycle path, which meanders along the Adige river and through plenty of vineyards, growing grapes for tasty wines like Pinot Grigio. A stop in a small village led us to the local shop with all the fixings for a great lunch: salami, cheese, fresh bread and a basket of juicy plums. As we got closer to Verona the bike path disappeared but we managed to follow the back roads into the city and happily found signs to the campsite. We were thrilled to find the campground in Verona’s castle – what atmosphere! – but their check-in procedure was less pleasing. It seems to date from about the same medieval era as the castle. When we arrived we found a huge group of new arrivals, none of whom seemed to know who was last in line. It took over an hour to get through the queue, which was managed by two men in dreadlocks who moved at a snails pace and frequently took breaks to rearrange their hair, sip a drink or to shussh the crowd into silence when their concentration was interrupted. At the end of it all we did get a spot for our tent with a great view over Verona but the quirks of the campsite are rather annoying. In addition to waiting ages to register, we found limited hours for hot water, bathrooms closed for most of the afternoon for cleaning and squat toilets. Not what you expect when you are paying “big city” prices for a place for the night.