Day 1 – The masked tourist
A stressful start
Monza was hot and trafficked despite some people are still afraid of Coronavirus. Masks are descending below the noses, G’s neighbour are complaining about ‘this mask thing is unbearable, it’s just too hot’. And it is too hot, too humid as well. We just realised that we cannot power the old portable fridge G’s parents offered us. Our battery is only 30Ah and our solar panel just 100W – we can just power our laptop and phones. It took a week of works, tutorials, and fights to get the van functional for a long trip. It’s hard to get practical and to deal with our own errors and inabilities.
And this is what makes our start stressed. We finally adjust our electric system, close the van, and after G’s favourite focaccia, in Monza with his parents, we are ready to leave. G’s father takes one ‘official-departure-picture’ and we switch on the van ready to road-trip.
A flat Region cut by highways
We cross the flattest area of Italy, the so-called ‘Pianura Padana’ until Sirmione. This old Roman thermal town is now very crowded and extremely touristic. We find a parking lot, leave the van and as first thing take a refreshing bath in the waters of Garda lake. When we get to the entrance of the old town a guy is checking for people wearing masks. This is when we shot the famous picture ‘The Masked Tourist’. G uses M’s swimsuit to replace his forgotten mask. It took a few tries to transform the swimming upper part. The walk in the town is pleasant but under a burning sun. We could not avoid a glass of prosecco before to dine on the lakeside. The sunset is beautiful and rather foggy.
Who said that showering is a private moment?
We shower in front of the van in the parking lot. It’s fun to realise that when you want to do it quick you can actually shower using 3 litres of water. Shower finished the couple who parked just next to our van arrives. Still wet we manage to overcome the awkward situation with a quick and polite ‘buonasera’. Refreshed and cleaned we get inside our cosy home. We need to refresh a bit our bedroom that stayed under the sun all the afternoon. This is when we start writing and reading before to enjoy a nice and deserved sleep.
Tomorrow we are heading to Verona to visit a friend, it was a pleasant Saturday.
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