The train trip was about 3 hrs. It's amazing how many rail tunnels we passed through on the way up there. It seemed like a significant amount of the trip was underground!
On arrival, we walked from the train station to our hotel to drop our bags. It was a bit challenging to get there since a lot of strategic roads were blocked because of the bike race. We ended up walking about twice as far as we would have if there were no bike race closures. Eventually we got there and registered and left our bags.
Feeling a bit tired, we recharged with some gelato:
We walked around Verona to pass the time waiting for the bike race to start. Here's a statue of Dante:
We also bought some race gear:
The race, the final stage of the three-week Giro d'Italia, was a time trial, where each rider rides individually (not in a great pack) on a 17km course around Verona. They're fast and bikes are pretty specialized:
It's televised throughout most of Europe. Helicopters give overhead shots:
Towards the end of the race, we rested our feet a bit and got away from the crush in this park while waiting for the final riders:
This is Richard Carapaz, wearing the leader's pink jersey as he finishes the last few meters of the time trial and clinching the victory:
Carapaz is the first Ecuadorean to win any of the 3 major grand tours (Giro d'Italia, Tour de France, Vuelta a Espana). There were a lot of Ecuadorean fans in the crowd cheering his success. As a nationalistic side bonus, American Chad Haga actually won this stage, completing the 17km time trial faster than any of the other 140+ riders. I'd like to say we saw him and cheered him on, but we didn't see a single glimpse of him. We were likely away from the course during his roughly 22 minute ride.
The closing ceremonies occurred in Verona's own ancient coliseum. We couldn't get inside, but there were video screens outside to show us the goings on:
After the race, we wandered into another random restaurant and I had one of the best pizzas I've ever tasted--pepperoni, onion and a bit of gorgonzola--sooooo gooood! I've said it before, but there are no bad restaurants in Italy.
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