It has been a week since we landed back in Cape Town after our Para-cycling tour to Italy and Belgium and although I tried to start writing this blog last week, I was just too tired and not yet settled to look back and write about the trip. So I will give it another try.
Preparing for the trip from an administration point of view was a lot easier because this time Cycling SA did the majority of the administration of for the trip such as finding and booking flights, transportation, and accommodation and so on. My physical preparation, however, wasn’t as smooth sailing. Three weeks before we left I fell sick with flu/ a cold and by the time we left I was feeling better but I still had quite a bad cough and I ended packing my nebulizer in a suitcase. This obviously didn’t only affect my health but also meant I didn’t do much training during those last few weeks. So I left SA not feeling the fittest or best prepared rider. It was really nice that Anet was coming with us again as my assistant. She arrived on the Wednesday before we left and we had a few days to prepare together.
Day of departure: Cape Town to Addis Ababa
On the Sunday we met the other team members at the airport. It was great to be part of a bigger team because last year when we went to the World Championships we all went
as individuals and we all traveled and stayed separately. There were two cyclists, Goldy Fuchs and myself, with three support staff, our manager O’ryan Bruintjies, our team mechanic for the first week Ahmed Khatieb, and Anet all flying from Cape Town. The other two members of the team, Juan Odendaal and Gary Coetsee were flying from Johannesburg and were meeting us in Addis Ababa.
The flight from Cape Town was great. Last year when Anet and I flew to Italy I experienced quite a lot of pain in my back which made sitting for longer periods uncomfortable, and sleep on the plane nearly impossible. So when I managed to sit and doze during the flight without pain it just made the journey easier and more pleasant. When we got off the plane at Addis Ababa things were a bit difficult as there wasn’t a wheelchair there to meet me, and take me to our connecting flight. To say that the airport there is a bit chaotic is an accurate assessment. Our flight landed at around 10:10pm and we had an hour before our flight to Rome departed. So the five of us set off to make our own way to the terminal. After about seven hours of flying I wasn’t to steady on my legs as they were stiff and suddenly I had to take a brisk walk through a chaotic airport, taking off clothes and shoes as we went through security checks, pushing through lines (because there was no order in the lines and it was push in or be pushed out). We stopped several times to ask for a wheelchair (my own one was booked in with our luggage) but when we were met by looks that made us think it would take a while to get a wheelchair to me, we just decided to push on by foot and make sure we reached the plane on time. Somewhere during the rush & the shedding of clothing and other articles a wheelchair was brought to us and we eventually made it to our seats in the plane. When we saw Gary and Juan from the flight from Johannesburg we knew we were all safe and were on our way to Italy.
Day 2: Rome to Corridonia (Or more accurately Macerata)
We eventually landed in Rome at 4:45 the next morning and we were all eager to get to the car hire, so we could get our hired vehicles and get on the road as we still had a two to three hour journey to our hotel in Macerata. Our progress was quickly halted when we found out that the car-hire only opened at 7:30am which was now only in two and a half hours’ time! We managed to find a shop open and bought ourselves some refreshments and got as comfortable as we could in an airport after two flights. Once the car hire did open there was a further delay when the vehicles that were booked for us were found to be too small and Oryan and Anet had to organize bigger vehicles for
us.
I think it wasn’t until after nine o’clock that we left the airport. As Ahmed came to tell us that Oryan and Anet were on their way with the vehicles and the guys started to move the luggage outside, we came face to face with our new weather conditions. Let’s just say I was very glad to have the jacket that Cape Union Mart sponsored me last year, in my hand luggage because my warm South African tracksuit was no longer warm enough. In my mind I was already remembering the things I had forgotten to pack at home, gloves and a beanie were on the top of that list and something I will hopefully not forget next time!
Our trip to the hotel was beautiful and eventful. Trying to fit everything and everyone into two minivans, getting used to driving on the other side of the road, finding somewhere along the road to take a break, having a little bumper to bumper action with our lead vehicle, it’s all part of the experience isn’t? But what really stood out for me was just the beauty of the areas we drove through. Yes we arrived and drove on a day when it was overcast and rainy, but that often shows a different side to a place. We drove through many tunnels and saw old buildings, some which looked like ancient castle types, not to mention the beautiful snow-capped mountains.
We finally arrived at our hotel and booked in. After having lunch, we went to our rooms to settle in and get some well needed rest in warm beds.
Till next time...
Comments