A Long Drive to Catanzaro

Europe
May 21st 2017

Published: May 27th 2017

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Miltonrabbit

San Lazzaro

Preparing for the long drive. A final view.

Today we say farewell to our cosy apartment and our wonderful hostess. The car has been sitting quietly for four days and Jane has returned from GPS school with renewed vigour. We hope she is up to the task ahead. The car is packed and we wait for the final inspection. As much as we would like to take the compact washing machine we can’t. We have a lovely chat and gain another follower of our blog.

Today is Sunday so driving the narrow streets should be a breeze. As we are about to leave the town of San Lazzaro a man in an official looking uniform waves us down. Next minute he is trying to get into the back seat saying something in Italian about needing to get to the meeting. We politely refuse and move off with him still hanging onto the locked door handle. Further down the hill we came across a large group of uniformed men gathered, perhaps waiting for us with their comrade.

On the recommendation of Elisabetta we have asked Jane to take us on the autostrada for the long drive south. To get to the on ramp we need to drive through the streets of Pompeii again. Sunday is quieter but cars come at you from all directions. With the wing mirrors still intact we arrive at the toll machine, the charge two euros. We wonder how far this will get us. Soon we are able to test out our new Peugeot 308 GT-line. A quick acceleration and we are soon in 6th gear. Should have the next 400 kilometres covered by lunchtime.

Autostrada driving is not something we do often in Europe. You miss out seeing so much of the countryside, the little towns and villages, and the people and their crazy driving. Italian drivers in NZ would think we are crazy drivers, sometimes we are. Driving on we wait in anticipation for the next toll barrier. The autostradas are blessed with many service centres for the traveling public to rest and relax. Unlike the German autobahn there is a maximum speed of 130 kph. Taking regular breaks is important.

The one thing Italians do well is construct autostradas. The A3 appears to be relatively new. We wonder if it was constructed to bring development to the South. We are driving through mountainous country. To keep the road reasonably level and straight huge viaducts and long tunnels make up much of the journey. With the mountainous terrain comes a change in the weather, our first rain on this trip. Fortunately it is a driving day so not a big issue.

Jane has been asleep for a while when she suddenly wakes up in the middle of a tunnel shouting at us, “If possible do a U turn! Then turn right.” This part of the road must be really new. Our other concern is that the GPS maps are not up to date. Could be an issue later in the journey. We get our own back on Jane and take her to a service centre some distance from the current road. Obviously this stop has been by-passed by the new highway. We have a coffee and share a baguette. With very little business being done we get a free top up, perhaps to keep us there longer.

After a long drive we approach Catanzaro. This is a one night stop on our way to Sicily. The price is right and on the website looked spacious. We arrive in an area of modern development. New roads, large buildings including a university. The town is some distance away. Jane was lost. Finally a phone call to the apartments. We explain we have a booking but we are lost. “Lost? I don’t understand” Oh dear. Finally we explain where we are and our new friend says she will come and find us. Within minutes a friendly young woman arrives in her little yellow car and leads us to our apartment. Two surprises in this unlikely setting. Our new friend, who can’t speak English, is bright and bubbly, and we all have a wonderful time. The other surprise is this spacious apartment. Tonight we will be comfortable.

We decide to drive over the hill to the city and look for a restaurant. Instead we discover a Carrefour supermarket. A quick change of plans and we purchase the ingredients for dinner, a salmon salad with trimmings.

It has been a long drive but in planning this trip we wanted an extra day in Sicily so we made the decision to only have the one stop. As for the tolls, it only cost us two euros. A good sleep tonight. Tomorrow, a boat trip.