In 2000, I did a ride starting from Rome, heading north all the way to Venice. Along the way I got to visit a number of historic hillside towns and ride up the Adriatic coast all the way to Venice.

	I suppose it is obligatory to start any travelogue about Rome with a photo of the Coliseum.
	The Forum (or what's left of it).
	One of the few bike paths in all of Italy. Like a lot of such facilities in Europe, this two-way "Class I" path is separated from the roadway and functions more like a sidewalk. Generally, the more competent American planners would prefer to avoid such a configuration.
	Biking out of Rome was actually not too bad, compared to most capital cities. And one does not have to go far to reach some nice countryside for cycling. Here is the pedestrian-friendly town of Perugia, just north of Rome. The Romans undertook some amazing engineering projects to bring water into the city, and Perugia is along one of those routes (as seen by the acqueduct crossing the highway). There are large underground cisterns beneath the city. This was not far from where a small screw fell out of my rear derailleur, causing the drivetrain to discombobulate. Luckily, I managed to find all the tiny little pieces on the highway and re-assemble everything.
	Assisi
	Unfortunately, this picture doesn't show it very well, but one of the really neat things about Assisi are the views of the valley down below.
	I followed this river valley all the way out to the Adriatic coast. This was the location where the cable to my front derailleur snapped.
	An Italian co-worker warned me that the area around Rimini was uninteresting and consumed by wildcat resort development. While it could have been much worse (there were actually a few nice bits), he was basically right. As a visitor from the San Francisco area, I was curious about this particular hotel but as it turns out most of the hotel owners choose internationally recognizable names that have no relevance to the resort.
	The bicycle is the predominant mode of transport in Ravenna. This photo shows the bike parking outside the main train station, and the secure bike parking facility inside.
	From Ravenna, I continued up the coast toward Venice. Venice sits in the middle of a marsh, and as I got closer the farmland gave way to wetlands. If you ever want to see what Venice would be like without the tourists, then visit Chuggio which sits on the far side of the lagoon from Venice.
	The ride from Ravenna to Venice was, well, interesting. As you circle the lagoon you approach the Mestre (the main city on the mainland) and the road turns into a very busy expressway which was not fun for biking. However, once you reach the main bridge crossing the lagoon, there is a nice bike/ped path. (San Marcos Square)
	Venice itself is a car-free city which sounds great but in fact it is a bike-free city too. There are numerous bridges to cross and they all have steep stairs. And many of the "streets" are too full with pedestrians so I ended up having to walk my bike through the city.
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