Twas
the 17
th of May, what a very special day
because
it just so happened to be the birthday of Jay.
 |
| Hip hip hooray for Jay's birthday!!!! |
Julia
and Jay started the day off bright and early with a delicious
breakfast of strawberries, nutella and chocolate cake. Julia also
bought what she thought was orange juice, which they were both
excited about because they hadn't had any beverages other than water
and wine for the past few weeks. Taking a big gulp of the juice from
their glasses, anticipating the deliciously sweet and refreshing
flavour of oranges about to delight their tastebuds, they both
spluttered and nearly spat out the juice instead, given it tasted
horribly off and sour. It turns out it was grapefruit juice, with no
added sugar. That was a bit disapointing for them!
 |
| Looks can be deceiving - naughty grapefruit! |
Julia
and Jay then raced off to pick up their new friend, Smart car, who
would be joining them over the next week throughout the Tuscan and
Umbrian regions. Feeling both nervous and excited about the
commencement of this new adventure, they packed the tiny two-seated
auto mobile with their luggage and raced off to their first stop for
the day – La Spezia. It was here that the cyclists of the Giro
d'Italia (the Tour de France of Italy) would be racing through in the
afternoon, and Julia and Jay were joining the crowds to cheer them
on. Other than soccer, cycling is one of Jay's favourite sports, and
what better way to spend his birthday than follow the race all day!
 |
| So small yet so smart....the car that is! |
After
La Spezia Julia and Jay drove to Sestri Levante, the town where the
race would finish for the day. With streets blocked off, merchandise
vans hooning through the main street blaring ridiculous music and the
colour pink draped everywhere (pink being the
colour of the winners jersey for the Giro), it was hard not to get
caught up in the excitement of the race!
 |
| The hats we were forced to wear...not! |
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| This photo belies the few seconds we spent seeing the cyclists ride past us |
It felt like the whole town
had come out to support the cyclists, and people were crowded
everywhere, including on top of their balconies. Jay was especially
excited to see all the team vans parked in one of the side streets,
so he took lots of photos of them.
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| Hoo-hah GreenEdge! |
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| Jay couldn't believe I'd arranged for his name to be printed on the bus |
There
was an area set up with stalls giving out free products. Naturally
Jay and Julia were really excited about this, so off they went to
stock up on the goodies on offer. They got so caught up in the
excitement of the complimentary samples that at one stage they
stopped registering what they were being given, and ended up with two
medium-sized blue paintbrushes. That wasn't nearly as refreshing as the
free ice-teas they'd been given earlier, or as nourishing as the free
bananas and digestive biscuits had been. Nevertheless they cheered
and rooted for the cyclists finishing the race, and eventually made
their way to their home for the night.
 |
| I made Jay choose: me or the bike! It was a lovely bike..... |
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| Finire! |
The next day Julia and
Jay drove to the next part of Jay's present – a day-spa resort in
Tuscany. Luckily this had been arranged given the previous day had
been so emotionally exhausting, so the few hours Jay and Julia spent being
massaged, relaxing, and wading in the lovely thermal waters were
definitely well earnt!
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| It would have been awkward to take photos inside, so this is all we can offer.... |
The last part of Jay's
present was still yet to come. After an eventful few hours of driving
through the Tuscan landscape; relying heavily on the iPhone's Google
Maps function; being led onto a wrong, windy, dirt road; doing a
hairy 3-point turn on said wrong, windy, dirt road; the iPhone
running out of battery 5kms away from our destination; and playing
charades with locals to work out how to get to our accommodation; we
finally arrived at our final destination for the next couple of days
– a gorgeous Tuscan villa complete with rolling hills, fresh
home-made dinner & dessert, and two very excited visitors ready
to soak all of the beauty up....and celebrate Jay's 24th
bday...!
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| Unbeknowst to his family, this is Jay's birthday present from them - grazie! |
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| The view from our Tuscan villa |
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| Our very own Tuscan villa...for two nights |
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