Day 10 Sassacci - Rome 80 km (700 meters altitude) 41°C

The 6th seal is broken! Vatican by bike (once again), against all odds, remains one more (Monaco) to have visited all 7 dwarf states in a year by bike (and ferry - Malta). Despite the adverse conditions yesterday and today. At the 5th seal (Lichtenstein) I had massive headwind and here? Temperatures from hell. Yes in my head plays a little adventure movie alla "Legacy of the Knights Templar", "The Hunt for the Green Diamond" or "Illuminati". But slowly! After the suicide attempt yesterday, I took it really slow today. In the morning, my resting heart rate of 40 - 44 beats was already knocking on my door in a friendly, calm manner. Already very good, also the Imodium tablet did its job correctly. Everything "normal"! Had the choice between sleep in and heat or early start and heat, decided for the former. Ramona, the friendly receptionist/breakfast maker (in the same green dress as last night) made me an espresso. Contrary to what I said yesterday.... Oh, am in Italy and felt fine. So why not? Am then at 9 o'clock go, because had created by the app a way, which runs almost at ground level to Rome. So let the hill roll down, left off on the gravel road. Then three white giant dogs pressed through a fence to chase me barking. There they made the calculation however without my finger and an aggressively murmured "Basta". There they stopped first confused and I drove on. Well, who can, can. A kilometer further I should then cross a bridge, which was also there, but "chiuso", a large impassable grid in front. I checked the app, no alternative way in sight. DAMN, the sun was already banging. This has happened to me in Italy many times (especially in Sardinia), paths that the app plans are sometimes private paths and that can be closed at some point, so the app plans with the path, but it is not passable, so beware! The same applies to slopes that have slipped, actually there should be a path, or was, but today there is only empty. Just saying. So reschedule, altitude...... On the way back again past the 3 dogs, which were lying in front of the fence and did not dignify me anymore. Then road and already it went up, fortunately a hospital was posted, I felt immediately safe. No, seriously, so I still did not have such a good feeling in my head, so I drove very slowly up there, at a slow pace. In me there are several, let's say, "parts", which communicated today quite openly with each other. The one "part" that wanted, the other "part" also, but only to lie down, in the shade and spare. Every time another cyclist passed me, the one "part" said: chase, catch up, run into the ground. On the other side there was the part that said: oh look there is shade again, stop. What I did? Now and then I stopped in the shade, took my pulse (normal), drank and poured water over myself and chatted. The inner dialogue amused me, also the hypochondriac in me, who suspected a new disease because of every twitch, everything only in my head and to him I often said "Shut up" and continued carefully and constantly, keeping house with my forces. Twice I stopped in front of a pharmacy and had my blood pressure measured. The diastolic was each time a bit too low for my taste, but the pulse normal, so no problem. To make a long story short, for the 50 km to the outskirts of Rome, I put down a 15 average. And there were all the negative altitude meters. Since I was already MUCH faster on the road. Then still under a metro station through, of course beautifully Italian barrier-free, not. Stairs down and up, but no problem, I'm strong, and then the cycling path along the Tiber finally began. Red tartan track, meanwhile at 41°C! The wind that blew was also not exactly cooling. Stopped in between, my wife had in the meantime booked a hotel directly on the Tiber, for 3 nights, very caring. That meant I drove now simply the cycling path along the Tiber . In the meantime, I was also really well again, you usually notice whether you are well, or not. From the moment I turned onto the cycling path along the Tiber my head said 100%. I had no more problems, no more aches and pains, I felt great, whatever I had (infection / electrolyte deficiency or imbalance), I got over it. So purely in the city, still nice and slow the Tiber long. Now that is so, the bike path once along the Tiber through the city. So far so good, but you can only in very few places with the wheel on the way. I always wondered (at the 3 previous times) why the bike path was never traveled. Today I found out. I missed my exit and thought to myself, well take the next bridge. After 5 km (I was already at the Isola Tiberina past the Porta Portugese) was the next exit, there were only steep stairs, with sliding belt. Insane construction the whole thing. Why? WHY!!!? So I'm the same way back (video) to then take the exit and then first to the Vatican, chop off. Then check in and briefly cool down and immediately continue to what I have everything not done in December. On, once across the city on foot, on the Aventine to the keyhole. In total, I queue 3 times until I was finally reasonably satisfied with my photos. Since you do not have so much time and can not test so many settings at once. Format, zoom, brightness, difficult to do it all in a hurry, especially when you change the focus the phone camera jumps from lens to lens, which in keyhole photography again requires a different position, then the focus adjusts again and the game starts all over again. Difficult in a short time. I was not the only one and the queue behind me means a bit of time pressure. Then I went towards Palatine, my favorite hill, and probably missed a good spot to look for the sunset. Anyway, slowly I was also tired, so purely in the Metro back to the hotel, in between still shopping and away I was. So that's why I made up for the entry this morning and should go right away, The Castel Sant'Angelo opens soon, espresso, I have to go, in this sense, have a nice day.