I woke up and left Max's place at 9 am. I would have loved to have stayed longer, but I had been invited to a party by Adam, the rafting guide who I had come to see when I first arrived in Italy. He had just gotten married in Scotland (easier than in Italy) and was have the reception at his bar. When a rafting bar owner invites you to his party, nestled amongst the most beautiful scenery in Europe, there really is no question of accepting.
Due to the difficulty of hitch hiking in Italy, I decided that I would just catch the train. Having already been up to see Adam before, I knew what to expect in terms of scenery. Didn't matter. I was still blown away. Something magical happens as the train winds it's way up the valley. I don't know what it is exactly, perhaps the valley narrowing, the apple orchards, the castles, the camaraderie of the rafting guides, I'm not sure. I'll return one day, this I know.
After waiting some time, everyone started to arrive to the party. Seeing the caliber of clothing (this is Italy, after all), I madly rummaged through my backpack and managed to find a clean white shirt. Miraculous! There was delicious food on offer and some very nice wine. I got talking to a Dutch couple, the woman spoke Dutch, German, English, Italian, Spanish and French. Fluently.
The evening progressed very pleasantly, with enjoyable conversation. People started to congregate inside the bar and so I wandered over to investigate. Turns out it was time for awesome MTB (mountain bike) stunts. A young Italian man was bunny hopping over a volunteer from the audience. It was the style of MTB which was seatless. He then did the same trick with two people, three people. He actually brushed the shoulder of the third person lying down with the rear wheel, pretty close call. He called for a fourth person and one actually came forward. However, from the way she snuggled with the person beside her, she seemed to be immediately regretting her decision. I waited with baited breath, but no carnage occurred, disappointingly. I spoke with the fourth person afterwards and it turned out the MTB stuntman was her hairdresser. Only in Italy. Further into the evening I was speaking German with this old German guy who was dressed in lederhosen. Alcohol started to have it's effect and sleep overtook and settled down for sleep on the mattress in the storeroom...
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