9.14 & 9.15.26

Low Key Day and High Key Day

9.14.26 - It was a low key day. I was tired from all the adventure, especially 6 miles in black jeans. It was catching up. I just wandered around Bolzano by myself. I found a couple stores that interested me enough to peruse. This country girl doesn’t do high fashion. Ha.

But I do like gelato, tiramisu and a spritz. That evening I met up with Dea and Mike and went to a tapas bars, then a German bar and then a wine bar. Ha.

9.15.26 - High Key Day. Eventful. I had researched hikes in the Dolomites (Italian Alps) when planning and found a blog where a lady outlined it ALL: how to get there from Bolzano, which route to take, which fork on the trail etc. I was thankful. I’m just no good at trails.

The trail is the Adolf Munkel Weg Trail. Just under a 6 mile loop with some pretty steep climbs at the beginning. It had views, forests, pasture and huts! Boom. I can do this.

First it’s a train out of Bolzano to a city, then finding the bus station to hop on bus 330, navigating how to pay in cash, then luckily finding a seat until the bus was literally filled that they couldn’t take any more people. I think it literally had 31 stops until the last one. This was a parking lot with a restaurant/bar hut that was the conjunction of MANY trails. Deep breath. I can do this. I can figure this out.

Onward. While on the trail there were groups, large ones led, small ones figuring it out like me, etc. I passed one group and the lady said, ‘oh you speak English, where are you from?’ Me: NC Lady: ‘We are from there!’ Another lady in the group: ‘My son went to Belmont Abbey!’. WHAT A SMALL WORLD! I’m just in the Italian Alps on a trail and speaking to someone close to home! Weird.

There were so many mushrooms on this hike. A feast for my eyes. This trail pushed me. The climbs, the navigating. When I came out of the last forest I saw the restaurant hut! I knew I was on the homestretch. I stopped and had a beer and sparkling water. Here in Italy if you order a water they ask ‘sparkling or still?’. My kind of country. Sparkling. Duh. I didn’t want anything on the menu as it all seemed heavy. But I did eat my cheese Sammie and apple on the way down. I passed another restaurant hut and then finally back to the parking lot. Got in line for Bus 330, which was pretty late. A mass rush and line to get on. Somehow I managed another seat. An older gentleman was sitting in the aisle seat and offered the window seat. My weak legs were thankful. An omen, because that bus ride was interesting. The driver was just shooing everyone on, not checking tickets b/c it was behind to begin with. Once on the winding road, he was taking that curves where everyone was holding on and swaying. But once he met a car, he stopped and the cars in front of us had to literally back up and pull over for us to pass. I remember thinking, there’s got to be a way where they both can pass, as many times as buses have come here and as many as I saw. We did this probably 10-12 times. Well on one blind curve he came around he hit a minivan and wedged him between the mountain and the bus. The bus knocked this person’s mirror and made the mirror separate a little from the frame. Driver ended up getting out and getting into it with the driver. Dramatic Italians. This al happened RIGHT at my window. I had a first row seat. Very angry about his mirror, that was already taped around the base to the car. Well, we went on our way after about 15 minutes and the van ended up turning around and coming up to the bus at the next stop, taking pictures of the driver. Well he sped off in anger and the van ended up passing the bus and then the bus passing the van! I kid you not. At one time I had to grab the older gentleman beside me because brakes were thrown on. I survived obviously. Ha.

Made it back to train, then walked to my Airbnb. SHOOSH! I did it! I ate my first Italian pizza that night. YUMMY.