27 miles from Rome

It’s 27 miles to Rome.  If the weather had been different – which I think it sometimes must be, unless all these roadsigns warning of snow are someone’s idea of a joke – I would just have pedalled on, and reached Rome a bit later today.

It wasn’t quite so hot today.  But one of these flashing signs says it’s still 35 degrees at nearly bed time.  Too hot to cycle further.

And the roads have been really terrible most of the day. Suitable for tractors, but definitely not for bicycles with cellos. Quite a few rude words were said, aloud.

Bracciano is a fine place to stop.  Like so many of these towns, there’s a little medieval heart, with steep, stepped, cobbled streets.  Then there’s a castle, which in Bracciano’s case is mostly newer, and a fine collection of churches.

Bracciano also has its lake – not as big as Bolsena’s, but handsome enough to be in Cumbria, and way below the medieval town so you can see nearly all of it in one go.

The square, of course, isn’t medieval.  But I’m sat on a metal bench facing a fine town hall, with a nice fountain beside me, and children running about.  I’ve played a Bach Suite, with all the repeats, and the square seems generally to approve.

There are still a few people working in the town hall (it’s nearly 8 o’clock), and periodically the balconies fill up as they come out to listen, or just to take the air.

I needed to play this evening, not having found anywhere all day, and not wanting Libre to stay in her case again.  And Bracciano, in the square overlooked by the castle, seems a good last staging post before Rome tomorrow…