It was a little difficult to work out where to take the correct buses. To us the buses seemed to be parked all over the place, it didn't help that there was also construction work on one side of the parking.
We eventually asked a staff who pointed us to station 32. When we got there 32 was in fact in the construction area. We were quite stumped as there was no indication of where the station had been temporarily relocated. Dominique caught up with another fast walking employee and got the indication that in fact the bus will just stop, well, in the middle of the last row of bus stations.
We were amazed and amused at his answer. We stood near and waited for the bus, sure enough, that was exactly where it stopped!
Once we got on it was well over an hours ride to Valeggio. As the bus moved closer the area eventually got more and more rural. Soon we were in fields and paddocks. Much like when one drives south out of Auckland.
The bus eventually stopped just outside of the main town square and we had to walk in. The day was already very hot as we walked around. Not thinking far enough ahead, we did not purchase the return bus tickets earlier and so needed to purchase our bus ticket back to Verona before we headed out to the park. It actually took us near an hour to find a place that sold the intercity bus tickets. You would think a small town like Valeggio would know where all the tickets were sold.
The ticket office was actually just down the road, But there was an interesting moment when we had to work out the directions of the locals as most of them spoke very little English.
Here are some of the interesting sights in the town as we searched for the ticket office. These are the bells outside the little church in the central square.
Just before lunch time we finally got the bus ticket and walked to Parco Sigurta Giadino.
Like most of these types of parks in Europe, it was originally part of a giant villa belonging to wealthy families. As time passed the property is modified and exchanged hands until it is open for public viewing.
The entrance fee was 12 euros and charges extra if one wishes to hire a bike, golf cart or take the guided vehicle tours:
This park has an area of 600,000 square metres. To cover all the grounds in one afternoon was just not possible by foot. The hire of a golf cart was 15 euros and the bikes 3 euros per hour. In the end we decided it would be cheaper and more fun to bike so we hired the bikes.
In actual fact we didn't go directly into the park once we realized we were biking. Had to fill ourselves up with some energy before exercise! We went to the bar just opposite the bar to have a panini before we start. It appears that most bars who have nice looking pictures of sandwiches displayed are in fact selling microwavable sandwiches. It wasn't bad, but for the price a snack bar does much nicer and fresher sandwiches.
Something else that was interesting for me was the multiplicity of these bars in Italy. By day it is a cafe for locals to stroll in for their daily shots of espresso, or simply 'cafe'. By night these bars are places to gather to have a glass of wine or for an Appertivo before dinner.
After the modest meal of a microwavable sandwich we entered the park. I can't remember when was the last time I was on a bike. I think it must of been in high school so I was a little apprehensive on whether I could manage. Turns out it was the same for the other boys too! People always say one will never forget how to ride a bike so we braved it out and hired them out.
I can now testify that this saying is very true, once learnt you never forget, but there was a slight breaking in period for all of us. I'm not going to say who, but some of us had a little difficulty getting started and fell off our bikes before we finally got the hang of things again!
Us just starting out!
Initially we thought it would be an easy ride as Valeggio appeared to be quite flat, but the park was part of the hilly region. Here is a shot of the boys going up the hill.
Scenic regions of the park.
There was a region in the park that housed animals, more designed for kids but it was still fun to get off our bikes and walk through the farm.
A chipmunk! For northern hemisphere people this might not be a big deal, but for a girl who comes from a land of birds and a the concrete gardens this is a rare sight.
More scenic park photos, this was the butterfly garden with quite a few different species of butterflies.
This was a hedge maze. We had a go inside each taking a different path. I found it more enjoyable as more kids joined in. The shouting and the shrieking of the children brings a whole new dimension to the hedge maze experience.
A pretty Lilly pond with fishes.
There was a castle we could see in the distance but couldn't find our way from all the paths in the garden. As we left we mentioned this to the man there at the bike shed and he tells us that in fact the castle is not within the garden but on a hill in a nearby village called Borgetto.
The day was still young, so we took the 20mins walk to Borgetto. A picturesque Italian village set on the backdrops of the roman castle ruins.
In this photo you can see the ruins just above the roof top. We decided against hiking up the hill as the day was too warm and there was still a long walk back to Valeggio town centre.
We took an early evening bus ride back to town. That night we had a lovely dinner in one of the Piazza. And tried the Apertivo with the orange liquor. It was not my cup of 'tea'. To me it tasted like orange cough syrup!
It was Dominique's last night in Italy and he actually shouted us dinner which was very kind of him.
As we walked back we notices a plaque we did not see before. A nice little Shakespeare quote as we crossed the old city walls and to walk to our hotel.
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