Bevagna to Spoleto

We said our goodbyes to Fabio and Stefania, the owners of Albergo Il Chiostro di Bevagna. They were so lovely and made us feel at home. Fabio requested that I send him a postcard from home. I have no doubt that he'll tell future travelers of his friends who live in Freshwater, Sydney. Our ride yesterday was a tough one, mostly because of the distance (98km) and the soaring heat (37 degrees Celsius). If we were at home, we would never cycle in such heat but we've come here to explore the region by bike, so cycle we must. The long ride was to the town of Todi. It was ok but not fantastic. They main points worth highlighting was the stench as we rode by a genetic oil farm. My guess is that the bigs undergo genetic modification. I do know that the smell was awful even when we were upwind. Todi was ok but I got a sense that a large part of the old fortified town has been abandoned. Manly shop fronts have a 'for sale' sign in the window or are completely empty. It felt good to be back in Bevagna. We decided that we would experience the local festa food again but this time we ate at the Gaita of Santo Pietro. The food was good but not as good as the food from Gaita di Santa Maria. However, I do have to share Terence's brave culinary experience. He ordered 'lumache' (snails). He sucked those slippery suckers down his throat. I had the tiniest of tastes and it wasn't too bad. The were coated in so much oil, herbs and garlic which took away from the snail eating sensation. I watched in amazement as Terence devoured more than 20 snails. We left Bevagna this morning and had the mindset that it would be a cruisy ride. We even set off later than usual. However, the climb to our optional extra town of Todi was a bit tou on the body. Terence felt giddy when we got to the top but an espresso and brioche filled with creme patiss sorted him out ;-) We are now in the chic Umbrian hillside town of Spoleto. This is where we will call home for the last 2 nights of our cycling trip. Spoleto is quite chic with a decent selection of stores - antique, clothing, salumeria, cafes, restaurants and local food products. The clothing in Italy has been very disappointing. All the female clothing has tacky bling stitched on the front and almost everything is polyester or made in some foreign country like Bulgaria. What's with that?! I thought that I was in the fashion centre of the world. Not so from what I have experienced :( Right at the very top of the hill overlooking and protecting the town is an old fort or 'Rocca Albornoziana' built in 1359–1370. It was strategically built to protect the town from invasion. Ponte delle Torri situated behind the Rocca , is a striking 13th-century Roman aqueduct. We walked across the aqueduct and around the perimeter of the aqueduct before stopping for dinner. Our dinner choice was the best yet at a restaurant that offered great service and food. It was a fancy affair where we received amuse bouche (bite sized hors d'oeuvre) to start and the presentation was 5-star! My main was mouth watering - hand made torteloni filled with goats cheese and a puree of something (tasted a bit like chick peas) with shavings of truffle .... delicious!