Trip to Italy: Ferrara, Day 4-5

 Day 4 - 22 February, 2025 - The move: from Vicenza to Ferrara

I don't really have and want to say too much about this day. I knew it would be nice to leave that shabby airbnb but I had no idea how I would feel afterwards.

4:00 am - Giuseppe, the owner gets into a coughing fit, dashing out of his bedroom turning on all the lights. I woke up and took some time to fall back asleep.
5:40 am - Bangladesh - the alarm clock goes off, like every single morning. I was on the verge of shouting out: "Let me get it for you! Should I get the coffee started?", but in reality it kept ringing until he finally turned it off after hitting the snooze button 3 times.
9:00 am - I finally woke up and packed up. 

Italo - the Italian high-speed train

This was definitely the one of the main highlights of my day. The train I admired from the first moment I saw it. After a long debate, I decided to give in and try it out for my trip to Ferrara that would only last 30 minutes. It was supposed to leave at 12:35 but I barely made it to my seat when I felt it move: 12:34:30. That's what I'm talking about! I was just looking out at the window feeling the velocity and professionalism combined. And a huge relief to have left it all behind in Vicenza.

Ferrara - knocked out

I got to the new airbnb, met Fabiola, the owner and soon found myself in a huge room, under the covers. In a room that was all but mine. No idea what came over me but I fell asleep only to be tormented by bad dreams for an hour where I was pushed around by big people and barrels were hitting me on top of a hill. Not feeling like I could ease up any more where I was, I got up and went out for my long run.

Ferrara -  City Walls

I ran 15km including the city walls and a bit outside of them since my scheduled run was 1hour 25minutes and the entire length of the wall was not going to cover that. I used Garmin to plan my run again and I hit the road. I felt tired after 11 hours of sleep altogether with my stomach mildly rumbling. Yet it felt great to be out there running and discovering, trying to rub off all the bad experiences from the Airbnb. I didn't know how much a good or a bad stay could influence the experience of a trip. Vicenza was still an amazing town to be in and even though I enjoyed my Ferrara run, the streets of Vicenza were much more entertaining and of course uplifting to reach Mount Berico. 

Ferrara - sightseeing

I spent the whole day today out in Ferrara. Started with the Basilica of Saint Mary in Vado. I was totally oblivious when I entered after 10am on a Sunday, so it took me a while to figure out that this was not a special gathering but the usual Sunday Mass. I stayed a while to watch and walked around side aisles  when suddenly I heard the sound of the guitar and everybody started to sing "Halleluja" along with rhythmic clapping patterns. It lifted my spirits. I knew I had to go to this place and I knew I had to start my day there. Now I also know why.