My first day on the road

From the hot steamy waters of Saturnia's thermae to the crazy carnival of Viareggio. Day 1 is full of energy and emotions.

I've been living in my van for more than a month, but I could finally leave and start this new experience only now.
I don't know where this is leading, I don't know where I am going from here, but it just feels great! 
So where to start? I have and idea of where I want to get, but I have to keep it slow and simple. I cannot just hit 3000Km, it would be a shame and a waste of money.
I made up some rules to keep my budget under control and to keep it healthy, you can read it in this article (as soon as I publish it) in the #vanlife section (which is under construction).

I leave Rome on a Thursday evening. Days are short now. I was supposed to leave in the morning but I had to go through some papers before the final step.
It is going to be a very short drive, because I am tired and because it is getting dark quickly. Luckily it is not raining.


I am headed to Viareggio, where I am going to meet my friends Simone, Monica, Ines and Luca.
It is Carnival right now and there is a big event over there, it goes on for the whole month of February and early March, with sick crazy parties where people, all dressed up in homemade costumes, get drunk and end up the night fighting on the crowded streets. Try and drink a shot of ponch from the wrong glass, and you will experience it yourself. Viareggini are really protective over their alcohol.
But I have time since the fun starts on friday. So I decided my first stop will be a place where my family used to stop every time we travelled on that road: Saturnia.

When I was a kid, just as soon as we got back from the USA, my father was working for a company on the marble caves of Carrara. Viareggio in the 80's was the place to be. The economy was good and beaches were full of people.
Every summer we would travel 400Km from Rome, and our first stop would always be the Thaerme of Cascatelle.

It Is night and it would be so romantic to go and lie in the hot boiling water. But is -3°C and I am on my own.
I "mastrudate" a lot, but I will hike to the puddles in the morning. 

The choice was perfect. I wake up to a sunny day in a clear blue sky. It is still very cold, but the sun is heating me just fine. A nice walk through endless fields of green leads me to the waterfalls of hot smelly water.


I relax in the sun after an entire hour just sitting there, contemplating the nature all around me. Enjoing the shades of colors dimmed by the steam from the hot water.



Soon, Margot and I get back on the road, there is more today that we want to see.



In three hours I reach Calafuria, a rocky point on the mediterranean sea, a few kilometers south of Livorno.
The sun is so warm I wanted to dive in the blue waters of the sea, but the waves are smashing on the cliff, making it impossible to dive, unless you are looking for death.



I enjoy the sweet hug of the sunbeams a bit more, and the thunder coming from the violent waves seems to be washing my soul. 
An old man approaches me and tells me his amaizing story of how once the waves were so high they could reach the top of the rocks where we were standing, and right then he was so brave to save a woman who almost got sucked away into the water. What a weird guy. But I loved the story. It was so spontaneous of him to tell it.
Here he is standing in the sun, like a real hero.



At the end of the day I reach my destination of the day. Viareggio here I am. The Carnival is already in the streets.
Can't wait to get dressed up and go partying with the guys. It is just fun and a great time!



I had a busy first day. I loved it. Good night.

Hi, I am Mike, and you must've stumbled upon my travel journal unconsciously, maybe looking for something interesting and well written. If that is so, you are in the wrong place. These pages are useless, lack of proper grammar, but they also have some flaws. Enjoy!
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