40th Birthday of FUN!

This summer has been very mild in Sicilia and we were lucky to enjoy a pleasant 45 miles of riding before it got too hot for the big 40th celebration ride for Tres. We headed out of Marinai none too early in hopes to time our arrival at Casale Belmontino around noon. We headed out toward Cantenuova and stopped at Sferro for a quick pick me up and granita. The owners must have knew we were having a celebration and brought over freshly made chocolate granita! We then sang Happy Birthday to Tres. After heading to Cantenuova, instead of going toward Centripe we followed signs out of the town to Ragalbuto. We then turned left at the first sign that says Agira. This road cuts across the valley to the other main road. When we came to the T in the road we went left for some MUCH deserved downhill all the way down, under the Autostrata to our cafe that we always stop at. You know... the one by the bridge and railroad tracks? I then had a fun time asking for Prosecco and got very strange looks... maybe because it was only 10:30 am? Then I asked for Bellini and the nonna started making me a Pannini! Then I had to bust out my Italian and tell her that my husband was turning 40 today and that we needed to celebrate and then she understood! Before we knew it... we had a few glasses of Pinot Nior at our table where we toasted and sang Happy Birthday to Tres again! Perfect timing since the back was pretty stiff at this point. We then got on the bikes and headed up the road to the first sign to Radussa where we turned right and headed up to the town. Once through the town, we headed all the way downhill to Casale Belmontino where we would stay the night and celebrate the day. We arrived at exactly Noon... threw on the swimsuits and got ready for our L'Una (1 pm) italian lunch! It was fabulous! We were so full that by dinner time we still were not hungry. After more celebrations, the next day we set off back home for our 35-mile return back to Marinai. It was a fabulous way to celebate the big 40th!