Pre-trip work!

 April 3, 2025   Travel Day from Italy to France

Travel days are exhausting and much of the work falls on Rod for the planning and Collin for co-navigating. I have moved to the backseat, much to my delight. We left Villa Cambiaghi in the morning, took a 2.5 hour drive to the train station in Genoa which is on the Mediterranean, (three of us waited in the train station while two returned the car to the Genoa airport and took a taxi back to the train station), rode to Ventimiglia, changed trains to go into France, got off in Nice, France at the airport, rode a tram to the car rental, got our car from Avis, drove 30 minutes to Vence, France and collapsed in our Airbnb, exhausted. It all went smoothly, but included some stress when our first train was running late and we were afraid we would miss the second train. The trains were next to each other on the same platform, so it all worked out.

Views from the car in route to the train station in Genoa

A submarine.

We have reached the Mediterranean.

A pirate ship.

Lots of palm trees.

Genoa is an old, crowded city.

Genoa

A statue of Christopher Columbus is outside the train station. Columbus was born in Genoa in 1451.

Christopher Columbus statue.

Just inside the train station waiting for Rod and Paul to arrive by taxi after they return the rental car.

The first train ride was nice! The car was roomy and clean. We could see the Mediterranean at times and also continuous houses and towns. 

Collin and Paul

Katie and Clare

Rod was across the aisle.

The Mediterranean looks a lot like Lake Michigan only its beaches aren't as nice.

This business looked like a greenhouse. There are tons of plants in rows on the pads.

An island off the coast.

The second train ride wasn't so nice. The windows were so dirty, I didn't take any pictures. Much of the trip had tunnels so there wasn't much to look at and the towns we went through weren't well kept. We made it to our rental car, finally! 

Rod and Collin figuring out the navigation system. Thankfully, cars are programed with several language options.

My back seat buddies!

After a 30 minute drive, we ended the day with a quick walk down the street in Vence for pizza at a place our Airbnb host recommended. More on the city of Vence next time!