How Many Tunnels

 

So we leave Switzerland and I have to say that I'm pleased to be going home to Italy!

Well it was so expensive and with our $ a bit of a challenge that was for sure. The signposting was a bit had to get my head around in just those few days, so it does feel like we are heading back to the stamping grounds and the roads of Italy that we have called home over the past several weeks. 

Not saying that my Italian is any good but at least I was getting to understand more italian words and the whole French/Swiss/German was all so different.

And seriously with that amount of cheese I was going to have to roll down the hills back into Italy if I stayed any longer.

We leave via Col du Gd' St- Brenarde Pass at 2469 m where we have the option of the Pass or the 24 km tunnel. Well with several deep breaths and much communication within my head and with my beautiful copilot we had to work out which way was the better of the two evils. The Swiss / Italian drivers on the narrow pass and if it is like the road up to the snow fields of the other day well that will be a real challenge or through the tunnel will be much much faster but Pete it is 24 km long and underground! 

The underground wins we both convince ourselves as at least the roads will be straight and wider and I calculate that at 100km an hour it will only take 15 mins....

We pull into boarder control at the start of the tunnel and with a pee pee stop as a final distraction and a serious puff of my " magical " spray  we are waved straight through. There was a sign saying that we can't take cheese into Italy! So I must say I was a bit nervous at the boarder as we were bring Italian cheese back into Italy and I  hope that won't cause a problem, well it was Sunday close to midday nap time and they were not going to fuss to much today about anything so all was good and into the tunnel we go.

So the signs say only 80km so with a mental re-calculation done and another internal prep talk we are off like a rocket as were the rest of the cars. With the 80km turning into 100 by way of the traffic push before we knew it we were out the other-side and back into Italy. But for the next 50 km it was tunnel after tunnel from 6 km to 60m. So after an hour we arrive at a little roadside stop after the last tunnel and get out to stretch the legs and lungs.

Again the landscape changes quickly from the snow capped alpine mountains to the productive farmlands of the Po River flats. The vast fields of rice, we are now in the serious mice ( corn ) and rice area. On the way up 150km east of here was the narrow bit of the Po River and here it is the vast open plains and it reminded me of outback regional Australia but with loads loads more water.