GT Driving

So I'm having a week off training to recover from my month o' illnesses. First the man-virus, then the gastro-to-beat-all-gastros. But!! The silver lining was all in the timing (you like my rhyme? I'm practicing for Lupe Fiasco in Feb...)

My cousin and his fiance arrived from Italy last Saturday (gastro-launch day - they were terribly good sports about it) but the good thing about not having to train this weekend can be summed up in two magical words.

Road Trip.

Yeah baybeh...it's a fair dinkum Tognini fest this weekend and I'm loving it. Down here in Dunsborough with my cousin Alessandro, his fiance Elena.

Here's Ale, enjoying a Guinness at the Settlers' Tavern in Margaret River this arvo....

It has been two days of verbal mayhem....seriously. I am the only one, my Dad and his sister aside, who speaks fluent Italian so my brain has been doing gymnastics - switching from English to Italian and back again. And get this! Today, while visiting the Yallingup caves, I successfully translated the phrase "prescribed burning". I'd call that a win...

It's so funny - Elena is a purist tourist. She will photograph anything that moves, and stacks of stuff which doesn't. Today, she took a photo of the sign at Vasse Felix which said there were ducks crossing the road. Get my drift? Alessandro, my cousin, has been to Australia twice before. He's mad for it. He has ordered eggs benedict every morning since arriving. It's not so big in Italy so he's trying to get his fill while he can.

We're so lucky to live in WA. All Alessandro and Elena can talk about is how much they'd love to live in Dunsborough. They can't get over it. They have travelled to the Maldives, Mauritius and Zanzibar and rate OUR beaches the best. Clearly Togninis have excellent taste.

Their favourite? Bunker Bay...I think my Havs look right at home....

And quite honestly, there's nothing better than a quick later afternoon kip on the beach...but being woken up from one is not so cool. Still, I managed to smile about it...

The best thing? Having my family here. You might not believe me, but our family is kinda like the anti-Italian family. There aren't many of us, and most of us are in Italy, so growing up, I never had that close sense of belonging like my friends did with cousins their own age.

Having Alessandro and Elena here, I feel so spoilt. It's wonderful. Hurrah for family, huh?

Oh and while I remember, a BIG shout out to the organic juice bar in Margaret River ... hands down the best juice I've ever tasted. Go there, buy one. You'll love it.

Tomorrow, the drive home. Monday. Training begins again.

Alla prossima

GT