1946 MGTC to Malta

May - June 2017
A 35-day adventure by Peter Read more
  • 40footprints
  • 6countries
  • 35days
  • 230photos
  • 0videos
  • 3.0kmiles
  • Day 9

    Mille Miglia

    May 19, 2017 in Italy ⋅ ☁️ 13 °C

    It looks like we will be following hot on the heals of the famous car event. This year there are 902 cars entered from 127 different makes, all between 1927 and 1957. We will follow the leg heading south. They go to Rome we by pass it. http://www.1000miglia.it/2017-Edition/
    This might explain why I had two huge modern Ferraris slow down from around 150 mph in Germany on an empty road before the Alps they sat in the fast lane next to me for a few seconds one in front and one behind then they waved and took off accelerating as fast as they could, the sound was incredible. I think they were on the way to watch the Mille Miglia.
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  • Day 9

    A day off from travelling

    May 19, 2017 in Italy ⋅ 🌧 12 °C

    The weather forecast for today said thunder and lightning so that together with me needing to fix the puncture was enough to decide to stay in this lovely town. As it turned out I could have walked to the tyre repair place it was so close. The tube was not repairable so it was a good job I brought a spare tube. We have four good wheels on the car and a good spare wheel.
    The rain did not arrive until after 4pm so we could have continued but I'm glad we didn't as it gave me time to check over the car undisturbed in the underground car park while Mandy did a painting of the mountain view from the window then we went for a walk to find the five towers of the town and also find a place to eat tonight. The photo of the monastery was taken from across the valley.
    We have been having a large breakfast and today's was the nicest so far then not much for lunch which means we are hungry by 7pm.
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  • Day 11

    Montagnana Padova northern Italy

    May 21, 2017 in Italy ⋅ ⛅ 21 °C

    We had a nice day which started cool but warned as we came down from the mountains we had another puncture. Then we came around lake Garda stopping for lunch at a lovely lake side restaurant. Then continued south.
    Mandy found this beautiful walled town and a b&b just outside the wall however when we got there it was closed so we ended up in a really posh hotel called Aldo Moro inside the wall. When I came in wearing jeans and carrying back packs the maitre d was very sniffy when he returned from seeing the car he couldn't do enough for us.
    We were luck to arrive on the very night the town celebrated the festival of ham as this area is know for many producers of that lovely thin sliced prosciutto so we bought tickets and joined in the fun. Tasting different hams and local wine.
    I will add more tonight as it is time to be on the road.
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  • Day 12

    Technical update

    May 22, 2017 in Italy ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

    Stopped for lunch in a motorway service area. Very busy place. After the second puncture which once again was nothing to do with anything being picked up from the road. I strongly suggest to anyone restoring a car. Do not buy cheap inner tubes. The TC came with good quality new tyres and very thin cheap tubes. The two good tubes I brought are now in the rear wheels and they weigh at least double the weight of the two which have punctured. I managed to get the thin tube repaired for an emergency. When we get to Malta I will order four heavy duty tubes and replace both fronts and the spare
    We have swapped from A roads to toll roads as the surface of the dual carriageway on non toll roads can be terrible with too many pot holes. The TC suspension can't really cope and we are sick of being bounced out of our seats.

    The repair didn't work. The spare tyre was flat when we reached tonight's hotel.
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  • Day 12

    Amalfi Coast? No! Nocera Inferiore Yes!

    May 22, 2017 in Italy ⋅ 🌙 19 °C

    Never heard of Nocera Inferiore? Neither had we - it was a point on the map I selected to avoid driving through Naples...as it turned out driving through Nocera was Naples with bells on or should I say horns full on and eyes shut (mine obviously Peters were WIDE open). But out of impending disaster (and probable divorce) the fickle hand of fate plucked us and deposited us in an Oasis deep within the edgy streets of Nocera Inferiore. AND, this we can't quite believe, it just happened to be Nocera's Church Feast Day. You have to see the pictures- firstly of the fab Villa Albani where we are staying and secondly of the Feast celebrations, a stunning - mile long avenue of lights, happy people, fun fair and live music. Thank you little car and big beardy man for getting us here.Read more

  • Day 13

    Change of plan.

    May 23, 2017 in Italy ⋅ 🌙 20 °C

    We had intended to spend around four or five days in Sicily before going to Malta. However, because we don't have a usable spare wheel we are going to head to Malta where we can sort it out at our leisure the do the tour of Sicily on our way back to England.
    Another change of plan is that the roads here in the south are really good so we have stopped using the toll roads.
    Tomorrow night could see us either in Taomina Sicily or on the late ferry to Malta.
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  • Day 13

    The Grand Tonnara Amantea southern Italy

    May 23, 2017 in Italy ⋅ 🌙 19 °C

    An out of season resort hotel for £35 a night including breakfast.

    We had a lovely drive down from the Naples area and will continue down the coast tomorrow morning to Reggio Calabria where we get the ferry to Sicily.

    The people from last night's hotel insisted on giving us a bottle of wine and a fellow guest at the hotel wanted to swap his 51 year old Fiat 500 for the MG.

    Tonight we are having an early night as tomorrow could be a long day. It usually takes us an hour to get packed, the car checked over and the route planned for the day. So we've been setting off at around 10.30 to 11.00
    The pictures are from the journey down and around this beach side hotel.
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  • Day 14

    Taormina for lunch

    May 24, 2017 in Italy ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C

    Caught the ferry to Sicily and headed to beautiful Taormina for lunch...polizia everywhere, carrabineri everywhere Italian military with big machine guns everywhere TV crews news crews. I said to Peter can we stop at a bar without a soldier there... But there wasn't one! And we were turned back from Taomina via the hill road. At this point I have to tell you we have not been watching any news for 2 weeks...so we thought something awful had happened maybe the Mafia (well it is Sicily). So decided to get out fast. Now languishing at the Villa Ambra in Noto south Sicily we discover (Thanks Google) it's the preparation for the G7 and is Trump coming? I didn't get to see Taomina another black mark against Trump lol! I did get one photo of soldiers was a bit nervous taking pics as they all had machine guns. I guess nothing has kicked off yet hope it all goes well..we hope to be in Malta tomorrow night x x Mandy

    As we waited for the ferry the police came over and asked in a friendly way about the car, then they took photos of themselves posing and wished us a happy holiday. Two minutes later we board the ferry and the crew came over and took photos and then used our camera to photograph us.

    We are booked on the afternoon ferry to Malta tomorrow.

    Villa Ambra -Noto southern Sicily
    The hotel recommended a really good restaurant booked us a table and gave us a map so we set off walking. The map was awful, we had to ask three people before we found it by which time were lost and although Mandy thought she could remember the way I had an idea.
    Technology to the rescue.
    The car is in the hotel car park and it has a tracker so I phoned​ it and it sent an SMS giving its location on Google maps which I set as a destination to walk and followed is directions. Mandy walked in front and correctly guessed the route (she is the navigator after all) and the phone confirmed her every step.
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  • Day 15

    Pozzallo ferry

    May 25, 2017 in Italy ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C

    We had time to look around Noto which is lovely. Then drove the last few miles to Pozzallo. The road was really bad for the last ten miles. I was worried when we saw a car stopped changing a wheel.
    As I write we are on the ferry waiting to go. The car is at the front and there are not many passengers. We will arrive in Malta at rush hour so it might take a while to get to the house. I'm posting some pictures from this morning including one from the exhibition of the work of the artist Chagall.
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