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My plan was to go north from Luce, Slovenia, skirt west along the Austria Border, then continue west until almost to Italy, then figure things out.
I was well into this plan, then I stopped at a gas station after wandering around in the hills and tried to figure out my next route. West and north was the goal, but there were options and I could use some advice. I saw 3 bikes pull in to get gas, one had his helmet off so I decided to see if he spoke English. A little but he did not know the area I was asking about well. The other two, a man and his wife, tried to help, but helmets and ear plugs and limited English made my questions rather hard to understand. So, being Italian, they invited me to coffee.
We had a good conversation, now that helmets and ear plugs were out, and, of course, being Italians, they invited me to have lunch. A place 20 kM down the road.
One thing I have learned is that if time is an issue, best to just get on with your trip and turn down invitations. The other thing I have learned is that, unless there is absolutely no other option, ALWAYS accept invitations. I had no time constraints, but I wasn't hungry and heading 20 kM in the opposite direction would definitely change my plans for the day. So of course I went.
Well, I heard wrong. It was not 20 kM. It was 120 kM south. Down some incredibly twisty roads in the forest. There was some stopping to swear at the GPS. The ride was awesome. The scenery was great. Roads I would never have found on my own. And I was 120 kM away in exactly the opposite direction from any plan I had.
The food was amazing. Really, although it was in Slovenia, this was a real Italian meal. Good food, good conversation, good friends. Very Zen location along a little spring fed river. The only thing missing was wine. Not because they did not have it, this is also a wine university, but because we were on bikes.
The restaurant was Restavracija Podskala in Vipava, Slovenia
One of the courses. For four people! I love Italian Food!!
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Going with the flow has almost always brought me good surprises. And when there weren't good surprises, there were interesting surprises.
When asked where I was going to stay, I drew a complete blank. Not that I exactly planned my stop for the night, but I was a couple of hundred kilometers away from any place I had even considered. Staying at the home of the riders was impractical. One of the riders had a brother that owned a Bed and Breakfast. At least this was in a westerly direction. They made the reservations for me, and quite a deal I got too. They even guided me the 90 kM or so to the place, where I met the family. It was a wonderful place. Some wine made from a grape that is only grown in a small area near here certainly helped top off the evening.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collio_Goriziano
Trying to come up with a route that made sense and was good was more difficult than I thought. First thing in the morning I just picked a route that would get me around any cities as quickly as possible. This brought me quickly back into Slovenia, and through a fantastic valley, made even more dramatic by the clouds and very light rain. The entire day was awesome riding, eventually into Italy. I found myself about 10 miles north of Arabba, a place I had stayed at a few times in the past. There are a ton of hotels and BnB's here. Booking.com was showing nothing. When I got there, I stopped at one I knew was awesome. It was closed, but the manager told me there were only two hotels left open in town. I found one, and it is a great place, with great food for a fair price.
So..... Going with the flow worked out great yet again.
Now ..... let me tell you about riding a motorcycle in Italy. In Europe, motorcycles are special. They are treated different than cars. We can park in places where cars cannot. We can do things on the road that would get cars tickets. We (and cars too) can do things on the road that would cause cops in the USA to call in the SWAT team.
Italy, well, in Italy they take it to a different level. 120 kPH in a 70 kPH, sure. Passing cars by riding down the center stripe even though there is on-coming traffic? Yes, of course, the cars in both directions will make room. Coming into an intersection with a stop sign? I think that sign is only for cars. Really, it works perfectly. Riding with local riders is an eye opening experience. I just hope I don't ride like that when I get back to the states. I can almost feel the steel bracelets already.
So, a very special day with new friends and a couple of great days of riding. What more can one expect out of life.
I so want to put my bike on it's side and imitate this pose. 
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Watch out! The kids are escaping from the triangle. 
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