During our first week of biking in north Italy, we averaged a little over 30 miles a day through the beautiful countryside in 90-plus degree heat and lots of humidity. The people generally looked very fit overall (a lot more so than in the good old U.S.A.).

E-mail figured large in our travel communications plan, but cyber cafes initially were few and far between. Ed and I spent hours one day walking several miles in search of a rental computer, without success. We did see a lot of the city we were in, Cremona, especially when we paid $4 to climb 500 stairs to the top an ancient tower on the main town square where there was a huge view.

Most of the people we encountered were really nice and tried to be helpful when we had questions (which was often. Several people gave us good directions to the local cyber joint, the Speed Cafe, but it's down in a basement level and we kept missing it until a helpful woman walked us to the doorstep.)

We biked 46 miles one day during our week in Italy, which was a good workout even for me. Some of our fellow travelers were in their mid-70s, and didn’t look especially fit, but somehow managed to keep up without undue strain. I hope I can manage the same when (and if) I reach that age.

(If you've had enough text, and want to see some pretty pictures, click here for Austria, here for Italy and here for a bit of London and Frankfurt.)

We took a very comfortable seven-hour bus ride July 1 from Cremona to Krimml, Austria, to begin the Austrian portion of the tour. Krimml is a very picturesque place that looks straight out of a Walt Disney set. I almost expected to hear Julie Andrews trilling in the hills. The town was filled with tourists and locals in lieder hausen. Next day we visited the Krimml Waterfall, mightiest in Europe and most impressive.

The ensuing 28-mile bike ride to Niedernsill was almost all downhill and therefore (in my opinion) not really a bike ride -- kind of like the bike descent from the Haleakala volcano in Maui. The38-mile July 3 ride, to Leogang, was really nice – a few hills, gorgeous scenery and warm weather (but not too hot). We were rewarded with a three-room suite at the hotel, with separate bath and potty rooms.

On July 4, we carried miniature American flags on our handlebars in observance of Independence Day. At our destination, Lofer, we rode a cable car (normally used by skiers) well up a mountainside. Thirteen of the 17 members in the group opted to hike back down -– a fairly rugged walk -– not bad for a bunch of oldies.

We concluded our bicycling July 5, pedaling into Salzburg, Austria, on a beautiful day amid gorgeous scenery. Next day we explored Salzburg, learning about Mozart, touring the (really) "old town," and shopping.

In Italy and Austria I took more than 90 digital photos, several of which should be at least somewhat decent. There were lots of interesting subjects, including dead people in various stages of decomposition in some of the Italian churches. Overall, I think this experience was what I would call a good "taste of Europe." Obviously you cannot get the big picture in just 14 days concentrated in small areas of just two countries. But biking does enable one to get a lot of really good small pictures of what an area is like and how folks live. Actually, the Europeans I have seen seem to be just as advantaged, if that's the word, as the run of San Diego residents. All 17 members of our group, all of them at least 60, have fared well, with no one having any real problems, health or otherwise. And they are mostly sturdy cyclists. Average age is 68.5. I would like to do something like this again in not too many years.

Most of the group departed early July 7 for the U.S., but some scattered to other parts of Europe. I tacked on three days in London, sans bike and sans group.

While in London, I hustled around, trying to be super-tourist. At times I felt my many years. The British sun finally emerged July 9 today after two days of off-and-on drizzle that, among other things, disrupted the Wimbledon tennis tournament. I spent three hours in the Tower of London and three more at the British Museum, which has a terrific coin display. I also bought a hefty book about the history of money, published by the museum, which I feared would tax the capacity of my already overloaded travel bag. (I dumped my old bike helmet in Salzburg to make a little room in the bag. but that minor sacrifice did not do much for the weight problem.)

On my own in London, after biking with a group for two weeks. I got along pretty well by closely following the advice of the PBS travel expert, Rick Steves. His London book is almost like having a personal guide to show me the way, especially on transportation options and the best places to visit if you don't have much time.

When I arrived, after lugging my luggage for many blocks to my hotel, I signed up for and rode the renowned "Big Bus" (actually four of them -– they run on overlapping routes) for about eight hours on a 24-hour pass, passing many of the tourist spots -- some several times. On Monday I got off the bus to tour Madame Tussaud's waxworks museum, which was really impressive except they did a relatively crummy job of replicating U.S. presidents. Oprah Winfrey was great though, as were the British PM's. Then I attended the Sunday service at Westminster Abbey -- because they don't allow regular tourists on Sunday. I must say the service was really impressive, in those magnificent surroundings, with about 1,000 people in attendance -- almost enough to make one get religion. The Brits really know how to do pageantry!

Also on July 8 I rode the subway to the British Library, which has a tremendous collection of historic books and manuscripts, including several original copies of the Magna Carta. The subway -- er underground, incidentally, is a great way to get around London, and, unlike the tourist buses, it keeps you out of the rain.

I also located a nearby Laundromat, so my days of doing the laundry in hotel sinks and bidets were mercifully over. The Laundromat seemed like the height of luxury after the bidets. The Hotel Delmere, where I stayed in the Paddington area, is showing its age, but at least it's clean and I was only there at night anyway.

I rose early on July 10 to catch the 5 a.m. train to the Heathrow airport, just walking in the rain to the terminal about three blocks from the hotel. I flew to Frankfurt, where I had to lay over for a day in order to catch my return flight to the U.S. I stayed at a hotel in Kelsterbach, a charming village not far from the airport. I did a lot of walking around and riding commuter trains during my 24 hours in and around Frankfurt, but had no guidance so I really did not accomplish much except to be able to say I'd "been there." I did visit the German Film Museum on the River Main, which was interesting but did not linger very long because I could not read the German-only explanations of the exhibits. Downtown Frankfurt looked very prosperous, sort of like San Francisco on a week day, with a lot of well-dressed, purposeful people patronizing the stores and cafes.

Although the trip overall was a wonderful and enlightening experience, toward the end I was getting a bit weary of living out of a suitcase -- even with Rick Steves to how me the way -- and looked forward to my homecoming. The flights home from Frankfurt were uneventful, and -– surprise! –- I did not lose anything of consequence during my 18 days of travel.