Blogs from Montepulciano, Tuscany, Italy, Europe - page 4

Now that we had wheels, and the shops re-opened (Monday), we decided to head into Foiano Della Chiana to buy some supplies for the rest of the week. I am certain that driving on the opposite side of the road to what you are used to is quite stressful but I can almost guarantee that being a passenger in such a situation is even MORE stressful!! I was so tense and tight by the time we got there I resembled something out of a Frankenstein movie!! Suffice it to say, we made it there in one piece. However, (yes, there is always a however!) we had no idea that everything shuts between 12 and 4 (some places 1 - 4.30 p.m.) so we arrived just as the supermarket was closing! The place was literally like a ... read more

August 25, 2009 - San Gimignano & Volterra, Italy I slept in today while Andrew took a bike ride. He said it was inspiring and beautiful - which means hilly and hard to me. We had a nice breakfast of .78 cent fruit flakes (cereal is very chap here), coffee and lovely juice and headed out to find our way to the northern hilltop towns of San Gimignano and Volterra just northwest of Siena. We passed tons of vineyards on the way. I didn’t realize how arid and dry Tuscany was. The soil that is not covered by grape vines, sunflowers or corn is turned over and looks like hard little boulders. I am surprised that anything can grow here. The back-roads are empty, narrow and keep winding up. The views are breathtaking. This reminds us ... read more

SIENNA In our last week we decided to take a side tour to Sienna before we headed right into the wine country. After a long day of train delays we did not feel like hunting for accomodation so we got off the bus and walked straight into the hotel across the road and booked a room. OMG! what an expensive dive. But luckily there was so much to see in Sienna that we only headed back to the room to sleep late at night. In many ways Sienna is like many other italian towns. It has its Duoma and cofee shop on every corner.There are loads of people walking the streets and an abundace of gelato shops (only these ones suck you in by adding large peices of fruit and chocolate to the displays so they ... read more

Val d'Orcia: The inspiration of Renaissance painters. Remote(ish), incredibly fertile, medieval, gothic & relatively undiscovered by the masses. Here Montepulciano is, in dozens of ways, equal to Sienna. It's volcanic horizon, famous worldwide for it's wines Nobile & Rosso, it's Etruscan heritage.... all pave the way to an amazing village. Both for the modern traveler & those who enjoy history. Built on Monte Poliziano predating 500 BC, this town has seen surprising fame. Marcellus II, Poliziano, Cervini, pilgrims... & SOMETHING has to be said about their music! The academy of music was directly next to Piazza Pio; violins, cello's, piano, play through most of the late afternoon & well into the evening. Solo artists sing an operetta as one enjoys a meal or just a drink while soaking in the incredible atmosphere. To listen to ... read more

Monday, June 2 Rome to the Italian Hill Towns We are currently in northwest Italy on our way to France. It is now the morning of Wednesday, the 4th. I plan to write updates for the prior two days, the 2nd and 3rd of June. When we arrived here last night, we had great and free internet access. This morning we have none. So, I may not be able to upload my blog this morning. But, I do have a little time to write before getting on the road. Hopefully, the net will re-emerge before we leave and I’ll be able to upload. We started Monday morning in Rome. We felt like we had seen all that we could in the limited time we had in Rome (three nights). We know that we could return many ... read more