From Italy to England

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25 March - Thursday Another early start. We discovered that this was market day in San Gimignano. The route from our apartment to the outdoor cafe was lined with stalls selling everything from fresh produce to shoes and clothing. It made for a colorful beginning to the day. After another cappuchino and pastry we walked back to the car and then drove the winding roads to Volterra.

Tamara wanted to see where the Twilight - New Moon movie was filmed. I told her that it was filmed in Montipulciano where we had lunch the day before ... apparently the real town of Volterra, although very picturesque, was and not good enough. She did not believe me. We walked all over town looking at each tower to see if she recognized any from the movie. Another Hollywood fiction. Before leaving town we had our last Gelatti with two new flavors. After trying perhaps a dozen different flavors I think my favorite is pistachio. I hope I can find a real Gelatti place in Colorado! We bought one more gift for Linda... a vase made of alabaster for which this area is known.

It was then off to Fiumicino airport to return the rental car and catch flights to England. First we had lunch at a Mediterranean seaside resort. There is nothing more dull than seaside resort in winter, but the seafood was still good.

We got to Fiumicino airport about 30 minutes before the rental car was due and two hours before my flight. As you will recall my British Airways flights were cancelled so now I was flying to Heathrow via Amsterdam on KLM. My kids were on the British Airways flght going directly to Gatwick leaving about an hour after mine. My layover in Amsterdam on the way to Rome was 3 hours, way to much time. The layover on the way back was 30 minutes, way too little. They closed the gate just after I passed through. I hate tight connections (and long connections). I arrived at Heathrow and proceeded to the rental car company. This time I was upgraded to a large SUV (not the ideal car for narrow lanes), a Quashquai...who comes up with such names! In addition to the problems of identifying the normal controls of a new car in the dark, I had to get used to driving on the left side of the road shifting gears (all six of theme) with my left hand. At least the brakes, clutch and gas peddles were in the same order. The drive to the hotel near Gatwick airport was fast until I tried to find the hotel. I could not see the directions in the dark. I finally made it there at 11 pm. My kids were already asleep so I had to wake them up to let me in.

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Photos

Market day in San Gimignano
Our residence is in the background