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Italy 53 - Cortona - ooops remember to pay the night before if you want to get away early
Published: May 21st 2013Europe » Italy » Tuscany » Cortona
May 21st 2013
Moral of the story - remember to check the time reception opens if you want to get off early. Suzy was unhooked from her umbilical cord, Sion was sitting ready in the passenger seat, water was taken on board and the loo was empty. Only problem if you needed to get away before 9 you needed to pay the night before . Doh as Homer Simpson says, Standing outside the reception it was obvious we had 50 mins wait before the cash office opened and we could pay , pick up our ACSI card and passport and move on. The time was spent watching a lone jogger running a circuit around the road, we worked out how long it took her to do a circuit and then got bored. We watched walkers taking their hunds for ... read more
May 18th 2013
After the Garfagnana national park we booked into a campsite just outside of Florence for 3 nights. We spent 2 full days exploring the city. The first day we went to the famous Uffizi Gallery which displays many Renaissance masterpieces, the Vecchio Palace - well worth the effort if you want a crash course in ancient mythology - and the Piazza della Signoria filled with sculptures and tourists. The crowds were overwhelming. On the second day after getting in early to see David by Michelangelo at the Academy Gallery and inside the gigantic Cathedral we went across the river and walked along the quieter and more traditional streets to get a feel for Florence (away from Gucci stores). Florence was extremely busy but really rewarding with so much art, architecture and history to absorb. Next on ... read more
May 17th 2013
Friday already and it is our last day! We woke to the sound of heavy rain dancing off the roof and patio. When it rains in Tuscany it doesn't do half measures. We had our plan to visit Sansepulcro so off we set on the same road we had driven back from Anghiari. We are definitely beginning to know our way around this region what with the help of maps and Sat Nav! We were approaching the town and I was reading from the Guide Book that it was the chief industrial town of the area so to be honest we thought a short visit would be enough. As usual the town turned out to be more catching and the old part remains much the same as in medieval times. It is the town where Pierro ... read more
May 16th 2013
Considering we have been staying just outside Arezzo for the past 6 days we thought we had better visit the town. Sandra, our host arrived over to the cottage this morning to greet us. She had been in England for a relative's wedding until Tuesday. She was very chatty and offered us an umbrella for the day as it was tipping down with rain. She gave us a few tips of where to visit as well so with extra maps and coats fleeces and brolleys off we set. We drove right up to the old part of Arezzo. It is quite a big town compared with many we have visited, the modern part being on the flat and as usual the old part on the hill top although there were just a few ups and downs. ... read more
May 15th 2013
This morning we woke to sunshine although the weather forecast for Arezzo was rain at stages through the day. We headed for Cortona the beautiful walled medieval hill top town about 45 minutes from Arezzo. The town was made famous following the novel and film "Under the Tuscan Sun" - all about a woman called Frances who ends up letting go of fear and taking the plunge to make a new life in Italy. Having spent the afternoon in this absolutely lovely town I can guess how she just fell in love with it and from what I gather so have many others particularly Americans. Every summer several American students flock to the town for Summer school and today we heard many American accents. So we had to climb to the top of the hill as ... read more
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May 12th 2013
We departed from Antella at 11 and decided to take the scenic route via the Appenine ridge. Tusc50 kany has not been a disappointment. It is more beautiful than they say. The landscape is unspoiled and as you look upwards towards the rolling hills they are clad in trees and wild flowers and meadows. The small hilltop towns are so sleepy and with locals sitting in the piazzas chatting. There were signs advertising the 50 k cycle race on Sunday and there were groups of cyclists out training. The ones we overtook passed us by again on the downward slopes clearly having a ball. We stopped just for a wee rest at Popi and discovered a gem of a town - a medieval castle with the oldest library in Italy - ancient books and charters and ... read more
May 12th 2013
Some photos of our accommodation in Bagnoro. Sunday was our rest day. Having said that we had a jaunt to the local Supermarket. It is always interesting checking out all the different food and produce! Then in the evening we headed up the mountain road thinking we might get to the top before dark. Not a chance. It just kept on going. Jim went on ahead at one point to check out the next bend and I heard the rustle of bushes beside me. All I could think of was wild boar and I let out a Jimmmm! Fortunately there was no sign of any deer or boar but glad we turned as it was dark by the time we got back. We were told by Paul this morning that there are families of boars close ... read more
May 10th 2013
Can't believe it is Friday already. We headed off to Florence after breakfast with our plan for the day. First visit was to the Duoma. With our Firense cards we bi passed the queues. Not so impressive inside as the Sante Croce but the exterior is beautiful - neo Gothic marble with a huge dome that dominates the skyline Brunelleschi's dome 463 steps to the top which we decided against. To think that the dome was built without scaffolding! We then headed to the Orsanmichele Church quite small in comparison - Gothic in style and depicts the City's patron saints of the City's trade guilds. The afternoon was spent in the Ufizzi Gallery built in the 16th Century and is the oldest gallery in the world. It is crammed with ancient Greek and Roman sculptures and ... read more
May 10th 2013
We roll into Florence by midday, and relaxedly wander through town. We have lunch at a nearby vegetarian cafe, bveg, and head to the Duomo via a high end shopping district. We grab gelato at the first gelato shop we see, where the servers wear little sailor hats, and the cones are stacked into cone trees. The fruit sorbet looks enticingly icy. We encounter over ten more gelato vendors in our walk; there are gelato shops every other corner in the center of town. The streets are narrow but the traffic is not as chaotic as in Naples. Blond buildings uniformly have dark green or brown shutters as we walk from the area southwest of the train station eastward. Suddenly the Duomo looms ahead above the buildings, a terracotta dome on a basilica with dramatic white ... read more
May 9th 2013
This morning we headed to the centre of Florence where we got shown how they make leather. I bought a leather wallet and some earrings. It's quite hard to distinguish the real from the fake, but if you buy it from a shop generally most of them are real. Later we had a guided tour around the centre of Florence, we got to see The Old Bridge, the dome, the (fake) statue of David (didn't have time to see the real one) as well as many other statues and buildings. We decided to go back to the leather store and buy a real Italian leather jacket. Broke the bank a bit but it was worth it! We took to long shopping that we missed the contiki bus back to the hotel (not a biggie though as ... read more
