Monday 4th
From Sion, we went to Brig and over the Simplon Pass. The weather was not kind but, despite the rain, the pass was still dramatic. We marvelled at how the Swiss roads, despite all the weather and altitude extremes that they have to encounter, are much better than those in Gloucestershire!
Once over the pass we came down the Italian side and our first stop was Stresa on Lake Maggiore. Due to the weather, we were denied the sneak previews one gets of the lakes when coming down, but Maggiore eventually appeared.
Stresa seemed full of OAPs from all over the place. We had coffee at somewhere that resembled the Ritz with lots of ladies with very big hair! I wondered if some of the guests would all of a sudden break out into a waltz or something! The little islands on the lake were visible but very misty, so we had to content ourselves with looking at all the invariably very pricey lakeside houses, some with the most beautiful facades and gardens but most hidden from view – understandably!
Given the horrible weather we decided to head South. We aimed for Pisa with a stop to admire the walled city of Lucca. We made good progress, but didn’t get to Lucca until the light was beginning to fade. We walked around the cobbled streets and then found a Ristorante to have supper in. The city (you can hardly call it that really) was very quiet due to the weather but was pretty with the walls all lit up. Not ideal for photography but captured in the mind.
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| From Lucca |
We left Lucca and within maybe 40 minutes we found our campsite at Pisa, somewhat later than we had planned but they were still open! We hooked up the electric and set up for the night. We aimed to be up early the next morning for the Pisa tourist extravaganza!!
Tuesday 5th
We had chosen our campsite not for its facilities but for its proximity to the city centre. We were up early as planned and walked in to see the sights. We couldn’t quite believe how busy it was in October! There were people everywhere and lord only knows how many people would be there in July and August! We walked and walked and saw just about everything (and everybody!).
Once back at the campsite we packed up and headed further South. We took the coast road down to Porto Stefano and found a great motorhome campsite where we were to stay for 2 nights. The owner was determined to be helpful despite not speaking a word of English!
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| From Pisa |
Once back at the campsite we packed up and headed further South. We took the coast road down to Porto Stefano and found a great motorhome campsite where we were to stay for 2 nights. The owner was determined to be helpful despite not speaking a word of English!
Wednesday 6th
From Porto Stefano we explored the Island of Monte Argentario, a relatively undiscovered but beautiful gem. Not an island any more as it’s joined to the mainland by 2 roads across sand dunes but is still an island in my book. One half of the ‘Island’ is covered with very expensive looking villas but the Southern half was more natural. The pretty port of Porto Ercole was practically deserted when we arrived but, after a walk up to the fort, lunchtime neared and people came out of nowhere to fill up the few restaurants that were open. We had lunch on looking out onto the port, admiring the boats. After walking off our lunch we went to Orbetello to have a look round, grab some food and wine for supper and headed back to camp. We'd had lovely weather whilst on the coast, which had been most welcome.
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| From Porto Stefano |
Thursday 7th
We headed for Orveito in Umbria, stopping along the way for an hour in the sunshine and a dip in the sulphur spa, a view of the truscan acropolis at Savona and the walled city of Pitigliano. We couldn’t find a campsite near Orveito, so we stayed overnight at a hotel -Oasi dei Discepoli and enjoyed a king sized bed! The hotel was the ugliest building on the exterior that I have seen in a long time and not what I expected to see overlooking the beautiful ancient city of Orveito. However, despite the 60’s concrete façade, the hotel was lined with marble and had lovely views over the landscape. We had picked up some wine before arriving at the hotel, lovely Orvieto wine at under 2 Euros a bottle! We climbed onto the huge bed (huge compared to Valerie) and sipped wine whilst making use of the internet connection to catch up with the outside world.
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| From Orveito |
Friday 8th
We spent the majority of today in Orvieto, a magnificent walled mediaval city and stopped for lunch of bread and cheese in a park just inside the walls with a lovely view. The hilltop cities and villages of Italy can get a bit 'same-o' after a while, as they are everywhere, but the bigger ones have the most magnificent public buildings and cathedrals. We marvelled at the cathedral in Orvieto, the gold work, the carvings, the metalwork, no-one could recreate the same today. From Orvieto we headed over the hills towards Siena. We saw many Umbrian/Tuscan towns along the way but stopped en route at Ficulle to admire the spectacular views across Umbria towards Tuscany. We ended up at Montepuilciano, another beautiful walled medaeval city. We had supper in the city in a traditional Trattoria, where I had Tuscan soup, a recipe I will try to emulate at home. We found a campsite on a farm just outside the city which was a little basic but had everything that we needed just for one night.
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| From Orveito 2 |
Saturday 9th
We headed for Siena and the Chianti region. We had picked a campsite about 10 miles outside, whose website gave no indication that it had closed for the season!! We drove on in the hope that we’d find somewhere and stumbled upon Monteriggioni, a beautiful little hilltop settlement. We found the tourist information lady there very helpful and after a quick telephone call we had secured accommodation not far away just outside San Gimignano, which was on our list of places to visit anyway. We arrived at the site too early to book in (siesta) so we went for a walk in the sunshine and admired the views across the vineyards and olive groves , interspersed in true Tuscan fashion by tall columnar cypress trees. When we returned to check in, we couldn’t quite believe that a couple from the Netherlands that had been parked next to us at the campsite in Pisa were also waiting to check in here – small world eh?! Once checked in we did a bit of housekeeping (washing) and went for a beer and a pizza in the ristorante on site
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| From San Gimignano |
Sunday 10th
We had breakfast earlyish (for a Sunday) and walked into San Gimignano. The 40 minute stroll obviated the need to worry about taking Valerie along the narrow and entry restricted streets or parking her. The place was busy for October (we thought). As we wandered, a White Excelsior open top classic pulled up and out stepped a bride-to-be in a stunning dress that you would only see at an Italian wedding. The city had endless streets and pathways to wander down and around. We mooched in the art galleries and ceramic shops before taking a well earned lunch. The weather was cool today so I had the traditional Tuscan soup made with vegetables and bread to warm me up and it was lovely. I will make this when I get home but I am unsure just how you are supposed to cook it authentically, as no two restaurants will serve it the same. In some it is liquid with bread on the top toasted with cheese (like traditional French onion) in some, all the liquid is absorbed by bread, so you could eat the whole thing with a fork and leave nothing. A meander back to the campsite after a final stroll around the city allowed an hour in the sun as the weather cheered up. After coffee and a tidy up, it was time to open another bottle of wine – well, considering the region, it would be rude not to!
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| From San Gimignano |
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| From Tuscan Landscape |
Monday 11th
We tried to leave early but seemed to take forever to get going. Once we did get away we headed for Castellina in Chianti. We got to Poggibonsi and it said 11 km to Castellina, all good we thought. We then followed the signs and about 10 minutes later one said 12.5 km to Castellina. I then took a wrong turning and we ended up back in the same place at the 11km point! Anyways, we got on the right road and went to Castellina. The weather was changeable but remained dry whilst we were there and we meandered around the art shops. We then proceeded towards Radda in Chianti and stopped at a Classico producer along the way for tasting. We bought some Sauvignon and Prosecca (grown by them but made at wineries elsewhere) but we were saving buying any Chianti until we’d tasted a few. Chianti Classico has a premium which, I feel, is less to do with the quality of the wine and is more about the ‘label’. We have already sampled some nice Chianti grown just outside the magic Classico region, which is half the price of the ‘real thing’, so it is hard to work out just what is ‘good’ Chianti Claissico. Anyways, when we reached Radda the heavens opened. We scurried into a restaurant for cover and lunch. A rather pretentious affair to be honest - the Tuscan soup wasn’t very rustic and the staff very ‘distant’.
After Radda we found Baddia A Coltibuono, and toured the Abbey that is now a wine estate. The tour of the cellar was interesting and Simon would have killed for the wine collection there, which dated back to 1926. The cellar tour and the formal gardens of the abbey were just lovely but, given the welcome we’d had at the Abbey itself, we were surprised at the frosty reception at the shop where wine could be tasted and bought (wine at £20 a bottle needs to be sold to me I’m afraid). On the way back to camp we found a fairly new organic minimalistic chianti producer well off the beaten track, La Porta di Vertine. We stopped for a tasting and a chat with the owners. They had only been producing for 3 years and even their 2008 was a little ‘young’. I certainly think this is one to return to in the future. The owner helpfully gave us some recommendations for other producers and good restaurants.
After Radda we found Baddia A Coltibuono, and toured the Abbey that is now a wine estate. The tour of the cellar was interesting and Simon would have killed for the wine collection there, which dated back to 1926. The cellar tour and the formal gardens of the abbey were just lovely but, given the welcome we’d had at the Abbey itself, we were surprised at the frosty reception at the shop where wine could be tasted and bought (wine at £20 a bottle needs to be sold to me I’m afraid). On the way back to camp we found a fairly new organic minimalistic chianti producer well off the beaten track, La Porta di Vertine. We stopped for a tasting and a chat with the owners. They had only been producing for 3 years and even their 2008 was a little ‘young’. I certainly think this is one to return to in the future. The owner helpfully gave us some recommendations for other producers and good restaurants.
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| From Chianti |
Tuesday 12th
Today we decided to walk to fully appreciate the scenery. We woke to lovely sunshine and even though it was a little cold first thing we were soon stripped of our fleeces. We walked about 10 miles all around San Gimignaro, surrounded by vines and olive groves with some of the most beautiful villas overlooking the beautiful Tuscan countryside. We finished up in the city where we had a late lunch after a well deserved beer. Before walking the 2.5 km back to camp we stopped at the Co-Op to get some Tuscan sausages to grill for Simon’s supper and some cheese. By the time we had walked back we were able to snooze in chairs in the sunshine before I cooked some soup for supper whilst Simon played with the outdoor cooker for his sausages. After such a long walk today, we were both ready for bed by 9pm after some local wine - and antihistamines! The mosquitos have been the only bad thing on this holiday and we are both nursing legfuls of itchy bites, despite sprays, creams and tablets. Valerie is going to get a zapper for her Christmas present! It was lovely to get away from Valerie today. We’ll be back to touring in the morning but it’s important to get out, otherwise it’s all a bit claustrophobic.
Wednesday 13th
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| From San Gimignano |
We headed out to Siena first thing. We got there but the weather was not good and parking was impossible. Siena wasn’t on our list of burning desires so we gave it a miss. It was on the way to the start of our day tour anyway. We went on to Bossi, with a large vinery where we stopped for tasting and bought a couple of bottles. Next stop was Villa a Sesta, a tiny pretty little place that was deserted. Just a church, maybe a dozen houses and a tiny café which was shut for the winter. There is a big wine estate here but sadly that too was deserted. Just along from Villa a Sesta was San Gusme, similarly pretty, albeit a little larger but equally deserted. Next up was Castello De Brolio, which appeared to have nothing apart from a winery and a restaurant. We went into the winery but the staff were too busy attending to a group of obviously high spending Americans to be bothered with us so we promptly left. There have been a couple of disappointing stops like this on our tour – for wine starting at over £20 a bottle, I want to know what makes it special (and to feel just a smidgeon valued as a customer!). On to Gaiole in Chianti where we stopped for lunch at a family run Trattoria. Gaiole isn’t that pretty, although it would have been prettier in the sunshine. We made our way back to San Gimignano for a last night, stopping at some more wineries on the way and loading up Valerie with our purchases. The bumpy Italian roads make for a noisy ride with bottles clanging around in the back.
Thursday 14th
We left San Gimignano today and headed for Firenze (Florence). Our campsite was right under the Piazzale Michelangelo, so the location couldn't have been better. We found a flat spot (not easy with a site on a hill!) and set up before setting off into the city. It was just a 10-15 minute walk down the hill to the Ponte Vecchio bridge. The place, like Pisa, was packed - I would hate to visit these places in high summer! We saw just about everything today and included in our itinerary the 463 steps up to the top of the Cathedral dome to capture the view outside and to get a close up of the painted ceiling inside. After a leisurely supper and another walk, we climbed the steps up to the campsite, with a few more minutes to take in the view from the Piazzale Michelangelo on the way. We checked the weather on the laptop and for weekend forecast was a bit grim where we had intended to go. We decided to sleep on it and decide what to do in the morning.
Friday 15th
We chose today to return to Switzerland for a few days. We had packed a lot in and a few days to relax was in order. Apart from our few days at the coast, the weather hadn't been kind really, and the van gets a bit cramped if you can't get outside. Also, we suffered a bit with mosquito bites, so dared not sit out in the evening, even when it was relatively warm and dry. Anyways, off we set, largely the same route as the way we had come. Unlike the way down, we were treated to Lake Maggiore in late afternoon sunshine and said we'd like to return for a holiday in Northern Italy to take in the lakes and the Dolomites, but earlier in the season for better weather. The mountain pass was very foggy and cloudy, so we didn't improve on the view we'd had on the way down.
Once we arrived, some Skype conversations with the UK revealed the strikes in France, which kind of scuppers any ideas of visiting Paris for example on the way home!
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| From Firenze |
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| From Firenze |
We chose today to return to Switzerland for a few days. We had packed a lot in and a few days to relax was in order. Apart from our few days at the coast, the weather hadn't been kind really, and the van gets a bit cramped if you can't get outside. Also, we suffered a bit with mosquito bites, so dared not sit out in the evening, even when it was relatively warm and dry. Anyways, off we set, largely the same route as the way we had come. Unlike the way down, we were treated to Lake Maggiore in late afternoon sunshine and said we'd like to return for a holiday in Northern Italy to take in the lakes and the Dolomites, but earlier in the season for better weather. The mountain pass was very foggy and cloudy, so we didn't improve on the view we'd had on the way down.
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| From Maggiore |
Once we arrived, some Skype conversations with the UK revealed the strikes in France, which kind of scuppers any ideas of visiting Paris for example on the way home!
