Tuesday 28^th June

It’s two months since we left Australia and we have had a wonderful day of spectacular scenery. The morning was spent travelling up the Boe cable car at Corvara and then transferring to the Yallon chair lift to about 2600m asl. It was worth every penny we paid and we stayed up the top for over an hour walking the undulating and rocky 638 track via the Refuge there. At first, the cable car rises steeply, then levels off through conifer forests, and then rises extremely steeply over giant rocks and up the cliff face to the Boe top station. However, once you alight the chair lift, which we preferred to the cable car since it had no scratched Perspex sides to distract from your views, the scene is soon barren rock with some remnants of ice dusted with a pink shimmer from the limestone rocks of the semi-circular wall of mountains in front of you. There is a small snow lake there not long after the start of the chair lift and it appears very deep. At the head wall, there is a long ribbon waterfall, which you can walk to if you have the time and the energy. We had neither! There are lots of different tracks to choose from all these cable cars / chair lifts - enough to keep hikers happy for days. There are no obese people walking these tracks, let me tell you. In fact, we are surrounded by fitness freaks!

It took us over three quarters of an hour to walk to the refuge where skiers and hikers can stay overnight. When we got there, they were repairing the structure and later the three workmen had to lug all their equipment by wheelbarrow and heavy backpacks back to the top station and take it all down via the chair lift and then the cable car. As the walking track to the chair lift was like stone rubble and steep both up and down in places, it must have nearly killed them. We had enough trouble just to get ourselves back and that was taking our time.

Then we set off for the Gardena Pass at 2121m. We are in the process of driving all around the Sella Gruppe of mountains in the Dolomites. There are four sides and four passes to negotiate, one on each side. Yesterday, to get to Corvara, we went up and over the Passo Campolonga, which is the lowest of the passes. Then we negotiated the Gardena Pass today where we stopped to have lunch. Then we drove westward to the valley of Gardena, which is highly rated but found it not very exciting. The valley is pretty enough but there was nothing there to hold our attention and no camping grounds. So we then traced some of our route and turned south to go over the Sella Pass at 2244m. Then we descended via over 20 hairpin bends to our overnight stop at Canazei.

That was the good news! The bad news was the traffic! All day, we were harassed by cyclists, bikies, cars and huge tourist buses. We figured out that some sort of cycling event was being prepared for. None of the dozens and dozens of cyclists we had to pass were wearing competitor numbers but there were signs up showing a circular route for “Bike Day”. Americans seem to be prominent among the cyclists and there were young and old, men and a few women, and even a few amateurs (no lycra and often no helmets!)

We had thought at first that perhaps it was just a time trial up to the Gardena Pass but, no, the cyclists were everywhere, all afternoon. The bikers seemed much more aware of what was happening than us and apparently were riding the circuit in reverse as we struck far more bikers than cyclists on the Sella Pass leg. We also struck far more buses on the Sella. They were unable to get around the hairpin bends without on-coming traffic backing back to let them through. At one point, the traffic in front of us refused to move and the bus had to let them through. But David backed up and got a thank you wave from the driver. Italians are like that on the road. They demand to proceed even if they take over the other side of the road! Today, on one of the hairpins bends into Canazei, a mini actually overtook us right on the curve of the hairpin bend. Despite all our experiences on Italian roads, even David was shocked. There was absolutely no way the driver could have seen if there was any on-coming traffic. He would have just slammed on his brakes and dared the other driver, who had right of way, to do the same and then let him through! Bikers overtake where they like and dare the on-coming driver to move over to let them through or hit them!

But that was not the worst of the day’s traffic. At the Gardena Pass, bikers just parked their bikes on the edge of the roadway right on the curve at the top, even though, it seemed, there was a car park with some room for bikes only in the centre. It would have meant they had to walk a few yards to the shop / restaurant! Tourist coaches just stop where they can, irrespective of where the back half of the coach ends up. However, the Sella Pass takes the cake. It was chaotic! Not only were there buses and bikes parked partially and fully on the narrow road but parts of the road had started to slide off the mountain and sewerage problems were in the process of being fixed so that there was rubble and dirt scattered along where the road should have been. What a mess of people, cycles, bikes, buses, cars and vans! Some people could not get out of legal parking area of a restaurant without the hostess coming out in her traditional dress and standing in front of a tourists coach to hold it up and so make way for the car to get out. Then the bus just proceeded to park and block in every other car in the restaurant parking area! Something should be done about it. Either they need better planned, and installed, parking areas and wider roads or they need to restrict who can use these roads. Tourist coaches would be the first I would ban but David says that’s not fair to other tourists. I would also ban the use of public roads for these cycling events but they are cycling crazy here and it would not go down well at all. The thing that really amazed me was that there were no police anywhere to be seen even though they must know how chaotic it is. And it was a Tuesday! Can you imagine what hell it must be on a weekend?

And, of course, the only people to police parking were the ticket sellers. At Gardena Pass, a German-speaking man came up and asked us to pay for the parking. It was 1E for an hour. As we had lunch there, we paid happily once we knew what he was on about. I told David I thought it was pay parking when we arrived but we could see no ticket machines. But at Sella, when we approached the pass, the sign said 6E, a flat rate, to park a motor caravan. Extortion! We kept driving through the pass and about 50m further on got a free spot just off the road.

Fortunately, we were able to get some parking at both passes, which really amazed us. We were so fortunate, especially as we did not have to break the law to get it. Furthermore, there were often places along the route where you could pull off the road and stop, so David was able to take some photos and not just rely on what I could get out of the moving car window. As far as mountain roads go, these spaces have been the best we have come across this trip but the traffic has been a nightmare. French roads were dreadfully narrow but there was little traffic on them.

Tomorrow, we retrace some of our route and then complete the fourth side of the Sella Gruppe trail but not before we take a chairlift ride or two from here. It is highly rated.

The caravan park here would best be described as a dump. It is supposedly 3-star but there is no toilet paper, no washing machines, no dryers, no soap, and no hand dryers. (Must be terrible for skiers in winter who need to dry their washing.) There is one block better than the other older block so we have been using it. Most of the park consists of deteriorating onsite vans with their chalet-style annexes, although there is some newer open space for tourists like us at the far end. The problem is that there are no large shade trees there, only newly planted ones and today was somewhere between 26 and 33 degrees. (Pharmacies have these flashing signs out front in Italy and they tell you the time, the date and the temperature; they are often in disagreement as to the temperature!) With the heat off the gravel pitches, the far end was very hot indeed. We managed to get a little shade and breeze on a site right amongst the permanent vans. Cooler but distinctly unattractive! For this they charge 25E a night but it is convenient as you can walk to the shops and the cable car is even closer. (Apparently, this is a very convenient centre for skiers as there are lots of runs close by.) We did some supermarket shopping especially getting some local wine and cheese and trying out the local cake shop where we will get bread in the morning. However, as the showers are hot and no tokens are required, I am happy to stay one night. I just don’t dare think about the road we will have to travel tomorrow!

Monday, 27^th June

Observations for the day:

1. The Dolomites are dramatic and beautiful – well worth a visit. Limestone rocky peaks with velvet green pastures and textured conifer forests contrast with towns in the valleys.
   
2. The roads are winding with hairpin bends up to and after passes.
   
3. Crunchy Nuts and bikers were less prevalent today but, individually, just as dangerous. We even saw two older people on motor scooters; we nicknamed them “Senior Sits”.
   
4. Cable car rides are expensive – if they are open. The one we really wanted to go up, the tallest mountain, the Marmolada was due to open today but isn’t opening until early July! Big disappointment and not only for us as there were other people arriving all the time. But we did go up the Col Alto at Corvana this afternoon and it was different to Santo Martino as at the top were green pastures to walk, not stony snowfields.
   
5. It gets hot even in the mountains. We are at over 1600m and it still reached 30 degrees today – too hot for a walk. We hope to get an early start up a cable car and walk tomorrow morning before it gets hot. The climatic extremes here must be amazing. Every house has a fresh stockpile of cut wood ready for the winter already. One we noticed even left niches in the face of the woodpile for three planters with petunias!
   
6. And the prize for the most colourful and audacious flower display on a building goes to a hotel in Alleghe. Its verandahs were ablaze with red, yellow, orange and purple. It took your breath away.
   
7. We only saw a half dozen, or less, motor caravans on the road today although there are a good few in here at our camp site tonight at Colfosco, near Corvana. This tells you something about the roads. This includes a few Germans in kombi vans with pop-up rooves. There is one British van and one Dutch – their countries’ intrepid travellers!
   
8. The camping ground here is strange. After Ora, this is only the second ground within the South Tyrol we have stayed at and both have demanded to see our passports! These are the only two places where we have had to produce them. They see rather off handed, on the other hand. We were given the number 42 but, when we went looking, found the gravel van sites (very hot and glary without shade) not numbered and took the one we wanted. Then we found we could not connect to the electricity. The box was locked but they hadn’t told us this. So David had to go back and ask the lady to come and unlock the box. She did but still no electricity. We had to wait until she returned to reception and flicked a switch there! Then, I went off for my shower a little while later only to find myself locked out. You needed a plastic credit card to swipe but they hadn’t told us this or given us one. So David had to go back again and ask for one. They gave him two! There was no camp information but a good scattering of signs about the place forbidding this and that! You cannot get rid of any garbage that was not generated at this site! Bullocks! Still, the showers were hot.
   
9. Camping grounds in ski areas seem to have good hot showers included and good electricity supply – I wonder why!?! Ski towns have lots of parking because it is the off-season! Yippee! Still some push motor caravans to the outskirts. Corvana, however, had its height barriers up allowing us in to normal parking areas. This is much appreciated even if it is pay parking.
   
10. The town of Corvana is very attractive and a good place to stop and visit, like Santo Martino. It is overshadowed by dramatic peaks, like the very pointy Sassongher at 2665m, and offers numerous cable car rides to a large number of walking tracks. Alleghe was another attractive town. It has a lake (as well as mountains) formed by a landslide in 1771. Here you get a good view of the Monte Civetta at 3220m. Most of the other little places could be missed. Some were distinctly unattractive once you got close to them.
    
11. Since entering the Dolomites region, we have noticed a lot of roadside Christian shrines plus a few roadside memorials for the dead. Given their bike riding, that isn’t surprising!
    
12. Cowbells can be heard easily across large distances in the valleys, hence their common usage, but it is a form of animal torture. It must drive them either deaf or crazy.
    
13. The favourite form of pot plant holder is the hollowed out log. It also makes an idea water fountain in the style of a cattle trough.
    
14. Bread is cheap in Italy. We have paid from 37c for two round rolls up to 77c. However, they aren’t that nice to eat. There is absolutely nothing like the variety or quality of backeries like Baker’s Delight here.

Sunday 26^th June

Ora is in the South Tyrol which means it is not sure whether it is Italian or German. Towns in this area have two names: German and Italian! When we went to the local small supermarket this morning to buy bread, we were greeted in German and farewelled in Italian! The radio station on in the amenities block was in German although the town is apart of Italy. And, by the way, it was playing “The Hits” (according to the English voice with a very heavy American accent), which included “Smoke Gets in Your Eyes”! Now that’s a worry even for our generation!

Viv was right; we were given a full peal of bells at 7am but the birds twittering had woken us well before then. At 8:45am, we were given a full bell recital. Each bell placed for a few minutes and then they all tolled together for a couple more. Twelve minutes of bellringing! Have you any idea how long that is! We guessed it was for Sunday church but then at 9:30, they gave a few more peals. Still, we were well and truly awake by this as the German family next door were up banging their car doors and eating breakfast outside just after 7.

We saw several people walking about in traditional costume so we were not sure whether it was a special day or their Sunday best. In fact, in a couple of villages we passed through there seemed to be some parade on and local police were manning the streets so perhaps it was for this special occasion.

The steep climb out of Auer / Ora afforded wonderful views and a few places to pull off, which pleased David. It was nowhere near as difficult a road as the hill roads in France as it was a good two cars wide and David had no problems even with all the motorbike riders cutting in and overtaking oncoming traffic at the last minute. They outnumbered cars today and fortunately, most seem to be going the other way.

After Predazzo, we turned off the main road to take the road to the Passo di Rolle at 1920m. This was definitely narrower and, in many places, in very poor condition. That made it a mecca for the bikers and when we got to the pass there were hundreds of them there, it seemed. Along the way, we passed a man-made lake, Lago di Form Buso, which offered us some beautiful reflections of the increasingly high mountains before the rugged peaks of the Dolomites came into view near the pass. Just after the pass, we got out to take some photos and a herd of cattle numbering over 40 moved across the foothills in front of us. All their cowbells were ringing! It makes quite a noise and we were to hear them again later from a chairlift station high above Santo Martino di Castrozza, which is an attractive ski resort only a few kilometres beyond the pass. Santo Martino itself sits at 1441m asl.

This was our destination for today as there are cable cars here that just have to be ridden. The small town sits under the shadow of a range of these rugged limestone peaks that have to be seen to be believed. The highest, Cima del Rosetta, rises to 2743m and there are two cableways that take you to within 43 metres of the peak. The first, a cable car, cuts a swath through the coniferous forest and you can’t actually see much from the station at its top because of the trees. Then, every 15 minutes, a second, a larger gondola car, travels from there to the top Rosetta station crossing exposed sheer limestone drops and adding another 700m in height. The views in all directions are amazing and magnificent. However, what we had not realised, not being used to alpine areas, was that, at the top, paths travel out over the stony snowfield still exhibiting some snow even at this time of year. There were people with their Nordic walking poles criss-crossing the area and you can continue the climb right to the cross at the top of Rosetta. Admittedly, it takes some fitness but, if you got up there early in the morning, you could do a lot of hiking.

It was cool and windy at the top making it ideal for a dozen or so large black birds surfing the buffeting currents with delight. Our delight came in the form of hot chocolate and cream at the bar / restaurant! It was not overly sweet but thick, like syrup.

However, we wanted to take a third cable car ride up the mountains on the opposite side of the valley, as it was suitable for afternoon photography only, while the Rosetta suited middle of the day to early afternoon. Anyway, as there was no campervan parking in town (We later found some.), we had booked in early to the only camping ground in town and so walked into town to the Rosetta cable car and then through town to the third one, the Trognola. This car takes you up to 2405m asl but isn’t as spectacular as the Rosetta one. Nevertheless, this is where the main ski fields are and you can see numerous chairlifts radiating out from the top station. This mountain consists of schist, which glitters in the light and its erosion results in more rounded forms with boulders rather than the dramatic domes, peaks and sheer drops of the limestone on the other side of the valley.

After a drink and an ice cream, we faced a long walk, mostly uphill, back into town and then out to the camping ground. We arrived back exhausted but this is one sight and one town you should not miss.

Of course, it resulted in an expensive day with three cable car rides, postcards, drinks and ice creams but then David had warned me that when we entered the mountain regions the cable car rides would push up our expenses. The 17.50E each for the Rosetta cable cars was far better value than the 12E each for the Trognola trip but we would not have missed any of them. However, to just do the first one and not go up to the Rosetta top station would be very short-sighted. It was worth every penny. Strangely, I have no trouble going up in cable cars dangling over precipitous cliffs yet worry myself almost sick about light plane and helicopter flights!

From our camping site, we have a wonderful view of the Dolomite range here and David is trying to get a series of photos as the sun sets on the mountain face. Perhaps it is still too early in the season to get the limestone cliffs turning red as the shadows seem to be deepening across the face. But we will get something.

This camping ground is totally different to any we have seen so far. There are mostly permanent vans but they sit on gravel under timber pergolas covered in tin sheeting. Beside each one is a clear-finished timber annex with plastic or Perspex windows. The effect is supposed to be like little ski chalets but they are not particularly attractive. I guess, they do the job of protecting the van etc from the winter snow. Nevertheless, the amenities are good and we had nice hot showers in large cubicles with 11 hooks and two soap dishes! There are even toilet paper, soap and hand dryers!

It is really cooling off now after a warm day. We both got a little sunburnt but are looking forward to a cool night under covers. Another advantage of being in the mountains has been the lack of mozzies and fewer flies!

Saturday 25^th June

What a day of fantastic scenery but frightful traffic! Still, we had been warned about weekend traffic on Italian roads. Not that we could do much about it. There was no way we wanted to spend three nights at last night’s caravan park. It was full of very young children so there was always some child crying and then, when we were told “absolute silence” was required after 11pm, we had a group near us that laughed and talked until the early hours of today with one gentleman having a particularly booming voice. This was our third night in a row of disturbed sleep so we wanted to move on.

Then, to top it off, I was a victim of one of those annoying incidents that, upon reflection, raise a smile. I was sitting on the toilet when I heard a couple of loud rattles and suddenly the floor was awash and my feet were being hosed! They just decided to start cleaning the women’s amenities without checking who was inside! As I came out, I knocked eschew a small bin in my effort to avoid the man and his hose. Immediately, he barked, “Attentione” at me. Naturally, I was unable to explain that, in view of my back injury, I don’t twist my body but make sure I am correctly aligned and that I had every intention of returning the little bin to the precise position he wanted it in. There are no signs, or information, telling campers when amenities blocks will be cleaned in any European campsite we have been in so far and certainly not here. So how is one supposed to know? Usually, the women cleaners just go about their work around you. Then the amenities remained closed for at least an hour and, during that time, puzzled females traipsed there and back confused by the three-quarters closed shutters that had created the loud rattles. What is more, in his exuberance with the hose, he had saturated the paper toilet dispenser half way up the wall so that it no longer worked. I think he was using the full force of a thick hose to clean the hand basins!

Before we left, we walked down to the other beach off the park as it is on a promontory and has access to gravel stretches on both sides. This second beach, looking towards the town of Salo, was more child friendly with a shallower section but you still really needed rubber shoes (Crocs) on to walk out into the water. Still, it was a pretty site aided by a small marina.

As we drove towards Salo, we were enveloped in a traffic jam that crawled on for many kilometres until we were passed Barbarano. All the spots along the way looked very attractive. It makes for a great holiday destination if you drive a car! They are not campervan friendly so no parking areas seem to be provided for us to use. At Toscolano, which is on another promontory protruding into the lake, we followed the signs down to the lake and there were several car parks some with deep enough spaces to allow for campervans to park safely but all had signs prohibiting any vehicles except cars. It was a shame as there was a lovely little beach there and we would liked to have stopped. As it is we don’t even have a photo o fit.

They seem to have the attitude that campervans belong in caravan parks but don’t realise that, without some other form of transport such as a motorbike or towed car, campervanners cannot access anything beyond walking distance. Of course, there are the Crunchy Nuts but on these roads with this traffic you are insane to venture out on a bicycle. But we saw a fair few of them, some without even helmets to go with their lycra!

However, today, we did not object to being held up behind a cyclist dominating the centre of the road. It gave us time to enjoy the magnificent scenery where the rocky, grey mountains plunge into the deep blue of the lake. There were sailing boats, speedboats, windsurfers and ferries all out on the lake in front of the backdrop of the dark mountains and villages of the other side.

When we found the first place to pull off onto the side of the roads, we took it and had lunch there enjoying the view. Luckily, because this turned out to be the only space we found free for the rest of the trip up the side of the lake. There were other cars pulled off into the smallest of spaces even within tunnels! From about half way up the lake, you begin to go through a series of 70 tunnels and 56 bridges in 44km. Some have partial openings to the water views but one or two are particularly narrow and not even lit! Yet, here and there a small car would be backed into a narrow space off to one side of a tunnel. How they got there, we could not imagine. We guess they just stopped and held up the traffic. That’s the Italian way! In fact, in one tunnel, there are two sharp turns off the right, which form the entrance and exit to a restaurant! Scary stuff!

Riva is a most attractive looking town situated at the head of the lake with a backdrop of stunning, unusually shaped mountains. We didn’t even try to find parking but continued on to the autoroute towards Bolzano. Now autoroutes are supposed to be speedy roads to assist the flow of traffic but today it limped from one traffic jam to the next! There seemed to be no rhyme or reason to the formation of these jams, which would suddenly clear up only to reappear further down the road. Fortunately, we only had to go about 79kms before turning off at Ora. I say ‘fortunate’ because there are some very dangerous people on the roads. Try understanding cars overtaking in the shoulder lane! Then there are the motorbike riders cutting in at the last minute. In fact, a couple of times they were neatly sandwiched between two cars travelling in opposite directions! In Italy, everyone has right of way on the roads, not just vehicles, so everyone does what they want and all other road users have to get out of their way!

The views of Riva, its surrounding vineyards and Lake Garda from the route onto the autoroute were stunning. Of course, there is no where to pull off and appreciate them; I just had to take photos from the van window and, again, we were fortunate for this section to be behind a slow old campervan struggling its way up the steep road. We are suckers for mountains, lakes and rivers and you could not get much better than the views back towards Riva and Lake Garda.

Two things about the motorway struck us. Firstly, as we entered it, we were forced to come to a complete stop and then try and merge into the flowing traffic (doing up to 130km/h) from a standing start! At one further entry point, I noticed the same. This seems particularly strange as it must cause the traffic to slow down for merging vehicles. Secondly, near Moro, the sound barriers protecting nearby residential areas were angled and clad in solar panels! What a great way to use this space!

The scenery was attractive all the way up the valley. This is not because of picturesque villages, because there was a lot of modern development and industry, but because your eyes were always drawn to the wonderful mountains on either side. On the lower slopes vines are grown on terraces but unlike in Germany, the rows run parallel to the terrace walls, not at 90 degrees to them. Initially, the vineyards we saw today grow the vines differently too. Instead of having them as standard supported by short sticks, they were grown as very tall standards with cross struts of wood to help support them. You could walk underneath them if you weren’t too tall. We wondered if the cooler climate meant they wanted to get the vines further off the ground and let more sun hit the soil near the roots.

However, we have more ahead of us as we drive towards the Dolomites. Ora is our starting point and from here we can see tomorrow’s road zigzagging back and forth across the bare face of the mountain behind our camping spot! It even looks scary on a map! In this camping ground, attached to a hotel, there are numerous motor bike riders and, as tomorrow is Sunday, we expect a lot of bikers on our route. If it gets too much, we will stop and the next caravan park and leave the rest for weekdays.

This camping ground is one of the nicest we have stayed at. There are two blocks of hotel rooms separated by a swimming pool and the camping area is behind the second block. The amenities are beneath the second block, which must be relatively new as they are beautiful. Large shower cubicles are tiled in peach and cream tones with each having a shower, toilet, hand basin, mirror, power points and hooks. There is even toilet paper! Outside the cubicles there are more toilets and hand basins with soap, air dryers and a hairdryer. They are all lit through the use of motion detectors. They are very classy.

Yet, the tariff is most reasonable at 25E for the night, which includes 6 amps of electricity. Our site is shaded and we have enjoyed a swim in the pool, which is partially solar heated. If we could use this as a base we would but it is on the edge of our planned route not in the middle.

We are hopeful of a quiet night as most of the people here seem older couples but, late in the day, a family with two children pulled in beside us and a group of 6 bikers drove up and set up tents close to us. We shall just have to wait and see what happens. There is a church behind us and nearby that strikes every quarter hour and put on a real performance at 7pm. If Viv is right, we can expect another performance at 7am, especially as tomorrow is Sunday!

Friday, 24^th June

The day started out cloudy, grew sunny and hot before a late afternoon thunderstorm with some heavy rain here at Lake Garda and it is all David’s fault. He finally got around to cleaning the windows of the van! At Ravenna, he could have washed the whole van. It is only the second camping ground offering us that facility but David declined. We would probably have had a flood if he had washed the whole van.

Actually, today was more of a travelling day. As we have a few days up our sleeves, we have added in an optional trip up the western side of Lake Garda. On our last trip in 1977, we stopped briefly at Lake Iseo (virtually next door) and then drove basically across the bottom of Lake Garda, which is the most popular and populated part of the lake. So we thought we would take the opportunity to see more of this elongated lake.

So we took the autoroutes most of the way from Ravenna, to circle around Bologna, and then northwest to Modena before travelling north to Verona and then west to Deseanzano before heading north again along the western lake shore. What a journey it was. I have never seen trucks like it. And, unlike France, they do not keep to the left lane nor the speed limit. The autoroutes vary between 4 lanes to 10 lanes wide so trucks can be in three lanes of the five lanes of the road in your direction. What is more, the side roads entering the autoroute give very little length in which to join the flow of traffic and sometimes this, or an exit, virtually coincides with the returning ramp for traffic that has stopped at a service centre. Trucks, like at home, believe they can put on their indicators and just move across. Cars don’t bother with indicators!

We stopped at a service centre, just after we turned north onto the autoroute to Verona (this auroroute was more civilised!) just before 12 noon for a break from the stress. If you want a break from sitting in a car, stand in a queue in a service centre!

We did not find any picnic areas for lunch until we turned west from Verona. Everyone is supposed to make do with service centres, unlike France where excellent picnic areas are regularly provided. This one was basic and did not even have a table and chairs to sit at or shade for your vehicle.

When we came to the ticket payment booths at the end of the autoroutes, we drove into a lane with about 3 cars and a truck in front of us. It barely moved and people behind us were getting impatient and blowing their horns like Spaniards. Then, suddenly, the truck drove straight through without stopping (we presume it had a pass of some sort), bells rang and two barriers came down- one in front of us and one in front the first car in the queue. We sat puzzled. Were they changing personnel in the booth? Were they going to chase the truck? The two cars in front of us paid and moved off while we stayed firmly behind the second barrier. After a minute or so some young men in the lane next door began gesturing to us and we looked up to see that the green open light had been changed to red, closed. The barrier meant they just closed the lane we were in without warning or redirecting traffic! We had to reverse into oncoming traffic, a kind person let us then get into the next, open lane before them and we proceeded slowly to the payment booth only to find that just before we got there, they reopened the lane we had been in! Grrrr!

The scenery, although flat except for hills to the west, was interesting at first as we drove from Ravenna to Bologna. The area was largely agricultural and very varied. We saw our first fields of sunflowers in full bloom – very nice. There were vines, onions in flower, corn now nearly at maturity height, vegetables and lots of semi-espaliered fruit trees of many types. However, from Bolonga to Verona there were only corn and hay fields and many of the large farm buildings were in very poor shape indeed. After Verona, vines reappeared to green the landscape and a yellow contrast was provided by some occasional wheat fields ready to, or just, harvested.

Unfortunately, the whole route was characterised by heavy pollution – no wonder – all those trucks and cars on the autoroutes. We were looking forward to Lake Garda. However, first you have to negotiate the busy end of the lake. We isolated a couple of spots where the camping grounds were close to the lake but a few kilometres off the main road around the lake. The first site was chosen because it was one of very few offering 6amps. Most sites here only offer 3 - unbelievable! However, when we got here it was in a hot hollow with poor access to the lake. By this stage, there wasn’t a breath of cool air and the tree cover did not look adequate for shade. So we retraced our steps to look at a couple of sites on a promontory into the lake. The Lake Belverdere site looked great as it was terraced so that many sites had views of the lake but they were not interested in people wanting to stay one night and informed us, and some NZ tenters before us, they were full unless we wanted to stay 7 nights! This is an interesting definition of ‘full’.

They directed David to the next site. It does not have water views although relatively easy access to the lake. However, it had good shade and a slight breeze. We compromised on the electricity and will boil our water on the gas stove tonight. Hopefully, we will get some better photos of the lake in the morning as most of the western shore, visible from here, was obscured by cloud and the approaching storm. Then, we will go north. Unless you want a waterside camping holiday, this is only an overnight stop.

Before the storm arrived, we did go down to the ‘beach’. It is about 2 metres wide and composed of gravel. Three ducks were swimming on the smooth surface of the water. Swimmers venturing into the water had great difficulty retaining their balance on the stony bottom and came out quickly. We suspect the water is deep and very cold. You are kilometres from shops, you can’t surf and unless you go boating (boat ramps are from 1 – 10km away from these camping sites along the lake) and can catch fish in the lake, it doesn’t appeal much as a holiday spot. There are swimming pools in this camping ground but, guess what, we are back to the compulsory bathing caps we thought we had left behind! And siesta here is from 1-3pm! Two whole hours when not only is noise “forbidden” as in Ravenna, but “absolute silence must be observed”! It is no wonder there are so many German tourists here; they appear to love obeying definite rules! (We have seen only 3 Dutch vehicles in all our travels today and no French; the French seem very much to prefer France!)

Interestingly, in Europe, helmets for bike riders seem optional. Typical, bathing caps for pools but who cares about head injuries? In fact, I have been meaning to comment in this blog on bicycle riders for some time. In Germany, the Dutch and Germans are great riders. The ones we saw were mostly our age and don’t bother with helmets as they gently meander along the flat tourist roads. In France and Italy, however, bicycle riding is a serious business and sport. Most have the latest gear, and helmets are worn by road riders who ride over the steepest, windiest and narrow roads they can find. We have christened them, “Crunchy Nuts”. Driving these roads is made more difficult by these lycra-clad nuts. They go down hill at amazing speeds and weave from the edges to the middle of roads to protect their path. Children, students and old people using bikes (and some motor scooters) to just get about town, on the other hand, usually wear absolutely no head protection at all, despite weaving in and out of traffic and roundabouts!

The storm has cleared and cooled the air, which is great, as it is pasta tonight. Recently, it has been too hot for anything else but pan-fried meat & salad. And, I have had a lovely hot shower. It is nice to have bitumen roads and gravel pitches here after Ravenna. Your feet don’t always feel filthy. Admittedly, the showers have timer buttons and there are only two hooks and a soap tray in the cubicles, nothing else, but the timer gives you a bit of a warning and if the water is hot, and you go to the showers with the absolute minimum of stuff, then you get used to it. Just give me a good, reliable hot shower without tokens!

Oops!! David got the dodgy shower timer!

Thursday 23^rd June

Yesterday we took the 60 bus route into Ravenna (pronounced here as Rav-en-na, not Rav-een–na) and got off at the station but today we though the 70 roundabout route would get us further across town and therefore less walking to the sites we wanted to see. This route goes down the coast along the beaches and our view, that the south was the up-market area of the coast, proved correct. There were a lot more shops and a lot more activity there. Then the bus goes into town via farmland, which is a lot more attractive than the shorter 60 route, which enters Ravenna via the industrial area.

Our first stop was the latest and greatest archaeological discovery of the 20^thC in Ravenna – the House of the Stone Mosaics. While excavating near a church for a new development, a house of a seriously high official was discovered. It now is under the new building and you go down stairs to view the mosaics. They are what I would call traditional Roman style in comparison to those of the Ravenna churches. Nevertheless, they are impressive and will be truly amazing if ever they can complete the excavation under surrounding buildings as not all has yet been revealed. We watched a video while waiting for the site to open but it was in Italian although the computer graphics were good. Nevertheless, it was still hard to relate the actual remains to the video and we hired an audio guide in English which was helpful; but still not completely solving the puzzle. Most of the floors are geometric mosaics but there are some larger patterns in in-laid marble floors and a couple of scenes. One scene is labelled the Good Shepherd but probably isn’t Christ; more likely, it is the owner of the house showing how compassionate he is! The other and more interesting mosaic was of the four seasons as figures dancing in a circle while a musician plays the pan flute. It is very rare to have such a lively scene in mosaics, apparently. It is situated in a very large room probably used for banquets and the most honoured guest got to see the floor the right way round!

Then we were off to the Basilica di San Vitale, which like many of the early buildings of Ravenna is now several feet below ground level these days due to sinkage, like Pisa’s Leaning Tower. The Basilica itself is nothing of great interest inside (there are wall and ceiling paintings that were not particularly attractive colour-wise) except for the apse. It is covered with glorious mosaics in which beautiful greens and teal colours dominate. It was these I found the most beautiful of all those we have seen here. The walls portray Biblical scenes and the arches geometric patterns and the apostles, basically. Two opposite panels represent the Emperor Theodoric and his wife Theodora, who apparently never came to Ravenna but the very rich silversmith who donated the money for the building of the basilica, probably wanted to earn credit with the Emperor, nevertheless. Here, with the Empress and her attendants, the detail on the mosaics of their patterned robes was stunning. The closest to it would be the 3 Wise Men in yesterday’s church. The columns are Byzantine with lovely carved capitals. The mosaicists were so good that they were able to show quite different facial features, an art which seems to be lacking in the early painters of the Sienese school six centuries later.

Outside, the Basilica is basically brick Romanesque with rounded chapels, arched buttresses and a rounded campanile. Behind it is another small brick building but, unlike yesterday’s baptisteries, this is a mausoleum, which had some attractive dark blue and gold patterned ceilings. Unfortunately, a curtain was hung across the doorway to reduce the light and the windows had been replaced with panes of onyx cut thinly so it was too dark to take any photos on the whole. The one advantage of the darkness was that, surprisingly, it made the tiny gold mosaic piece glitter creating a starry night sky effect.

There are many depictions of animals in the mosaics, but we are particularly amused by the sheep. Either they had a great deal of trouble with sheep or sheep breeding has changed the look of this animal drastically since the 5^th & 6thC. All have uncut, long tails, which is fair enough, but often they look like deer or horses. It is mainly the feet that show them as sheep.

During our travels today, we came across the “main” shopping street of Ravenna, the Via Cavour, which runs towards the centre of the city from the Porta Adriana. While more attractive than we have seen elsewhere in the city, the shops are very small and were mostly clothing shops with a couple of shoe shops. We didn’t bother looking at them except for one window which had some very ‘blingy’ shoes!

So, overall, our view of Ravenna has not improved much today and the souvenirs here are ludicrously expensive. A mouse pad with a print of one of the bird mosaics is priced at 20.50E! Over $A30 for a mouse pad! They have little kits of cheap mosaic pieces you can make up yourself. They start at 29E ($A45) for one postcard size. Unfortunately, the postcards do not show the mosaics off to their best advantage but we have two books with large pictures in them. The English in the main book is appalling and verbose. It also contains specialist architectural terms without explanation so it takes a great deal of reading and comparing the text with the mosaic in front of you to work out what on earth is being referred to. However, it was the best for pictures and there isn’t a lot of choice.

Then it was off to find the bus stop. We couldn’t because of one-way streets and just missed the one we wanted. So off we plodded back to the station on the other side of town where we knew where to get the 60 bus. It took us about 20 minutes walking but we were able to walk in the shadow of the buildings to keep out of the heat and had a seat to sit on in the shade until the bus came.

After lunch, and, of course, the compulsory rest, we took off for another swim in the Adriatic, this time with lettuce green soft seaweed, and a walk toward the south end of the beach. There were fewer people today and most of the umbrellas and sun lounges were unoccupied.

Tomorrow we head north for the Italian lakes district and Lake Garda. We are looking forward to cooler weather, as the nights have been very hot inside our van even with all the windows and vents open. The fly screens, so necessary with the mozzies, do cut out some of the breeze.

Here, the tourist population is basically Italian and German, which is a change form Tuscany, where, for the first time, Americans seemed to predominate. Today we saw a very small group of Asians but they have been very few and far between during our trip. I wonder what they make of all the Biblical scenes and characters. It must seem weird and alien to them. There are a few Brits about but not as many as in France. We’ve been told they think it is too far to come! As for Australians, we are a rare breed here indeed.

Another “Baby Dance” is on again tonight. Last night, it lasted for about 1½ hours but we were kept awake to at least midnight by loud music from elsewhere with a bongo drum beat. Fancy keeping young children up to nearly 11am! No wonder they need their compulsory afternoon sleep.

Wednesday 22^nd June

While I did a load of washing, David took the van in to get its replacement window and was back in less than 2 hours. They even put some screws in the loose wheel guard so we are all set up to go again.

But first, we had to swim in the Adriatic. It wasn’t as warm as yesterday afternoon nor is the water as crystal clear as Honolulu but at least there are no rocks to scrape your toes and knees on here. The water does not get much deeper than in Honolulu but we had an enjoyable half hour swim. We did not stay longer as we have no sun screen and there seems little point in buying any for the few times we wish to swim. The sand, a dirty, grey-yellow was very hot, however. It was cooler to walk on the concrete footpath passed the shop and volleyball courts and out onto the beach. At least, I didn’t look as out of place here as in Honolulu. There were at least half a dozen women in one-piece swimsuits although there were probably more grandmas in bikinis, looking very unattractive!

The lifeguards here are interesting. There are several stationed on high lookouts along the beach and I suspect that they correspond with the companies that have the rights to the beach sales there. However, this morning, they were all out on the water (it was calmer this morning than yesterday afternoon) on their red, flat-bottomed boats. Each guard has two oars and manoeuvres the boat slowly in the calm conditions. Goodness knows how long it would take them to get to a drowning person and if they could keep it upright in chopping water. There are no outboard motors or rubber duckies here. But then, there are no real waves either! They seemed like they would rather be gondoliers in Venice!

After lunch and a short rest, we took the bus into Ravenna. It was a much better ride than Siena as there are 27 seats on the bus and it is air-conditioned. It was also a smooth, flat drive so we didn’t mind the cost being double.

However, we were amazed and shocked at the cost of posting 4 postcards. We went to a major post office and the woman weighed the postcards individually! We have never heard of such a thing. Here, at the camping ground, the man looked up the Internet and said it would cost 1E a card (he did not have 1E stamps) but we were charged 2E each. That’s A$3 to post a postcard that cost 40- 50c! Unbelievable! The moral of the story is don’t send postcards from Italy! A letter in an envelope and also containing a postcard cost the same! I think, the lady got it wrong somehow but it is hard to argue when the lady doesn’t speak English and you don’t speak Italian. By the way, they had an RTA system in operation where you have to take a ticket and await your turn. We were able to work out which of the three buttons to push but, it is amazing, that you wait for ages at post offices; it does not seem to change no matter what country you are in!

Ravenna is known for its mosaics from the 5th & 6^Th centuries. You can get a combined ticket that last for 7 days that lets you into 5 of the major sites. We got a further discount by showing a coupon from the camping ground. So, instead of trying to do it all in one day, and seeing we are ahead of schedule, we decided to do a few today and the rest tomorrow. We went into a church and two baptisteries. The church and one of the baptisteries had started as Arian buildings. Now, the Arians did not believe in the divinity of Jesus but in a Unitarian God. When the Catholic Church took over the buildings, they eradicated some features of the mosaics and further, poor quality restoration was done in the 1850s. One Pope had the mosaics in the church darkened with black as he thought the shinning gold glass tiles of the mosaics distracted people at worship! Such vandalism!

The church mosaics come in three levels down both sides of the church and are like picture books of Christianity for the people of the day. They cover the life of Christ, Bible stories and the early saints of the church. Unfortunately, when they were repaired, marble / ceramic tiles were used instead of glass and this is obvious as they lack the light of the glass tiles. While I am not into mosaics as an art form, you can’t help but admire the hours of work and the subtlety obtained despite the restrictions of the medium.

The two baptisteries both were very similar in their domed ceilings. In each there is the baptism of Jesus by John however, the Arian one has lost its plastered walls and so its wall paintings. Nevertheless, it is the only example of their religious workmanship apparently. One has to wonder how the artisans knew where they placed those tiny tiles on a domed ceiling in such a way as to look so correct from the ground below.

What is similar in all three buildings is that they are made of bricks, not stone and of course, they have rounded arches since they pre-date the gothic period by some centuries. During our walk around we saw several round campaniles of brick with rounded arches although the other churches lack star rating.

As we walked around the streets, we were very disappointed in Ravenna as a city. It is bland and uninspiring. When we first arrived in the city, we expected it to be rather dead as it was siesta time. But even after 4pm, there was nothing much happening. While we saw several attractive buildings, including some mansions with 15thC plaques on them, it did not seem that there was any centre or heart to the place. Most shops either were closed or appeared so as few seemed interested in really attracting business, from our perspective. We did note a Clarks shoe shop in one narrow street of the old part of town, however. Shop assistants and ticket sellers seemed bored to death by their jobs and doing the absolute minimum. The cheeriest person we spoke to all afternoon was the bus driver on the way in when we said “Bonjorno”, as we got on, and “Grazie”, as we got off at the station. It was even hard to find a shop selling decent ice cream or gelato and we were the only ones eating it when we did settle for a poor version of a Magnum. While it was much cleaner and better presented than Reims, in France, we are not enamoured with what we have seen so far. Tomorrow we go back and do the mosaics in the other half of the town. Then, hopefully, we will finish off our extended stay here with another swim.

Our campsite here is occupied by a small, neurotic black bird with a yellow beak. It stands still for a second and then darts off in a frantic fashion in an unpredictable direction for a second or to, then stops still for another second and then crazily darts off again. David says it needs a shrink to which I replied that it was already small enough! See what 7 weeks of one’s spouse’s company does to you!

Two Italian words have had us amused as well. The first we struck at Rappallo where we were informed that “Civilised people leave the sinks clean.” Here they use the same phraseology in English for the WCs. According to our Italian dictionary the Italian ‘civile’ means ‘courteous’ and that would make a lot more sense than ‘civilised’. The second word is applied to sluggish tiny streams hard to see below bridges. They are called ‘torrente’! I hope this means that when the snow melts, their flow increases dramatically or is it a form of sarcasm?

Ravenna is virtually on the coast and yet, as we drove in, we noticed warning signs for falling snow and snow ploughs clearing the roads which must be in winter as it is over 29 degrees here at present and summer is still not here. For the locals, that is a dramatic range of climatic conditions.

Light is fading and soon another “Baby dance” will begin. This time we are invited to meet “Grandfather” so we guess it is a dance for babies after all. However, what children want to be labelled ‘babies’ these days? Is Grandfather a summer Santa Claus? Christmas in June? We are not tempted to find out even by free WiFi at the venue.

Tuesday 21^st June

Well, our expensive site was actually cheaper than we expected as it belongs to a chain that gives 10% discount. We had a voucher but didn’t use it, as David didn’t think this site belonged to the chain, but they gave us a discount anyway as well as another voucher.

Our three routes out of Troghi were discussed and the route decided upon last night. We planned to follow the Google Map directions to avoid the underpasses on the most direct route but somehow missed two turn offs and ended up at an underpass. Although its height was not given, David was able to drive under it easily with me checking as he crawled the van through. So this route turned out OK.

The route, which the receptionist had wanted us to take, was the motorway to Florence (North West), the motorway to Bologna (North) and the motor way southeast and then the motorway back into Ravenna (north). All we wanted was to head northeast. However, David soon began to see the wisdom of her roundabout route. The roads the SS69 and then the SS67 are shown as red on our maps and therefore supposedly good roads. They weren’t. Beside the poor condition of many sections, the road climbed up the mountain range to 907m asl, through small villages, narrow streets and many hairpin bends. Then through another pass with similar roads, but more on the flat, until we emerged on the eastern side of the mountains and flat plains. His plan was to get to the Fiat dealer before it closed for lunch but the road was so tortuous that it took much longer than the 150 or so kilometres should have. Again the scenery fitted the scenic description of trees with no view or views with no stopping places so I did not even take one photo out of the van window as we drove along.

Accessing Ravenna was relatively easy with only one hiccup but when we got to the Fiat dealer, David was redirected to another business, which at 12:40PM was, naturally, closed. We drove on to the camping ground about 10 minutes out of Ravenna on the beach. We saw one sign pointing to it in Ravenna and then not a thing. Eventually, we returned around, yet again, and took another road with a signpost that said “Mare camping”. (Beach camping) and found Il Piombiomi where we could use our 10% discount voucher.

This site is just 80m from the beach. You cross the road, then the sand and you are at the Adriatic Sea! The sites are shaded by old, large pines but this means the ground is very dry dirt and dead pine needles and the sea breeze hardly reaches the few metres inland. A water tanker goes up and down the main street every lunchtime to try and settle the dust. It is painted with the sign “Gin & Tonic”! While the largely open-air facilities are fine, as it has a beach atmosphere, the mozzies have forced us indoors too early. There are a lot of caravans set up here but most seem semi-permanent and unoccupied. (There are nearly 600 sites in this one park.) We had been afraid that we would not get a site here right near the beach but we have been told we can extend our stay without difficulty. Perhaps the Credit Crunch has reduced business.

One thing particularly annoys us here. The whole camping ground is expected to rest between 2 and 3:30pm like we are in kindergarten. No cars can go in and out, no tents or annexes can be erected and no music played. Yet, they allow the children to play in the playground and there was a ping pong competition run during that time today! People sweep their annex floors free of the dirt, do their washing and go to the beach on foot. The rules say all motorbikes have to be pushed by hand out of the campground, although you can ride a bicycle, of course. By 2:30pm, however, the place is like a tomb as everybody does as they are told. Not something that goes down well with anti-authority Australians. We shall have to make sure we are not here at that time again.

We may stay three nights, as we are a little ahead of schedule, and the beach appeals to us. We had a walk along it this afternoon. The water is amazingly warm compared to that off the east coast of Australia and we happily waded our way up and down the beach for about half an hour. There is another aspect which separates Marina di Ravenna from Australian beaches. It is excessively littered with colourful beach umbrellas and sun lounges, by the thousands, all along its many kilometres. At the southern end near Lido di Dante & Lido di Classe, there are large high-rise blocks so we guess this is the upper crust end of the beach. Here there are two large caravan parks and mostly family groups. Many grandparents seem to be with their grandchildren too.

The beach is divided into business areas. Each business has sole control of one area of the beach. They provide a shop, games courts, the umbrellas and sun lounges all of which cost. Our company near here has 10 beach volleyball courts alone! They are situated in front of the shop but behind the umbrellas. Some caravan groups here take their own chairs to the beach on little trolleys to save money so the beach just over the road from us is not quite so littered. Each business has separate colours for its umbrellas and their covers. So when the umbrella covers go from white to blue to yellow to orange etc, you know you are dealing with different businesses. While very colourful, it made us yearn for the deserted beaches of the Australian coastline and the simplicity of sitting on the sand on your beach towel!

There are of course too many young people tanning themselves to death and a good number of women wearing bikinis when they definitely should not, although it is not as bad here as in Hawaii. Although smoking here does not seem as prevalent as in Germany and France, where it is horrendously and disturbingly common, all these countries could do with a Grim Reaper campaign or such like.

Ravenna has turned out, so far, to be a good for repairing the damage to the van. The company the Fiat dealer referred us to was most helpful. Although one man there, who spoke English, would not do the side mirror replacement, he rang a guy who would and explained it all in Italian and gave us a hand-drawn map to the place just around the corner. All three places were within spitting distance and virtually along the main road from the camping ground into Ravenna – all very convenient.  Surprisingly, they offered to replace the mirror tomorrow morning at 9am and that it should only take 1 hour. If this turns out to be correct, then it has been a relatively pain free experience. David was so relieved, he didn’t ask the cost but we have an idea from Susanne at McRent what the cost would be in Germany. As it is a Fiat (Italian) car, we hope it will be less here; still, it is covered by insurance.

PS: This camping ground has a “Baby Dance” at 9pm tonight and we are “all invited”! (Announcements are made over a loud speaker in 4 languages – thankfully rarely.) Is that a small dance or a dance for babies? Perhaps that is why everyone has to have a sleep in the afternoon!

Monday 20^th June

Today was not a good day.

To start with David had dreadful hayfever yesterday and had to take some strong tablets. He was loathed to get up in the morning and slept in. By the time we had restocked our empty fridge at the Chiusi supermarket, it was nearing 11:30am.

The towns along the valley floor were most uninspiring with relatively modern dwellings of no architectural merit.

Then we had a minor collision with a tractor and had to spend considerable time sorting it out between 2 people who didn’t speak Italian and 4 people who didn’t speak English. Anyway, with the help of a computer translating programme and several phone calls to McRent, we managed to get all the forms filled out and faxed and were on our way. We will need a new side mirror, possibly in Ravenna, and some body work done by McRent when we return the van, but that, as David reassures me, is the purpose of insurance and we have two lots to help cover the cost.

Our route then took us up into the Chianti Hills weaving back and forth via scenic roads. Except that, to some mapmakers, scenic equals trees either side of the road with no views at all. When the occasion view appeared, there was nowhere to get off the road to stop and appreciate it.

The final section of the road, not listed as scenic, had the best views! Still, there were very few places to stop. David was quite disappointed.

Then, as our plans were ruined by the accident and the lack of things to stop and see, we ended up farther along than we had anticipated and into an area with no camping grounds that we knew of. We were trying to get closer to Ravenna. Just outside Figline Valdarno, we passed a sign pointing back to 7km where we had just come from! There had been no signs in our direction that we could see. This is a perennial problem we are finding here. So we headed south looking for one shown as a tent on our European atlas but nothing appeared and there were no signs. So turning around, we headed north and came across a camping sign, which we decided to follow. These signs never tell you how many kilometres it is to the actual spot and often there are many kilometres between each sign. It is frustrating and confusing. Eventually, we found this site – 15km from Florence! It is a very popular holiday camp with swimming pools and modern facilities and, naturally, expensive – the most expensive so far but better value for money than last night as there is a market here as well as a restaurant if we care to use it. We can, for example, get fresh bread here in the morning and empty our waste tanks. Amusingly, the proprietor informed us with great pride that we had 7amps of power at the site. According to David, it was 6. We did not have the heart to tell him that in Australia you get 15amps and have to have a 15amp extension lead which is checked every year!

Strangely, however, they would not accept the Carnet Camping Card as covering both David & I. So I have had to hand over my NSW drivers licence along with David’s Carnet. This is the first time we have struck this in the whole trip.

Because this place does not exist on any of the three maps we have, we had no idea where we actually are. The young ladies in reception tried to help but Italians are so verbose. It turned into an Italian operetta! So now we have three routes to get us to Ravenna including minute instructions from Google Maps! David is naturally inclined to the most complex but ultimately shorter route!

David is off using the WiFi. It turns out that they use the same company as we had in Siena and we have nearly half our paid for time unused there and it works here! That cuts down the cost a little.

The weather has still been pleasant with sunshine and a breeze so we sit outside for tea most evenings.

I have just read a very sad email from my friend Helen. Her 15-year-old niece has collapsed and died in Queensland. It is so sad and rather puts our little accident into perspective.

Sunday 19^th June

Today, we headed straight for Pienza which markets itself as the “ideal city” since it was redesigned at the command of Pope Pius II in the Renaissance style and renamed in his honour. I guess not every charming little village gets to be hometown for a Pope and be the place where his summer residence was situated. It is designed as a Renaissance, not medieval, town and has some attractive buildings reflecting the architecture of that period. Off the Piazza Pio II are the Pope’s palace and the cathedral.

At first we could not get into the cathedral as mass was being said but later, when we returned, the choir was singing and although it was only a small choir, its voices resonated beautifully throughout the whole building. When they finished singing, the worshippers and tourists clapped. It was a wonderful demonstration of the acoustics of these large churches. The major feature of the cathedral is one of its five altarpieces of the Sienese school with gold lavished on the painting as we had seen in Siena. One in particular was the assumption of Mary two popes and two saints standing by. One of the saints was Saint Catherine of Siena and the other, Saint Agnes who is holding a bowl in her hands with her two breasts in it! Apparently, she was tortured and had her breasts cut off in the process!

The Pope’s palace, The Palazzo Piccolomini (the Pope’s family name), is remarkable because it was one of the first walled town buildings to open itself up to the view. We were able to see the central courtyard with its elegant columns and the doors out to the garden terrace but did not pay to go in. You can see the view in many places along the wall of the town.

In fact, it is this view that should draw all tourists to Pienza. Fabulous views across large areas of the Valley of the Orica were breathtaking. We walked on, out through one of the gates in the wall and were rewarded with a promenade that opened up even more views of the valley. Of course, we almost had it to ourselves as most tourists never leave the main street!

In this town we strongly recommend that, if you can afford it, you buy the house belonging to the Neilsens. It abuts an archway attached to the wall and then part of the upper floors extend over the arch. The views from every room must be astounding and it faces south so that the winter sun would penetrate into the house. You would just have to ignore the tourists that file past your front door, but, that would be a small price to pay for such a dwelling.

We purchased some sheep’s chesse, pesto and bruschella there after tasting a couple of different types of cheese. The medium cheese, matured for 4 months, appealed the most and we had some of it and the bruschella on our bread for lunch which we ate in the van on the side of the road to our next stop, Montepulciano.

However, we first detoured via the Madonna di San Biago church that sits below Montepulciano in a meadow much like the Abbey at Antimo but nowhere near as attractive. First, it lacked the simplicity and then the delicate touch of the detailed carving. Yes, there were carved flowers running on the underside of the arches but they looked as if they were meant to be painted or gilded and this had not been done. Also, being in the shape of a Greek cross, the transepts were each as long as the nave as we do not find this shape as attractive as the cross with the longer nave. Interestingly, however, the bell tower (campanile) was not attached to the church yet almost. You could just walk between it and the church.

To be honest, we rather expected we would not find parking at Montepulciano considering our past luck but we did find a large area set aside for buses and campervans at the far end of the town. However, the price of parking stunned us. You had to pay for a minimum of 8 hours, which amounted to 6E. (You could park here for 24 hours for 10E but we would rather a camping ground.) Fortunately, we had free parking at Pienza. An Asian lass approached our van as we arrived at Pienza and asked if we spoke English. When we said we did, she offered us her parking ticket. She had paid for up to four hours but was leaving with 2 and a half hours still available. (Pienza also has a silly system where you could pay for 1 hour or 4 hours but not anything in between.) So we figured that our parking for the day would amount to only 6E so this was reasonable and we set off to explore Montepulciano.

Now, if you want a challenge, then visit this spot. The town is like a long, thin lizard and we entered it at its tail. It was uphill all the way to the Piazza Grande, which is like the head of the lizard. It was a hard slog and not in the least enjoyable. For one thing, the town did not appeal. The Renaissance style buildings of dirty grey stone seem heavy and the brick paving littered with pigeon feathers and poo! The Cathedral, in the Piazza Grande, was unfinished. Its front wall had never been clad in marble as planned so it was this unattractive, flat, rough brick front. Inside, the cathedral was dark, boring and grey with plain rounded arches. I guess this is what made the elaborate, 3-part, gold Sienese altarpiece stunning. Again it was of Mary, her assumption, Annunciation and Coronation. Where the Roman Catholics got such ideas from is anyone’s guess; they are not in the Bible. It would be interesting to find out when this tale of Mary’s assumption started to circulate.

From this town, the views over the Tuscan scenery were also more limited and less attractive and we treated ourselves to gelato as we neared the end of our steep downhill walk back to the car. Iwe figured we had earnt it. I stuck with panacotta while David, naturally, chose 2 flavours: a very dark chocolate called Nero and pistachio. David was a bit disappointed with this chocolate and the one he had on our second day in Siena. The chocolate one from the first day in Siena was a far better one. But, I guess, he’ll keep trying them!

We had a bit of a trip to our campsite. First we had to find the way out of Montepulciano, which was a little tricky because of the signposting and no directions on our limited town map. Then, we had to make our way through Chianciano Therme, a spa town, which was rather busy on a Sunday afternoon. This town has a lot of modern high-rise on its outskirts, near to the baths, which did not appeal to us. As we made our way to Chiusi, we were looking for signs of where to turn off for the camping ground on the Via Lago di Chiusi. Firstly, we found a signpost to the lake but turned down the first of two close streets when we should have taken the second. We ended up a fair few kilometres out of our way and had to turn back. We always seem to find the correct signs when we double back! Then we took the second turn and went several kilometres before finding any reference to the wanted ground.

It turned out that the camping ground is behind a restaurant but it is a very pleasant looking site. The site is terraced down a hill but, unlike our last site, it is beautifully grassed and under deeper shade from attractive trees. The man told us to find a site and get back to him about 7pm.

Now we know why! The facilities are only 2-star. There is only one shower for men and one for women. David said the men’s were clean but the women’s floor wasn’t and there was a weird smell to the place. Then, there is no timer for the included showers. There doesn’t have to be. The water comes from a small instant heater so when you have had a short shower, the hot water runs out. Only 5amps of power is available when David prefers 10. There is no WiFi, chemical toilet disposal point or wastewater dump spot available. What they do have is hand held hoses with longish rubber hoses in lieu of bidets. They are attached to the walls of each toilet cubicle but when they leak, like they did at the last spot too, your feet are surrounded by water. You are in the middle of nowhere here; you are not even on the lake, which you can see briefly through the trees. There are only 3 tents, a caravan and us and yet this is the dearest site we have stayed at! The facilities are among the poorest, there is no pool or shop and there are large mozzies near sunset. We cannot account for the price. Unfortunately, there are few other sites around and it was too late when we found out to look for anywhere else. This is not a major tourist area although you are not far from Chianciano Therme, I guess. Maybe it is a sign of things to come now that summer is approaching.

On a brighter note, we are seeing sunflowers grown in field after field. They are just beginning to come into flower so we have not seen the best effect; they will be stunning in a few week’s time. Houses in the valley continue the tradition of geraniums in pots but in Italy they are very fond of petunias too, particularly deep pink. Star jasmine is very popular over trellises and arching over doorways. Gardens and roadsides have plenty of oleanders.

Saturday 18^th June

Our route today was to take us out of Casciano di Murlo to the west and link up with the E78 that runs form Siena to Grossetto except that we took a turn left too early and ended up faced with a narrow gap between two houses in the tiny village of Poggie Brucoli. I pulled the plug on going any further! I asked an Italian gentleman who redirected us back to Casciano di Murlo and the next exit via Fontazzi. The trouble with the three maps we have is that the first shows very little detail, as the scale is too small. The second, a photocopy, has lots of tiny villages marked but the signs never show them, just lots of other tiny villages and roads we don’t have on our map! The third one seems better until you realise that too many minor roads are missing. French roads we found inconsistent in their numbering but you got used to that. Here, we are often forced to double back and then we find the road signs missed on our way through the first time! The opposite direction always seems easier!

From Casciano di Murlo you actually enter the next valley, the Merse, and the scenery is very green and enticing. The fields turned out to be rice paddies so there is a lot more water here than in the Crete to the east. Getting onto the road south however, proved an exercise in patience. The traffic running south from Siena on a Saturday was what the Adairs had warned us of when we met them in France. We were in heavy traffic over high bridges, through tunnels and over bypasses around the new road sections under construction until we turned off at Paganico and headed east.

We saw the abbey we were looking for easily. It sits in mown fields at the base of the town Castelnuovo dell’Abbate but getting to it was another one of those road sign moments. We turned down where we though the sign was pointed and ended up on a narrowing dirt track! So, we turned about and, on the way back, found the right road by following the line back from the abbey car park to where it met the road we had entered on. What had happened was that we had seen a brown sign that we thought was the abbey but was referring to a back road to another historical site. You come across these unknown intersections (often they are not on our maps) so quickly and are faced with many signs and have to make a split second decision on which is the one you want. Occasionally, you make the wrong choice.

The abbey is a delightful stone structure about 3 levels high. Its simplicity is the first thing that grabs your attention especially after the cathedrals and basilicas of the cities. It is a fine example of a Romanesque Cistercian church - the Cistercians being an order of Catholic monks. (Romanesque churches have rounded arches, not the pointed ones of Gothic churches). The original church of the 8^thC is incorporated into the church but this is more evident from the outside rather than form within. What caught our eyes is rarely what a church is famous for but in this case, we did admire the varied, heavily carved alabaster capitals to the simple columns of the three-aisled church. The most famous one depicts Daniel in the lion’s den but some of the Greek inspired shapes were simple and simply beautiful. They have a simple painted wood Madonna and child statute here too. Jesus looks rather strange in a monk’s habit and holding a ball in his hand but at least it wasn’t in the most prominent place in the church which was reserved for a typically Roman Catholic crucifix. The abbey grew rich and famous up to the 14thC when it was a place for pilgrims on the pilgrimage route to Rome but declined after that and is now in the hands of the Augustinians.

Outside the abbey, there was a lovely view over the abbey garden to the town set on the hill above it. Here was some lovely lavender and I realised that this was probably the first lavender we have come across. Provence tourist shops abound in lavender products and postcards showing Provencal scenery full of lavender fields but in all our travels through Provence we did not see one lavender plant that we can recall, let alone fields of it.

In front of the abbey was a very old olive tree and as we travelled to Monte Amiata we noticed that here everything seems to grow well, apparently, as olive groves and wineries abound with some large processing works. It is the combination of the rolling hills and wooded areas contrasting with the orderly rows of the olives and vines as well as the lines of regularly planted slender conifers that is so pleasing to the eye.

From Monte Amiata, we headed north in our circular route but without stopping at Castiglione D’Orcia, which does not rate well despite being another hamlet with medieval buildings. However, we did stop at San Quirico d’Orcia where the Collegiate church rated 2 stars. It was getting rather warm and the cool breeze we had enjoyed in the morning was now rather hot. But we found suitable parking next to the closed school and walked the short distance uphill. Immediately, we were aware of the flags blowing briskly in the wind. They seemed to be down every street. We entered via the gateway and found our first church, Saint Maria Assunta. It was a simple church and not particularly interesting except for a heavily carved, medieval-looking, stone lectern covered in the figures of saints with their halos and with one standing on the wings of an eagle.

As we walked along the street, past a mixture of food, souvenir and normal-type shops (one sold mattresses and beds!) I stopped to ask a shopkeeper what the significance of the flags was. She raced back inside her little shop and emerged with a thick tourist brochure – in English and Italian - and opened it at a page, which outlined the Festival of Barbarossa. (This proved to be fortunate as, guess what, the Tourist Information Office was closed until 3pm!) In June 1155, Barbarossa was due to be made Emperor but the Pope was not too keen on him. They met at this small village and an agreement was reached. In early June each year, “ambassadors” from the Church and the Emperor meet outside a church and then the four communities of the village in medieval dress compete in flag throwing and archery competitions apparently in honour of the “Emperor”. The coloured flags, like those of Siena’s contrada, are for the four sectors of the town. One flag is black and white, another red and white, a third is blue and white while the last is green and white. The green and white and blue and white areas are outside the walls. We did not investigate these 2 areas but had a good walk around the rest of this small village.

There are two other churches of which the collegiate church is the most interesting. It has three beautiful doorways decorated with bas-reliefs and Romanesque sculptures. The columns either side of the front door were the most interesting as they were of darker brown stone and consisted of two very thin ropes of rock that were sculptured as if laced together in the middle. Two brown stone monsters overlaid the main door.

(Interestingly, small Italian churches seem to emphasize that they are places of worship and often forbid photography. This seems quite a contrast to France where churches seem more tourist attractions.)

Then, we wandered down a street of medieval houses decorated not only with flags but large potted shrubs and flowering star jasmine until we reached the only remaining medieval gate left in the village. It was built in 1472, which makes it a contemporary of Christopher Columbus, if my memory serves me correctly. The Porta Cappuccini is a polygonal tower with a set of stone steps up one side attached to the city wall. Now, naturally, it is a holiday rental! Most of Tuscany seems to be up for rental, sale or occupancy but in a most attractive way. (Nearly every large farm complex is a farm stay, plus there are B&Bs and hotels.) Like Murlo, every dwelling in this town had a simple blue and white ceramic house number but here the village seemed more real. It seems like a community in which I could live although I am not sure why one would come all the way to Europe to shoehorn oneself into part of a narrow dark stone building but, at least, this village does not depress.

This town had one other unique feature that appealed to us. It has parks and small gardens! The main one is the Horti Leonini. It consists of an Italianate garden created in 1580. From the entrance gate, there is an avenue of green lawn, with a white statue in the centre, surrounded by geometric box hedges. To the left, against the city wall, a row of mature trees runs the full length of a wide, level walkway. To the right a wide, uneven path leads up the hill passed a remnant of medieval wood and a large brick well. There are paths through the wood providing a cool retreat from the hot sun. At the top of the hill is a flat area of lawn on which the archery competition is held. There are also the remains of a tower partially destroyed in WWII and the city walls. A large part of these walls and 14 small towers remain today. We walked down from the archery field, through the wood, to a rose and hedge courtyard which brought us out by the first church we had entered. The town is known for its collegiate church but we shall remember it for its flags, gardens and community spirit.

We were now back in Crete-type landscape with dried yellow fields and headed for the town of Montalcino, which we passed through earlier in the day. This would complete the little circular route we had planned. When we reached it, it was obvious that campervanners are not welcome. The old town rates 1 star and looks interesting but there are not enough car parks. The first one is a hike up hill to the town and David doubted we could get a place easily. The area set especially aside for motorhomes was 1.2km passed the town uphill all the way. In the heat of the afternoon and at the end of the day, we were not prepared to hike down hill to reach the entry gate, walk around the town and then face the uphill battle back to the van. We opted to go back to Casciano di Murlo and eat an ice cream in the shade but were still a little disappointed. A least the wind is cooler up here although it seems a bit like a gale and we can’t have all our van windows open.

We had seen and travelled through some beautiful countryside with magnificent views from mountains and ridges back into Tuscan valleys. We had enjoyed an abbey and a medieval town with still more to come tomorrow. One can’t see everything and one must not exhaust oneself by being greedy.

Since we were running short of food and unsure where we would be on Sunday night, we opted to eat in the camping ground restaurant. Now we did not expect much as that was pretty well what we got. For 9E you get a large plate-sized pizza with a rather bland tomato sauce and a paper thin crust (you can’t hold up a piece in your fingers and eat it) and very little topping. The house wine tasted as if it had been watered down and the waitress, an African woman, was rather surly still, it fulfilled the purpose. Food in Italy is not as good as France. Basically, you get pizza or pasta with salad or antipasto with fatty meats like salami. For main courses, there is veal or seafood mostly but meat is expensive so most people opt for the cheaper meals. Our 125ml of wine cost about 1.50E but good wine, like a Brunello, costs from 20E to 100E a bottle! Seven fifty Euros will get you a nice bottle of white, which is much dearer than France at about 5E or less.