Saturday and we pay the local Greve market a visit to stock up on summer linen clothes, essential for this kind of heat and spend the afternoon relaxing and packing for our trip.
Sunday and we leave nice and early for our 2 1/2 hour drive towards Grosetto. The traffic is ok, but the heat (38°C) is unbearable, especially in our old air condition-less Nissan Sunny! The idea is to spend some time at the beach before checking in to our Agriturismo...
Cala Violina
Annette has been told about this very special 'secret beach' called Cala Violina. (Violin Cove) So called because of the fine white powdery sand that squeaks like a violin under your feet...
We drive round for a while trying to find it and after asking a few locals we spot a hand written sign and proceed down a tiny, dusty lane. Eventually we come to a sign that says 'Car park full'... but after living in Italy for nearly two years one thing I've learned is to ignore all instructions and see what happens! So we drive up to the car park entrance and lo and behold, plenty of spaces. We pay the 2 euro entry and follow the other people, presumably heading for the beach? After a half hour trek through some wonderful Mediterranean scrub and pine woods we arrive at what can only be described as Paradise! A secluded bay of the whitest sand and crystal clear turquoise and emerald sea... WOW
We spend about four or five hours sunbathing and swimming... Heaven!
Our agriturismo is about 20 miles away in Albarese. We arrive at about 6.30 pm and meet our hosts Assunta and her husband. They are very friendly and have a great farmhouse. We unpack and shower and after a small nap head out to look for somewhere to eat... We agree on a buzzy little restaurant, Carpe Diem. Seafood is the order of the day for this holiday, Annette has a seafood pasta dish, I have a seafood antipasti and we share a swordfish main course, all washed down with a nice crisp white wine from Pitigliano.
Upon returning to our farmhouse we discover that we have both turned a lobster red from our earlier stint at the beach... obviously not enough suncream!
Argentario
A very pleasant 2-hour breakfast on the lawn and we browse our map. We are still a little sore after yesterday's suncream-less activities so decide some exploring is in order... Today's destination is Monte Argentario, a small promontary at the most south-westerly tip of Tuscany that was once an island, but has been joined to the mainland by two 'tomboli' or stetches of land,Gianella and Feniglia.
We leave at 12ish and drive through the Parco Ucellina and field upon field of sunflowers... it's our first real sight of sunflowers as last year we were back in England at this time and so missed out on this glorious sight only really available here in the Maremma.
We drive clockwise around Argentario from Gianella toward the capital Porto Santo Stefano. The coastline is high and rugged, somewhat reminiscent of Liguria or the Amalfi coast. We take the 'strada panoramica' and drive as far as possible before the main tarmacced road stops and the there is only a dirt track leading to Cala Grande, Cala Moresca and Cala Piccola. I think the best way to explore these coves would be by boat!
On the road back we spot this little gem of a restaurant with a gorgeous view of the bay, so we stop for lunch... A very long and lazy two hours is spent munching on lobster linguine, salad, washed down with a cool crisp white wine, gazing out to the endless horizon... does it get any better than this?
http://www.ristoranteilbottegone.it/terrazza-panoramica-argentario.asp
http://www.tripadvisor.it/Restaurant_Review-g194778-d1645559-Reviews-Ristorante_Il_Bottegone-Grosseto_Province_of_Grosseto_Tuscany.html
After we manage to tear ourselves away we drive round to Porto Ercole on the other side of the 'island'
and we spot a little cafe with another spectacular view and so stop for some drinks and a read while gawping at the amazing view, turquoise/emerald sea, tiny coves of powder white sand, small islands and boats dotted in the bay.
Unfortunately it's getting late, so we head back to the farmhouse, shower, change and after looking for somewhere diferent to eat, end up back at 'Carpe Diem'. Tonight it's seafood pizza and a special tortellini with gorgonzola, walnuts, peppers and cream.
Pittigliano
Day 3 of our short holiday and we pack about as much as is humanly possible into 1 day! Breakfast is at 9.30 am and we pack up and bid our sad farewells to our host Assunta and her lovely home. We decide to take an 'over-land' route home via Pittigliano and Lake Bolsena. The plan is to reach Florence by 10.00 pm for the annual fireworks...Will we make it?
Some wonderful countryside greets us, still part of the Maremma and reach Pittigliano at around 1.30 pm. Pittigliano is an incredible medeival hiil-top town with its origins in the Etruscan age, built out of a type of soft yellowish rock called 'Tufa' rising up like some kind of fortress. The sun is scorchingly hot and we creep round the narrow crumbly alleyways huddled up to the tumbling walls. There are some great views through the buildings and some crafty looking shops which unfortunately are closed for lunch. Oh well if you can't beat 'em... We spot an interesting looking Osteria and decide to partake. We order a plate of cheese and salami, Panzanella salad and two different and very cheap small carafes of wine, a Rosso di Montalcino and local Morellino di Scansano, which together with coffees and 'Arancello' orange liquere comes to less than 6 euro each! Oh and the owner has some signed photos of one of my favourite actresses, Liv Tyler on the wall! What a guy and what a place!
Time is moving and we can’t wait for those cute shops to open, we must head on to lake Bolsena, which is actually just over the border, in Lazio.
We drive round to Capodimonte and then find a nice cool shady spot on one of the many beaches. After all that driving, a chance to Relax and enjoy a very refreshing swim in the cool clear lake... The weather for our four days couldn’t have been better, hot and not a cloud in sight!We take our final stop in San Lorenzo Nuovo for ice cream, then it’s up the Via Cassia, through San Quirico and the Val d’Orcia, past ‘those’ trees, through Siena, arriving in Florence at 9.45 pm! Everyone is on their way to see the fireworks at Piazzale Michelangelo, we’ve just made it in time! Fifty minutes of oohs and aahs bringing our four day break to an ‘explosive’ finale!
(Original journal entry 25/6/03)
(Original journal entry 25/6/03)
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