The Cappella della Madonna di Vitaleta on the road from Pienza to San Quirico d'Orcia

In 2001 I came to live in Italy. I had some fun, wrote a journal and this is the blog of my story...

"Tuscany is a state of grace. The countryside is so lovingly designed that the eye sweeps the mountains and valleys without stumbling over a single stone. The lilt of the rolling green hills, the upsurging cypresses, the terraces sculptured by generations that have handled the rocks with skillful tenderness, the fields geometrically juxtaposed as though drawn by a draughtsman for beauty as well as productivity; the battlements of castles on the hills, their tall towers standing grey-blue and golden tan among the forest of trees, the air of such clarity that every sod of earth stands out in such dazzling detail. The fields ripening with barley and oats, beans and beets. The grape-heavy vines espaliered between the horizontal branches of silver-green olive trees, composing orchards of webbed design, rich in intimation of wine, olive oil and lacy-leaf poetry. Tuscany untied the knots in a man's intestines, wiped out the ills of the world. Italy is the garden of Europe, Tuscany is the garden of Italy, Florence is the flower of Tuscany." Irving Stone from my favourite book " The Agony and the Ecstacy" A fictional biography of Michelangelo



177. Scansano and Saturnia

Still in the midst of our Christmas break and in between Veuve Cliquot, Brunello, our favourite Gelateria dei Medici ice cream and chocolate panettone we have also managed to arrange our annual trip to the hot thermal spas of Tuscany. This year it's the turn of Saturnia, which although still being in Tuscany is actually a three-hour drive away!

We pick a day which is sunny and cloudless and that just turns out to be New Year's Eve! So what better way to spend the last day of the year but getting our kit off and swimming al-fresco!

We stop off on the way for a very tasty and cheap lunch in the very pretty little town of Scansano, famous for its red wine, Morellino - We enjoy a bottle of 'Sicomoro' the top wine of the local cooperative producers.









We eventually reach saturnia. The scenery around here is breathtaking and we can see the steam rising from the hills. We find the hot springs and park up. The pools where you can bathe are very large and we gingerly strip and plunge ourselves in to the warm, curative waters... They're not quite as hot as those at Bagno Vignoni and are a lot smellier! Still we enjoy a long, relaxing soak, before embarking on the rather long journey home, still an interesting day!

(Original Journal entry 31/12/04)
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