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Amsterdam and Italy

March - April 2023
A 28-day adventure by Diane Read more
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  • Diane and DarrylAmsterdam and Italy
    Day 27

    Portovenere and Fortified Islands

    April 26, 2023 in Italy ⋅ ☀️ 64 °F

    For our last day, we took a 10-minute train trip south to the seaport city of La Spezia. This is a major ferry launch point, rail connecting city and historic naval site. We visited the Naval Museum, which showcases a lot of La Spezia’s ties to early maritime technology—like Marconi’s first wireless radio using Morse code. They have preserved the tapes from 1897. Also, early underwater breathing apparatus from the 1930s and bariatric chambers for treating divers.

    From La Spezia, we caught a ferry out to Portovenere, a point on a peninsula in the Ligurian Sea. You can reach it by a long, hair-raising taxi ride, or a short, scenic ferry ride. An add-on to our ferry ride was a narrated tour circumnavigating three islands (Palmaria, the largest, which looks great for steep hikes; Tino island, with an abbey built in the 7th century; and Tinetto, only xx square xx). It was a warm, sparkling clear day and we really enjoyed the trip. Portovenere has been a strategic naval defense site through the centuries, and has stunning views from what’s left of its fortress.

    Soon, it was time to catch our train to Pisa, so we’ll be ready for our flight home in the morning.

    We will cherish our time in Amsterdam with Mike and Teresa, our dear friends and very generous hosts. Amsterdam is a lively and very well-kept historical place that doesn’t feel like a big city. We also have wonderful memories in Italy of ancient ruins, countryside drives, pizza sampling and hikes with Sondra and Mike B. Perhaps most of all, we will look back on our bike rides as the highlight of our trip, as a great way to immerse ourselves in Tuscany and its culture, wine and food. Thanks for joining us!    Read more

  • Diane and DarrylAmsterdam and Italy
    Day 26

    Cinque Terre: On Foot and by Train

    April 25, 2023 in Italy ⋅ ⛅ 64 °F

    Today we aimed to see the other three villages in Cinque Terre. Our fears about huge crowds on the Liberation Day holiday were unfounded, fortunately! We started early, taking a train to Corniglia—two villages north of us. Corniglia is the only one of the five villages that does not have a seacoast. A short shuttle bus ride helped cut out a climb up to the village from the station and to the starting point for our hike. After looking around quiet Corniglia, we set off on the trail to Vernazza. This hike turned out to be easier than yesterday’s, although not level, by any means. Along the way, we passed more terraced gardens, vineyards and coastal views.

    Vernazza completely fills a rocky promontory jutting out into the sea, with a fortress tower at the far point. With such a small area and because of its beach and picturesque setting, it was very crowded with visitors in the center of the town. We made our way to edge of town to climb the fortress tower, leaving some of the crowds behind and getting amazing views.

    After a nice lunch (traditional Tuscan soup called Ribollita for some of us), we decided to take the train to the next town rather than hike, as we’d originally planned. The mapping guides have rather underestimated distance and elevation gain, and our knees had seen enough ups and downs.

    In the northernmost village of Monterosso al Mare, a port city which is much larger than the other four villages, we wound our way up to the highest point to get the views, of course. That highest point turned out to be a Cappuchin Friars monastery, and somewhere behind closed doors from the publicly accessible church, the friars were holding a service with Gregorian chants—it was eerie and awe-inspiring at the same time.

    We had hoped to take the ferry back along the full length of the five villages (and many more hillside villages in-between), but the seas were too rough for the ferry to land at our tiny port in Riomaggiore. This time no one got left behind on the train platform.    Read more

  • Diane and DarrylAmsterdam and Italy
    Day 25

    Cinque Terre: Riomaggiore to Manarola

    April 24, 2023 in Italy ⋅ ☀️ 63 °F

    We’re in Riomaggiore—the southernmost of the five towns of the picturesque Cinque Terre, on the seacoast.

    We’ve been wondering whether Liberation Day was shifted from Tuesday to Monday to allow for a long weekend, because the crowds were insane. Just a continuous line of hikers on the trail from our town to the next one to the north—Manarola.

    The trail was only a few miles, but the two towns are separated by a mountain and it was a very steep climb up stone stairs and pathways, and then a corresponding descent into the village on the coast. Grapes and olives are grown on nearly every available patch of land with terracing.

    Normally there is a nice flat trail between the villages, but it was destroyed in a landslide in 2012 and is still being rebuilt. The views from the top were spectacular, even with the crowds.

    Getting back to Riomaggiore on the train was a complete zoo, and the group got separated and wound up taking separate trains back. We’re in an Airbnb very close to the train station, which is convenient, but a bit noisy (not too bad, though).    Read more

  • Diane and DarrylAmsterdam and Italy
    Day 24

    Liberation Day Parade, Etruscan Volterra

    April 23, 2023 in Italy ⋅ ⛅ 68 °F

    April 25 is a national holiday in Italy. It commemorates the Italian resistance’s victory over Mussolini’s fascist regime and also the end of the Nazi occupation of Italy in 1945. Here in Montepulciano, the big celebration took place today, Sunday, with parades and music in the square. We had a big driving day ahead of us and had to get on the road, but we caught some of the parade from our window.

    Each of the eight contradas (wards/neighborhoods) was represented, with their distinctive colors. As you walk through Montepulciano, you know which contrada you are in because of the flags with crests hanging from the walls. It was a beautiful sight to see the period costumes of each contrada, each with a “king & queen” representative, and at the end, all contradas represented together in the drum corps.

    On the way to Cinque Terre, we planned a stop in Volterra, an ancient village dating back to pre-Roman Etruscan times. Parts of one of the gates to the city, “Porta all'Arco,” are thought to date back to the 4th century BC. Three very worn heads symbolize Zeus and his two sons, Castor and Pollux (see the black blobs on the top and sides of the arch gate photo). Anyway, the gate is so significant that during the German occupation in 1944, the townspeople removed the paving stones around the gate overnight to prevent the German troops from destroying the gate. A plaque placed on the 50th anniversary of that event commemorates their deed.    Read more

  • Diane and DarrylAmsterdam and Italy
    Day 23

    Montalcino and Brunello Wine Tasting

    April 22, 2023 in Italy ⋅ ☁️ 70 °F

    For our last full day in Montepulciano, we explored the lower part of the town and then set off in the car to do the Brunello Wine driving tour in Rick Steves’ book, and to visit the village of Montalcino. The region surrounding the village is the center of activity for Brunello wine production. A tasting room is located in the old fort of the city. We were able to climb a tower and get panoramic views from up on the walls.

    After climbing down, we received a nicely curated wine tasting (with local pecorino cheese and bread sticks) and learned a lot. The wine is produced in very small batches, and for the wines we tasted, the grapes are hand picked—grape by grape. There are all kinds of rules about whether a wine can be called Brunello, resulting in a 15-year period before you can sell your first bottle. No wonder the wines we tasted cost 90 euros and up for a bottle.

    Later in our countryside drive, we visited a winery and olive oil tasting/producing estate and heard a great story. The estate has origins that date back to the 17th century when it was founded by a local abbot, mainly for olive oil production. Eventually, in the mid-1800s it was sold to a wealthy land owner, who had one offspring, a daughter (Elda). Elda fell in love with a “poor” count (Alberto Piccolomini), a direct descendent of Pope Pius II. Elda’s family wasn’t happy about the match (because Alberto was older—didn’t look a lot older to us in their wedding photo—and because he was poor). Alberto’s family didn’t like the match because Elda wasn’t from noble birth. So, when Elda died in 1985 (as the last survivor of the couple), she snubbed both families and left the estate to her farm manager, who had no idea! Giuseppe then expanded from primarily olive oil production to wines. The estate is still run by his family.    Read more

  • Diane and DarrylAmsterdam and Italy
    Day 22

    Biking the White Roads of Val d’Orcia

    April 21, 2023 in Italy ⋅ ⛅ 64 °F

    The two of us rented fat tire e-bikes and rode down from our hilltop city to explore the countryside on the white clay gravel roads. The bike shop set us up with a route to follow on Google maps and off we went. The weather was spectacular and the scenery even better.

    Around lunchtime we found a small farm restaurant, and because we were making good time, we decided to have a glass of wine with our meal, like all the Italians do. We didn’t know that after lunch our host would bring us two shot glasses and a bottle each of limoncello and dessert wine to sample from! Well, we’d worked hard on the hills before lunch, even with the e-bikes, so we sat and enjoyed the ambiance at the farmhouse—chickens, a big fat turkey and a young family at the table next to us, and then we were ready to ride again. When we got to Monticchiello, we parked the bikes and strolled the village, which dates back to the mid-1200s. It was a pretty quiet place, compared to some of the places we’ve visited.

    We took a small detour to a spot marked “Punto Panoramico Cipreces en Zigzag” (panoramic viewpoint of zigzag cypress), because we were curious. Cute, but they only zigzag because the road does. You’ll see the photo.

    We’d saved enough e-bike battery power to make it back to our hilltop home by the end of the day. What a great day!    Read more

  • Diane and DarrylAmsterdam and Italy
    Day 21

    Montepulciano and theVal D’Orcia

    April 20, 2023 in Italy ⋅ ⛅ 61 °F

    Montepulciano is in the “Vino Nobile” wine region, where the grape variety is still Sangiovese, like Chianti Classico, but it is more likely to be blended with other varietals.

    We are staying in the heart of this old medieval city, which sits high on a hill. In fact, our guest house has many different levels, and we can go out the front door and be on the upper road, or the back door to reach the lower road.

    After cheerful banter at breakfast from our exuberant B&B host, Roberto, we set out to explore the upper part of the town, using Rick Steves’ book. One recommended stop was to the store and workshop of coppersmith Ramaio Cesare.

    Cesare’s store has many beautiful pieces of copper cookware and decorative pieces. His workshop is full of tools and copper pieces, old smelting equipment and many photos of his work, including the copper top of the Duomo in Siena and the piece he designed and personally delivered to Pope Benedict. We probably spent 45 minutes with Cesare, and not a word of English was spoken by him. He is passionate about his work, and quite a character.

    After a traditional Tuscan lunch of pasta or fondue, we got the car from the parking lot (this is a pedestrian town, for the most part), to explore the countryside — the Val d’Orcia—a UNESCO World Heritage site. We stopped in more medieval villages and a village with thermal baths. There we came upon a car race, the Mille Miglia, which passes through the village. Vintage cars make a round trip from Brescia (north, near Milan) to Rome, and back.    Read more

  • Diane and DarrylAmsterdam and Italy
    Day 20

    Onward to the Tuscan Countryside

    April 19, 2023 in Italy ⋅ ⛅ 66 °F

    Last night our Bay Area friends, Mike and Sondra arrived to Siena, and today we set off to stay in Montepulciano for four nights. The point-to-point drive would have been less than two hours, but we stopped for views and visits to points of interest, and made a day of it.

    Our drive took us into a geographical region known as the Crete Senesi. It is an area with white clay soil, which during dry times can give it a barren look, dotted by the occasional cypress trees and olive groves. At this time of year (or maybe this wet year in particular), we saw rolling green hills with blotches of white clay.

    We stopped in a couple of medieval towns —Buonconvento and Asciano—to look around. In the first, we got lunch at a rather nondescript cafe, which turned out to be one that President Obama and his family had visited! The chef and staff were so pleased—they showed us photos and even had a menu item named after Obama. Nearby Asciano we toured an abbey that was founded in 1313. Sondra had read about their beautiful inlaid wood panels, so we knew we had to check them out. Everything in the abbey has been beautifully restored (or maintained?)—colorful frescoes, ceiling ornamentation, and the wine cellars. We had a nice discussion with the cellar master and picked out a bottle to share when we get to our Airbnb later in the trip.    Read more

  • Diane and DarrylAmsterdam and Italy
    Day 19

    Medieval villages around Siena

    April 18, 2023 in Italy ⋅ ☁️ 64 °F

    We picked up a rental car and drove out of Siena to visit San Gimignano and Monteriggioni, two walled cities dating from the 13th century.

    San Gimignano is a UNESCO World Heritage site and is known for its fortified towers. The families who controlled the town built 70 or so tower-houses (some as high as 150 feet) as symbols of their wealth and power. Only 14 towers are still standing.

    Monteriggioni is also a fortified village surrounded by towers, although smaller than those in San Gimignano.

    The Via Francigena passes through both of these towns. It is an ancient pilgrimage route starting in Canterbury in England, through France and Switzerland, to Rome. Thanks to the description of his journey home to Canterbury from Rome made by an archbishop in AD 994, it has been possible to reconstruct the route precisely. Many people use these routes for trekking (and pilgrimages).    Read more

  • Diane and DarrylAmsterdam and Italy
    Day 18

    Siena Cathedral: Views from the Dome

    April 17, 2023 in Italy ⋅ ☁️ 59 °F

    Today was all about the Siena Cathedral. It dates from the early- to mid-1200s, and was built on the site of an earlier structure. We could see some of the older church when we visited the crypt.

    There are 56 marble mosaic floor panels, created by the leading artists of the period. One technique, called graffito, used a chisel and drill to draw designs on white marble slabs, and then filled in with black stucco—looking a bit like a line drawing. Another technique placed colored marble pieces together, which is known as marble mosaic inlay.

    The panels extend across the whole floor of the cathedral, but they keep much of it covered up (to protect it?). In fact, today was the first day that a good portion of it was unveiled, whereas yesterday, none of it was uncovered. It’s a beautiful place.

    Small groups are allowed to walk up into the attic, so to speak, and get a view of the cathedral from above—under the large dome. The walk also took us outside to get views of the cathedral and the surrounding countryside from above—spectacular!    Read more

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