Stage 4: Gambassi Terme to San Gimignano

14 kilometers
Elevation gain/loss: 560/551
Steps: 21,643
Total distance to date: 85.1km
Distance to Rome: 333.9km

Since we had only 14 km to cover today, we slept in and only started the stage at 9:25 am.
Before leaving, we stopped at a local café for macchiato and a Nutella cornetto, and met two Irish women, Siobhan and Claire, who were also just about to hit the trail.

We particularly wanted to be in the Square at 9:00 to watch Membrino strike the bell nine times.

Compared to yesterday, today's stage was a piece of cake. It was made even better as we are now heading into serious wine country, and every couple of kilometers, tastings are on offer. At the 7km mark today, exactly halfway to our destination, we stopped at Cesani Winery for a tasting. It was only 11:00, but we were thirsty, and the setting was idyllic.
We had the five wine sampling that was knowledgeably described by our host Riikka.

Today’s route started out with almost 3km of downhill, followed by an almost 300 meter climb spread over 5 km. Then another long descent before ending with a 2 km climb whose last 80 meters were quite steep.

After checking into our accomodations, we set out to explore the town. We were shocked by the number of tourists here. The streets are filled with people of all nationalities checking out the sights. At first we didn't understand why so many people flock here, but once we looked around, we understood.

This medieval city is a Unesco World Heritage Site. It is a perfectly preserved portrait of what walking these streets would have looked like 800 years ago. Back then, noble families erected towers to boost the family egos. At one time, there were 72 towers in the city, a literal medieval Manhattan but today, only 14 remain standing. There is a pair of towers that have stood side by side for more than 700 years. At the time they were built, no one was allowed a vanity tower higher than the old City Hall's 170 feet. So the Salvucci family built two 130-foot towers — totaling 260 feet of stony ego trip. Local guides claim that Minoru Yamasaki, the architect of New York City's World Trade Center, was inspired by these twin towers.

One could easily spend a couple of days exploring the boulevards and narrow alleys of San Gimignano, but alas, our time and energy are limited, so a more in-depth exploration will have to wait for another time.Read more