Montalcino
Rome, Italy, Friday, July 14, 21:51
We had a wonderful and relaxing time in Montalcino. We picked up our rental car in Florence and it wasn't too much trouble navigating out of town and getting on the highway. Some lucky guessing in Siena helped us get on the proper two-lane road from there to Montalcino.
A small town on a hill in Tuscany, it is a beautiful location. Our hotel had a great view of the valley below. We walked down the main street to find some lunch, then upon returning spent a couple hours lounging by the pool. After all the hustle and bustle of museums, sites, and big cities, Montalcino was the perfect way to spend our last couple days. Just relaxing.
On Friday, we drove up to a winery called Frattoria de Barbi. Frattoria means "farm", which is more accurate for this place because in addition to wine they raise olives for olive oil, pigs for various pork products, and sheep for milk to make cheese. We took a tour of their wine cellar, did a tasting, and then purchased some wine and olive oil. (Did I mention that we had to buy a new duffle bag to put our clothes in so we have room in the carry-on for gifts?)
The drive from Montalcino to Rome took about 3.5 hours as we wound around small two-lane roads through the Tuscan and then Lazio countryside. It was a nice way to see the country you wouldn't normally see if you just visited the major tourist locations.
And driving into Rome during Friday afternoon rush hour wasn't as bad as we thought it would be. Though, you must always be on your toes, that is for sure, with people stepping off the curb, scooters swerving in and out and between traffic, and cars merging left and right. Then, every so often, the three lane road would suddenly lose its lane markers!
Tonight, we worked on consolidating our luggage for the trip home. We drive to the airport in the morning for our flight to Frankfurt, Germany. We'll arrive about 12:30 there and stay the night, leaving on Sunday morning at 10:25.
We had a wonderful and relaxing time in Montalcino. We picked up our rental car in Florence and it wasn't too much trouble navigating out of town and getting on the highway. Some lucky guessing in Siena helped us get on the proper two-lane road from there to Montalcino.
A small town on a hill in Tuscany, it is a beautiful location. Our hotel had a great view of the valley below. We walked down the main street to find some lunch, then upon returning spent a couple hours lounging by the pool. After all the hustle and bustle of museums, sites, and big cities, Montalcino was the perfect way to spend our last couple days. Just relaxing.
On Friday, we drove up to a winery called Frattoria de Barbi. Frattoria means "farm", which is more accurate for this place because in addition to wine they raise olives for olive oil, pigs for various pork products, and sheep for milk to make cheese. We took a tour of their wine cellar, did a tasting, and then purchased some wine and olive oil. (Did I mention that we had to buy a new duffle bag to put our clothes in so we have room in the carry-on for gifts?)
The drive from Montalcino to Rome took about 3.5 hours as we wound around small two-lane roads through the Tuscan and then Lazio countryside. It was a nice way to see the country you wouldn't normally see if you just visited the major tourist locations.
And driving into Rome during Friday afternoon rush hour wasn't as bad as we thought it would be. Though, you must always be on your toes, that is for sure, with people stepping off the curb, scooters swerving in and out and between traffic, and cars merging left and right. Then, every so often, the three lane road would suddenly lose its lane markers!
Tonight, we worked on consolidating our luggage for the trip home. We drive to the airport in the morning for our flight to Frankfurt, Germany. We'll arrive about 12:30 there and stay the night, leaving on Sunday morning at 10:25.
posted by Katie | 10:52 AM
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