Passignano sul Trasimeno

We left Riccione just after 8.00am (no visit to the hole in the wall this time!) and after stopping at the local supermarket to restock, were on our way to our next destination, Lake Trasimeno in Umbria. Known as  the 'green heart of Italy' Umbria is a beautiful region of rolling hills, woods, streams and valleys that gives way to high mountain wilderness. It is well known for the beauty and profusion of it's medieval towns. Lake Trasimeno is Italy's 4th largest lake and is a good base to visit the surrounding area.

The camp site is situated just outside the town of Passignano and has been fairly quiet during our stay (much to our liking) and it offers some stunning views over Lake Trasimeno.

It has been very hot - high 30's with high humidity which in turn has meant lots and lots of mosquitos. Despite all our precautions the little blighters have managed to turn our gorgeous tanned bodies into pin cushions with red blotches everywhere!

Passignano is the nearby town some 3kms away and is easily reached by bike. It didn't take us long to find our way around - bus and train timetables and to work out what was on offer in the town. We were fortunate being here this week as there was a week of merriment with lots of different things happening. The 4 districts of the town challenge each other to a boat race with a difference. as well as a race on the lake they also run through the narrow streets carrying their boats. 

There have been lots of other things too. Medieval markets, The Trasimeno Blues Festival, Parades, Fireworks and we have enjoyed being part of it. On Friday we went along to the open air (free) concert with blues singer Otis Taylor (never heard of him but he and his band were rather good). We didn't stay late as we had to cycle back to the camp site and we had an early start on Saturday as we had planned to visit the hill top village of Cortona in nearby Tuscany. For those of you who don't know,  this is where the film 'Under the Tuscan Sun' was filmed and if you haven't seen the film I thoroughly recommend that you do!. We left the campsite early to cycle to the station to catch the 8.00am train, then bus up to Cortona. after breakfast of coffee and croissants in the Piazza della Repubblica we climbed up a sleepy warren of steep cobbled lanes to the Chiesa di Santa Margherita. 

The remains of Saint Margaret, the patron saint of Cortona, are on display in an ornate 14th c glass sided tomb above the main altar.

A little higher is the Fortezza Medicea, an old fort, Cortona's highest point with stupendous views over the surrounding countryside. 

It was market day in Cortona and we enjoyed wandering around - Harry looking in windows at properties for sale - hoping to find his own 'Bramesole'

Our highlight this week though has been our visit to Assisi. The trip exceeded both our expectations and we were glad that we made the effort. Up at 5.30am to cycle to the station to catch the early train - then bus up to the town of Assisi. It was quiet when we arrived and not too hot so wandering around and visiting the sights was very enjoyable. The Basilica di San Francesco was amazing.  One of the most moving locations in the Basilica complex is downstairs from the lower Church: the crypt of St Francis, where the saint's body has been laid to rest. Bench seating around the tomb allows time for quiet reflection. We visited several of Assisi's Churches but my favourite was the 13th C Romanesque Duomo di San Rufino which contains the fountain where St Francis and St Clare were baptised. 

Assisi has offered us some wonderful views - here are just a couple. 

All in all - a truely remarkable day.

We are now going to move on to Florence for a few days - going into culture overload but we are loving it.

Speak to you all next week - lots of love, Kath and Harry xxx 

Riccione week 2

A frustrating time for us this week as we had to wait for my replacement bank card to arrive from the UK. It finally arrived on Saturday and a big thank you to Jane for all her help with getting it to us securely.

We have used the week to reflect on our plans for the trip and have realised we are being too ambitious, we have already spent 7 weeks in Italy and have got nowhere near the south yet. So a change of plan was called for.  We move into the Umbrian hills on Monday to visit Assisi ( St Francis country) and Perugia whilst staying by a lake. Florence next for 3/4 days to take in some culture and then we have decided to concentrate on Tuscany for the remainder of our stay in Italy (looking for that elusive villa under the Tuscan sun). We can always come back another time to tour southern Italy and Sicily.

Whilst we have enjoyed our stay on the coast we have missed the hills and village life, although the beach bar we use on a regular basis gives us free use of his WIFI and has made us feel more local than tourist.

Well folks that is it for this week normal service will be resumed next week.

Love Harry and Kath xx

Riccione

Our plan was to leave Jesolo early so that we could escape the heat of the midday sun and we were very pleased with ourselves when at 8.30am we were all set to go, I went to reception to finalise our departure and Harry went to the hole in the wall on site to get some pennies - big mistake. The ATM gobbled up Harry's card and declined his request to offer up any money. Some 3 hours later, having enquired at reception - walked to the bank in town - no joy there - walked back - stopped for a caffeine fix. We eventually left at 11.30am not having achieved very much and had the pleasure of driving in temperatures of 35C + for the next 4 hours. Card cancelled - new one ordered - but the moral of the tale is if you use an ATM, use one that is attached to a bank where staff can get access to gobbled up cards. We used a stand alone ATM which although the same bank as the one in town, is serviced by an outside agency and staff were unable to access it.

So, that's our public service advice to travellers - now for the history lesson - only joking, that comes later!

This week finds us on the outskirts of Riccione (south of Rimini) on the Adriatic coast. This is very much a holiday resort for Italians with very few foreign tourists, but with lots to keep everyone entertained. During our evening strolls we have enjoyed listening to a live band with people dancing, red indians playing native music and dancing, puppet show and especially watching the children racing round a go kart track. Harry reckons this is so they can ' perfect' their driving for when they are old enough to go on the roads!

San Marino

We discovered that San Marino was not too far away so we booked on a coach trip to visit it. San Marino perched on the top of a 657 metre lump of rock, the 61 sq km  Republic of San Marino is Europe's smallest state after the Vatican and Monaco. Again it was a very hot day and walking up to the top was quite strenuous at times but well worth it for the views.

Another trip we did this week was to the hill town of Urbino. Urbino is classed as a world hetritage site. The patriarch of the Montefeltro family created the hippest art scene of the 15th C. It is also the birth place of the artist Raphael and you can visit the 15th C Casa di Raffaello where Raphael spent the his first 16 years.     

We also visited the Basilica in Urbino which was not as ornate as some of the other Churches we have visited on our trip.    A world heritage site it may be but the historic town has been taken over by the town's university with various faculties and 24 thousand students and at times we felt that we were walking around a campus and were more than disappointed to see grafitti on some of the old buildings. We know things have to move on but sometimes things are worth preserving, so as well as a future we have a past. 

While waiting for the bus to take us back to the camp site, we sat at a pavement cafe and ordered  a glass of wine and a beer. it is customery in these parts to receive nibbles with drinks but on this occasion we were presented with slices of focaccia with delicious fillings and sprinkled with rosemary - yummy.

We will need to stay a bit longer while we wait for Harry's card to arrive but that will give us plenty of time to plan our next destination which we hope will be more inland, up in the hills (brown bears and all!)

So until next time - bye from Kath and Harry xxx

Jesolo / Venice

We have taken a week's break to go on holiday by the sea side! Here we are on the Adriatic and it has been wonderful to swim in the warm sea, lie on the lovely sandy beach and turn a nice shade of brown.  We are being very good and not overdoing it, just nice and slowly.

 I'm not brave enough (yet) to have my picture taken in my swimsuit so you can all be spared that image!

The camp site we are staying at has lots of facilities. There is a huge swimming complex with spa baths and water slides, gym and a fantastic sandy beach out to the Adriatic sea. The camp site is community owned so all the profits go on improvements. All activities are included in the price so there are no hidden extras. Down on the beach there are canoes, pedaloes, a banana boat and even a catamaran. Just book your ride and enjoy.  I fancied a trip on the Pirate Ship and was disappointed to find that it was for the kids - no grown ups allowed. The list goes on, even a Pizza delivery service - you have to pay for the Pizza though! Harry and I even went to an Italian lesson to learn the basics - we could have gone every day but somehow it got in the way of all the other things we were trying to cram in.

Next to the camp site is a promenade which stretches for 8 kms. It is filled with shops, restaurants, bars, street artists and ice cream parlours. After 8.00pm it is closed to motorised vehicles so it is very pleasant to do the Italian thing  in the evening- get dressed up, buy an ice cream and promenade even if the temperature is still 28C at 11.15pm. Temperatures have been in excess of 30C all week and this morning it was 32C at 8.30am.

Our day in Venice was no exception. We had hoped for a cooler day and were pleased to find that it was overcast in the morning - not for long. By the time we got to Venice via motor boat from the camp site (45 minutes) it was well in the 30's. It was good to find lots of narrow alley ways in complete shade to shelter us from the heat of the day. I think the sun got to Harry because I found him gazing in a shop window looking at a lovely blouse.


"Kath" he said "Do you like this?"
"Yes" says I. "Are you going to treat me?"
Before he could answer I pointed to the price tag on display in the window and told him we were looking in the window of a Chanel store (only 1300 euros).
Harry's hand on my arm, me being led away, Harry saying "I don't like it that much"
And I thought he loved me!!

We did the sights - St Mark's Square, The Bridge of Sighs, The Rialto Bridge (covered in graffiti). There is a lot of restoration work going on in the heart of Venice and there are hoardings up everywhere. 

There were gondolas galore queing up to negotiate the narrow canals and I was more than happy to watch from afar rather than join the traffic jam of the canals of Venice. It took the romance out of it somehow. 

There were some nice scenes though.

After a very hot but interesting visit to Venice we made our way back to the boat and this time we opted for the air conditioned interior for the trip back to Jesolo.

And that's another week gone. I can't believe how fast the time is going - tomorrow we move on, heading south. The rough guide to Italy has been invaluable, there are so many places we want to visit - maybe we shall have to extend out trip!


Love to all - speak to you next week.

Kath and Harry xxxx