Our road from Switzerland to Italy was over the Bernina Pass. We were close to this mighty glacier.
More beautiful Swiss scenery,
and hairpin bends
with a village nestled below.
And now beautiful Italian mountains,
More beautiful Swiss scenery,
and hairpin bends
with a village nestled below.
And now beautiful Italian mountains,
and villages.
This was the beginning of our first, & hopefully last, hair raising GPS experience. We were turned off the main road by a car rally. In her (the voice is female) determination to get us back to it in this rugged, isolated area, she took us down a very neglected old track with huge bumps, at times Mike wrestling with the steering wheel to carry on (even beyond rally driving skills!). After a long 20 minutes a horrible sharp turn up an almost impossibly steep slope took us back to civilisation. Not an experience we wish to repeat!
Productive northern Italy
After a night at Antonella's we arrived at Susie & Luigi's cottage - a great place to relax, see the local sights & visit Rome. The cottage was originally built around the time Captain Cook discovered NZ! We spent 3 days exploring the local area & villages.
The old town of Anguillara on Lake Bracciano, a volcanic crater.
A gate to the old town.
Medieval ruins in the countryside.
Many castles and palaces were built by rich families in medieval times. The owner of this 15th century one, in the town of Bracciano, lives in Rome but has a bedroom here for visits. Here we saw an amazing exhibition of 60 dresses designed by Robert Capucci.
A street nearby.
The tiny village of Ceri is built on a volcanic tufa hill with only one one-way entry, controlled by traffic lights (though there is little room to park cars anyway!)
This was the beginning of our first, & hopefully last, hair raising GPS experience. We were turned off the main road by a car rally. In her (the voice is female) determination to get us back to it in this rugged, isolated area, she took us down a very neglected old track with huge bumps, at times Mike wrestling with the steering wheel to carry on (even beyond rally driving skills!). After a long 20 minutes a horrible sharp turn up an almost impossibly steep slope took us back to civilisation. Not an experience we wish to repeat!
Productive northern Italy
After a night at Antonella's we arrived at Susie & Luigi's cottage - a great place to relax, see the local sights & visit Rome. The cottage was originally built around the time Captain Cook discovered NZ! We spent 3 days exploring the local area & villages.
The old town of Anguillara on Lake Bracciano, a volcanic crater.
A gate to the old town.
Medieval ruins in the countryside.
Many castles and palaces were built by rich families in medieval times. The owner of this 15th century one, in the town of Bracciano, lives in Rome but has a bedroom here for visits. Here we saw an amazing exhibition of 60 dresses designed by Robert Capucci.
A street nearby.
The tiny village of Ceri is built on a volcanic tufa hill with only one one-way entry, controlled by traffic lights (though there is little room to park cars anyway!)
Building the Madonna of Ceri church began 1000 years ago.
At Sutri we bought some delicious porcini mushrooms. There is a great variety of mushrooms in Europe.
An ancient Roman amphitheatre near Sutri, with burial caves in the hillside nearby
The entry to the old town at Trevignano Romano.
Rooftops and Lake Bracciano from the medieval ruins above.
The 16th century pentagonal Farnese Palace in the village of Caprarola has murals by Italian artists of the time all over its walls & ceilings. One room is dedicated to explorers - we were unable to find Australia or NZ on the maps!
Near the town of Cerveteri the Etruscan people carved & built, in the tufa rock, around 2000 tombs over 30 acres from 10th - 2nd centuries BC. They were conquered by the Romans 3-4oo BC.
This type of tomb was for important people.
They believed in quality of life after death so left precious things in the tombs, which of course were robbed over the centuries. These are some of the remaining artefacts, showing the Etruscans traded with the Greeks & Egyptians.
At Sutri we bought some delicious porcini mushrooms. There is a great variety of mushrooms in Europe.
These streets were not built for modern traffic!
An ancient Roman amphitheatre near Sutri, with burial caves in the hillside nearby
The entry to the old town at Trevignano Romano.
Rooftops and Lake Bracciano from the medieval ruins above.
The 16th century pentagonal Farnese Palace in the village of Caprarola has murals by Italian artists of the time all over its walls & ceilings. One room is dedicated to explorers - we were unable to find Australia or NZ on the maps!
Near the town of Cerveteri the Etruscan people carved & built, in the tufa rock, around 2000 tombs over 30 acres from 10th - 2nd centuries BC. They were conquered by the Romans 3-4oo BC.
This type of tomb was for important people.
They believed in quality of life after death so left precious things in the tombs, which of course were robbed over the centuries. These are some of the remaining artefacts, showing the Etruscans traded with the Greeks & Egyptians.
As we drove north from Anguillara to Borgo we spotted this on the horizon.
It was the beautiful circular 16th century Cathedral of Santa Margherita at Montefiascone.
We are now in France, heading for our next home exchange and more internet access for our laptop, we hope. The next postings will be about Rome, Siena & Venice.
We are now in France, heading for our next home exchange and more internet access for our laptop, we hope. The next postings will be about Rome, Siena & Venice.