Marcus Travel Journal
2022 - Fall - a return to Italy
photo: mytravellinglens.com
Our fall travels were in the Regions of Lazio, Umbria and Tuscany. Karen, recovering from a broken ankle, needed maximum time outside busy cities. We booked places with a minimum of stairs and of course a yard and a pool. There were morning drives to explore the area and restful afternoons around the pool. All the makings of a great holiday.
We flew from Vancouver to Paris, then Paris to Rome. On some of our previous trips, the change in Paris has taken a very long time and we have missed our connecting flight, but this time, we just flew through between Terminal 2E and 2F.
We arrived in Rome, called our car rental company, and were picked up and driven to the service centre. We have used the Renault TT Plan for many years and are very pleased with their operation.
With the drain of a flight from Vancouver to Rome, there is a limit on how far we can drive on the day we land. So we headed to a hotel that is just outside of Viterbo. The next morning we headed up to drive to the small village of Castel Cellesi returning to the beautiful house we rented last year.
We then drive to Umbria staying at a massive stately home, near the small historic hill-top town of Montefalco. This was a dream week. The large house has large apartments. Our living and dinning room along with one bedroom and bathroom on the top floor, the kitchen and a second bedroom and bathroom on the ground floor. The views from the windows were incredible.
After that, we drive from Umbria to Tuscany, staying at a small agriturismo just outside of iconic Tuscan town of Montepulciano.
For our last week we drive back to Lazio and returned to Rome. We rented an apartment that we have held on a number of previous visits - a large apartment with rooftop patio giving unforgettable views of the Altare della Patria.
Lazio - Castel Cellesi
photo: mytravellinglens.com
Castel Cellesi is an old town resulting from an social experiment back in the 1650s. The layout was to have the castle are farm houses surround the castel creating a piazza. Overtime the town grew with houses constructed outside the walls. The castle of Count Girolamo Cellesi is now gone, but the church remains as well as the houses both inside and outside the castle walls. But the town is very quiet and basically all residential. There are no bars or coffee shops although one of the old larger houses rents apartments. There are towns, 10 - 15 minutes away.
Umbria - Montefalco
I had visited Montefalco on a previous trip on one of my morning drives. This year we stayed about 10-15 minutes away and it was easy to get into the town. Exciting things happened here. We found a great restaurant, L'Alchimista, located on the Piazza del Comune; and on a one of the evenings in town, Glenn was hit by a car! One of those event you can walk away from, but, I feel it in my hip even today.
The living and dining rooms formed a very large impressive room on the second floor of two-floor apartment at the Fonte Sala. Located not fare from the town of Montefalco. We had such a relaxing time both in the house and around the large pool on the estate.
Tuscany - Montepulciano
photo: mytravellinglens.com
In Tuscany we stayed at a very pleasant agriculturist located just outside the iconic Tuscan town of Montepulciano. This was a great base for drives to the Val d'Orcia and other scenic areas of Tuscany.
One evening I did walk up the hill to the Piazza Grande in Montepulciano in an attempt to get the evening sun. We have been to Montepulciano a number of times, but another visit to the Piazza Grande is never too much. This is such a breath-taking location.
Lazio - Roma - Ginnasi Palace
photo: mytravellinglens.com
Oh it was good to return to "our" apartment at the Ginassi Palace. We have stayed here numerous times and enjoy the apartment as well as the very large patio and the incredibel views over Rome. La colazione nel patio del nostro appartamento al Ginassi è così piacevole.
This year friends from Vancouver rented the other apartment located on the roof-top. It was great to meet in the evenings for dinner in our apartment. We were later in September, and it was a cooler than normal. Once the sun set, it was too cold to eat on the patio, as we have done on previous trips. The dining room table inside came in very handy.
Rome
photo: mytravellinglens.com
Despite the crowds of people, a trip to Rome means a visit to the Trevi fountain. Eacly in the morning is the best time and certainly avoid the afternoons. Oceanus, a Titan son of Uranus and Gaia, the father of the river gods (there were 3,000) and the Oceanids (there were also 3,000) - made him a busy guy! Here Oceanus stands above the chariots of the Trevi Fountain, the largest Baroque fountain in Rome.
