Cortona Blog – Part 1

Welcome to Cortona, a walled city on top of a hill with narrow streets and lots of old stone.  We are not allowed to drive in with the car, so Grampy jumps in his wheelchair at one of the many archway gates and I go off in search of somewhere to park.  Half an hour later we are still trying to find each other but I eventually find Grampy and Mrs K marooned halfway up a hill.  It's just too steep, especially over the paving stones and uneven surface.  But having seen the hub-bub in the centre of the town, I know it will be worth the effort to get up to the main squares, so we go for it and make it in two sprints to the summit.  Where did all these people come from?  And more importantly where did they park?  It’s a pleasant Sunday evening and it seems local Italians go into town for a walk, visit various market stalls, listen to street musicians and sit outside cafes and restaurants for a bite to eat.  Our mind is on the latter, having not had much to eat since breakfast and we secure a pavement table on a busy pedestrianised street where our waiter with a strange mid Atlantic accent (actually was from Northern Ireland) looked after us.  Pasta was the choice for everyone.  A really nice spot, good food and a nice digestif for the non-drivers.

We eventually find our way back to the house and unload our spoils from the supermarket visit earlier in the afternoon.  At night the tight turn into the gate of our cottage is no easier - no more than few inches each side of the car and then it needs to squeeze between the house and the fence to get down to the carport at the end of the garden. Any wrong move and I will end up in the swimming pool. The church on the hill is not far away and nicely lit. 

Here are a few photos of the garden and cottage.

It's bank holiday Monday.  The weather this week is a bit iffy with a mix of sun and rain but mid-teens temperatures just seem warmer here than at home.  As we have breakfast, the kitchen door is left open and the brightness pours into the slightly sunken and dimly lit room.  There is a brief planning session for the day. Assisi?  Yes.  

So we are off to see St Francis, about an hour in the car.  It’s another town on a hill which makes it challenging when you have to park at the bottom.  But at least I am getting some good exercise ahead of the cycling trip in July.  We visit the Basilica which consists of two large adjoining chapels with St Francis's tomb underneath and then the splendid main church built on top.    Well worth the climb.  Buoyed by that we set off for St. Clara's church (or Santa Chiara) at the other end of town.  Probably the second main church in town (but there are lots).  Hopefully St. Clara didn't mind being a very distant second best to St Francis.  While I am thinking that the heavens open outside - Clara is laughing.  It will be slippery ride back down to the car.

I think Grampy would have liked to visit all the churches in the small town but there are about 15. The two we did visit were quite particular about taking photos. Mrs K is approached by a smiling monk. “Hello, where are you from?” “From the UK”, says Mrs K. “That’s nice”, he says. “Can you not read the sign written in English which says no photography?”. The shame hurts more than anything else. Grampy meanwhile goes running round the churches snapping away at will, impervious to any admonishment.

In the evening, we visit a restaurant that we spotted the night before. A bit of fine dining.

The waitress is called Teresa and her name is on the olive oil – from her family’s farm.

Tuesday we plan to go to Siena.

Part 2

We approach Siena like conquerors of old.  We have to circle round it a few times before we work out the best way in.  Mrs K gets special praise for her expert use and trust of Google Maps to find the way to the closest car park to the Duomo which leaves us a shortish walk up the hill to the main attractions.  

Another town on a hill, more churches visited. I wonder if I might qualify to be grandfathered in as a catholic by now?   But not just any old churches.  Mrs K thinks the Basilica in Sienna is the nicest cathedral she has ever visited. I agree.

The 'Campo' is the famous square where they hold the horse race.  The crowds for that have to be seen to be believed and the corners that the horses go round are really tight.  I am thinking the race might rival the Grand National in casualties? There is a short 10 minute BBC film of the Palio race on Youtube which we watched last night. It would be special to be here on 2^nd July for this year’s race, though it is all over in 70 seconds. Each region of the town enters and the horses are drawn by lots. It can be decades between wins and the passion for this event is amazing.

https://youtu.be/zCtWidd0vMo

The square looks very different without the crowds but no less impressive with the high tower (said to be once the highest structure in the world) and the fountain opposite the palace.

Time for lunch and we find a delightful traditional café with all the goodies nicely on display behind the counter. It’s the fashion in Italy for people to come in for a quick shot of coffee and consume it at the counter but we are seated for a feast of pasta and pastries after.

Before leaving we visit the chapel of Saint Catherine at the Basilica of San Domenico.  This is not the Catherine that was tortured on a wheel in the 4^th century (hence the Catherine Wheel on fireworks night) but another one from the mid 1300’s. Having experienced various visions of Christ as a child she spent her life avoiding marriage, caring for the sick and acting as an envoy for the Pope to promote peace in the region. A rare position for a woman at the time. She died early, probably as a result of her abstinence (of food). In the church, you can view the mummified head and one of her fingers (2^nd photo courtesy of Grampy – illegal). Bit gruesome.

We think that might be the end of the pleasant weather this week. The early evening sky from the cottage, with the sun shining between the clouds into the valley looks spectacular though.

Wednesday will be a day of rest.

Part 3

Last night we went for another exceptional meal inside Cortona to a restaurant just inside the city gates for easy access. I wasn’t all that impressed with the chair I had to sit on – made me think carefully about how much food I was ordering. We seem to be picking fine dining restaurants. Tony is getting a bit fed up ordering a Tiramisu and being presented with a creative deconstruction of the traditional dessert. But we will find a standard one soon.

We receive a message from Auntie Marilena (Nanny Eileen’s cousin) saying we should visit Arezzo. It’s just 40 minutes up the road so we decide to take her advice. It’s a windy road across country and a nicer journey than we had to either Assisi or Sienna, which was mostly on dual carriageways. I have found Italian drivers to be relatively impatient. If they think you are going too slow, they just tailgate you. One car got so close all I could see through the rear windscreen was his roof.

Arezzo is in many ways similar to other towns we have visited in that there is an old town at the core of a larger town. Google Maps: “in 25 metres, turn to the right”. Me: “you want me to drive up there?” Often the roads near the centre are no more than alleyways and we have to squeeze the car between walls and parked cars, not really being sure if we should be driving on the street at all. Parking is also confusing. If you want to get near the main sights, it seems you can only use disabled spaces. Eventually we find a good compromise and a series of escalators carry us up to the top of the hill where we find ….yes, you guessed it, a number of churches, but including Il Duomo.

Outside we see a large group of artists painting this vista.

From there, we could have visited the Medici fortress further up the hill, but we relaxed in the adjacent gardens with this incredible view of the Duomo.

The sun has appeared as we make our way down to Piazza Grande and, having negotiated a number of steps down, we decide to have some lunch. It seems really difficult to sit on one of these squares on the level – see my beer glass.

We visit Basilica of St Francis which has lots of remaining frescos and an impressive cross over the altar.

A taxi is in order to get us back to our car park and luckily we find a very helpful shopkeeper to call one for us – no Uber in Arezzo.

On Thursday evening we find a small family run restaurant in our favourite street in Cortona. Trattoria Toscana. As we stand at the entrance, we are greeted by Sarah, who is holding two plates of food on the other side of the cosy restaurant. She seems to be the proprietor and sole waitress for the evening and is like a whirlwind around the small restaurant of about 7 or 8 tables, creating a breeze every time she rushes past. She takes our order and is on her way to the kitchen almost before we have finished speaking and the appetisers arrive in no more than 5 minutes. Passers-by are turned away. The place is busy. Mrs K and I share the 1kg rump steak meal which includes 2x bruschetta and as much chianti as you want – all for €29 each. The steak is only served rare and it just melts in the mouth – they know their meat. It’s my favourite meal of the week. Luckily a short drive home. Mrs K is reluctant to drive as it is up a very narrow track to the cottage.

For those of you that have spatial awareness, here is a map of where Cortona is and the various places we have been to so far.

Part 4

On Thursday, we make the short journey to the Baldetti Winery, near the Trasimeno Lake. It’s a small family run vineyard which made a big investment about 10 years ago to upgrade the plant and to build a very nice visitor centre. There is a troop of Americans with us on the tour. I think Desiree said they own 36 acres and produce 40,000 bottles a year. I reckon that makes this a business with revenues of about €1.5m per year, so not massive. The fields are a bit muddy with all the recent rain, so we concentrate on the machinery in the warehouse where all the manufacturing takes place. I am eager to get to the tasting bit. We have opted for a couple of light courses of food to help the wine go down.

I think Grampy enjoyed it too.

I think the wines got better, the more we drank (strange that) which means the Vin Santo at the end is our favourite. We end up ordering a case to ship home, so maybe you will get to taste it.

On Friday, we check out the recommended church for Sunday morning mass. It is located at a monastery where St Francis took refuge on 3 separate occasions, but most notably near the end of his life when he was blind. Back then it wasn’t much more than a few caves but St Francis’s ‘cell’ is still preserved in the rock and the monastery has been built round it with a fast flowing river running beside it. Not the easiest hill to get down to see it, but Grampy was very much up for it. Just 6 friars live here (2 of them from Malta) and we meet the head friar who is just on his way out to pick some fresh mint. He is extremely friendly and from Slovenia. An amazing place.

We take the drive across country to Pienza. It’s another long one but, again, a town that doesn’t disappoint. The old town is very small and the most similar to Mdina (Malta) that we have come across.

This whole week we haven’t had pizza once, so we find a nice pizzeria and sit outside in the sun.

Waiter : "What do you want?"

Me: "Do you have pale ale?"

Waiter : "No." (straight face)

Typical waiter chit-chat in Italy

They throw the food down in front of you and snatch the check out of your hand to read it.

Not happy in their work, says Mrs K.

A massive generalisation, but pretty accurate for many places we have been to, especially the touristy cafe's near to the main sights.

We fly home today but as we are flying from Pisa, it's a good opportunity to visit another walled city, Lucca, and also, of course Pisa. It’s a lot to get in, but again, Tuscany continues to wow.

A few last pictures of Lucca……

And from Pisa

The tower leans at about 4 degrees. It used to be more (5.5 degrees) and they were worried about it collapsing but they shored up the foundations a few years back. And there are people at the top.

You’ll have to excuse the silly pictures. Mrs K didn’t approve and also had trouble taking the photo but we got there in the end.

All safely home now.

It’s my 12^th time in Italy but its our first time in the Tuscany countryside. The weather could have been nicer to be honest. Several Italians apologised for it! But it has been stunning. We covered about 1000km getting around the towns but every single journey was worthwhile

This is where we were on the Cortona hillside. Looking forward to coming back next year!

Thanks for reading

Jeff