Tag: italy

Looking over Volterra

Beautiful vistas and rich history

Volterra is a walled mountaintop town in the Tuscany region of Italy of which its history dates to before the 7th century BC and has substantial structures from the Etruscan, Roman, and Medieval periods.

Volterra, known to the ancient Etruscans as Velathri or Vlathri and to the Romans as Volaterrae, is a town and comune in the Tuscany region of Italy. The town was a Bronze Age settlement of the Villanovan culture, and an important Etruscan center (Velàthre, Velathri or Felathri in Etruscan, Volaterrae in Latin language), one of the “twelve cities” of the Etruscan League.

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Looking over Volterra

The site is believed to have been continuously inhabited as a city since at least the end of the 8th century BC. It became a municipium allied to Rome at the end of the 3rd century BC. The city was a bishop’s residence in the 5th century, and its episcopal power was affirmed during the 12th century. With the decline of the episcopate, Volterra became a place of interest of the Florentines, whose forces conquered Volterra. Florentine rule was not always popular, and opposition occasionally broke into rebellion. These rebellions were put down by Florence.

When the Florentine Republic fell in 1530, Volterra came under the control of the Medici family and later followed the history of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany.

In recent history, Volterra was the residence of the Volturi, a coven of rich, regal, powerful ancient vampires, who essentially act as the rulers of the world’s vampire population; of course, this was fiction, as part of Stephwnie Meyer’s Twilight series.

Technical Details

This image series was captured with my Fujifilm X-T1 using a Fujifilm XF18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 LM OIS WR lens.  Exposure settings for the series of images were at 1/350-1/1500 second, f/9 at 1000 ISO.  They were processed using Photomatix Pro.

Missing Tuscany

A la proxima, Toscana!

It’s hard to imagine that it’s been less than a week, since we were in Tuscany…  I miss it already!  Between the landscape, food and people, there is no shortage of wonderful in this region of la bella Italia!

As I have just started the task of selecting and editing my favorite images (work does require some of my attention), I’ll share the first 3 from Tuscany for your enjoyment.

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Have a wonderful day!

Love Across the Ages

Amor vincit Psyche

During our trip to Italy, one of the amazing places that we visited were the Excavations at Ostia Antica (Scavi di Ostia Antica).  We spent most of a day exploring this magnificent museum and definitely did not get to see all of it; what you find in these excavations is a sense of what life was like in this ancient harbor of Rome, not through depictions and descriptions, but by the raw footprint and beauty that has been uncovered.

Walking through neighborhoods gives a feeling of what was being done in each of them and how this evolved over time.  People lived and worked in these locales and left their imprint through their buildings, statuary and mosaics.

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Cupid and Psyche

This statue of Cupid and Psyche was located in the Domus di Amore e Psiche near the temple of Hercules.  This house was excavated in 1938.

As I get time to go over all my photos, there will be much more from these wonderful excavations.

Massa Marittima and beyond

Climbs and views!

As ost of our explorations have been further into the hills, there was definitely room for a trip that used the other direction, toward the Mediterranean.  Relatviely close to where we are staying, we found Massa Marittima, a lovely little town with some seriously climbing streets!

Upon entering Massa Marittima, we found ourselves in a lovely piazza with the main palazzo and the cathedral of San Cerbone, who was a bishop in this region during barbaric times (6th century C.E.) with the rather unpopular habit of saying mass at the break of dawn on Sunday rather than waiting for a respectable hour.  This got him in trouble with Pope Vigilius, who recalled him to Rome.  During his trip to Rome he performed several miracles, such as healing and taming wild geese by making the sign of the cross.  In Rome, he woke Pope Vigilius up early stating that it was time for mass, as the angels were signing; Vigilius agreed that he heard heavenly voices too, and allowed Cerbone to perform mass at any time of his choosing after that.

Garden in Massa Marittima
Saint Cerbonius Cathedral
Sharing the Streets
The Climb!
View from the Torre del Candeliere
View of Massa Marittima
Rooftops of Massa Marittima
Rocca Aldobrandesca, Scarlino

The lower part of Massa Marittima is wonderful, but the best views are found by going up toward the Torre del Candeliere and taking in the view from atop this tower; the climb inside the tower is not for the faint of heart, but you are rewarded with a phenomenal view.

After working up an appetite, stop by il Gatto e la Volpe (the cat and the fox), in one of many alleys for a phenomenal meal.  The Etruscan style rabbit was amazing and dessert was simply stunning.

After some further driving around and dipping toes in the Mediterranean by Follonica, we were looking for some gelato and wound up in Scarlino; this sleepy little town is the home of the Rocca Aldobrandesca, an old fortress built by the Aldobrandeschi family.  Getting out of town was an adventure, as I got to go down some steep, narrow streets that were made for nothing much larger than our little Fiat 500.

Under a Tuscan Sun

Perfect weather and sights!

One of the things that we always expect to happen during our vacations is that the weather is perfect!  So far, Tuscany has delivered just that with gorgeous, sunny days that are not too hot and nights that are cool enough for comfortable sleeping.  With this weather, every road trip has been a pleasure and today’s was no exception, as we headed into the direction of Montepulciano.

Driving through the landscape, it is just a joy to behold all the gently rolling valleys and cross the hills that separate them.  The winding roads give a clear indication why Italians would love their supercars, as these roads are made for powerful, highly maneuverable vehicles.

Our first stop was in the small town of Pienza, which is simply gorgeous.  Its small, highly walkable center is filled with little restaurants, such as the one in an alley where we ate a  fantastic meal in an atmosphere where the owner enjoyed our presence.

View from Pienza
Pienza Alley
Montepulciano
da Vinci’s Horse
Streets of Montepulciano
Streets of Montepulciano
Streets of Montepulciano
Tuscan Fields

Little streets and a beautiful church (go check the labyrinth) really show why Pienza is a world heritage site.  Among towns, this is a relatively new settlement, as the entire town was rebuilt as an ideal Renaissance city by Pope Pius II and named after him.

Montepulciano is the larger of the two towns that we visited today.  Sitting on a limestone ridge, this town is a hill climb in just about every direction, as streets are steep each and every way.  The medieval fortress is very much in evidence in many sections, as the heavy walls dominate any time one gets closer to the edge of town.  Wine merchants are everywhere and many indicate that they ship acorss the globe.

On our return trip, I stopped to get some landscape shots, such as the last image in the series; plenty of work to do in editing images when I get home, as these landscapes are just beautiful to see.

A Day in Siena

Hills, beauty and tourists!

As Siena is about 45 minutes by car from where we are staying in Colordesoli, it clearly is a must visit on our list of hill towns.  It is a well-known stop on most tourists’ travels throughout Tuscany, as it generates in excess of 160,000 visits per year.  Even during the pre-season, it was clearly very busy, as can be seen in the image of the Piazza del Campo.

We found a convenient parking lot near Santa Caterina; parking lots are well-indicated, if you come into Sienna from the west side with signage that shows how many spots are still open in the parking lot.  A short uphill trek from our parking lot, got us to the escalators into the center of town.  These escalators took us up about 9 floors to within a 100 meters or so from the Siena Cathedral.

Escalator Start!
Nine Floors Later
Hilly Street
Siena’s Cathedral
Piazza del Campo
City Hall
Restaurants Galore
Laundry
Clapton Rules!
Pope Julius III
Water Everywhere

This catedral is another example of the usage of black and white marble in construction, just like the one in Volterra.  Our first stop was the Piazza del Campo, famous for the Palio horse race, which is run twice a year (early July and mid August); I can only imagine what a madhouse it will be during those races.

Sauntering around the streets that surround the Piazza del Campo, it is easy to keep your bearings, as many of the streets have little alleys that lead back to the main square.  Lots of these streets have great shopping opportunities and fantastic leather products of excellent quality.

Siena is also well-known for its cuisine, and I have to say that it lived up to it, as lunch was truly outstanding!

Overall, I think that Siena was well worth the visit, particularly, as the crowds started thinning out after lunch.  A lovely city with great food and good places to visit!

A Day in Volterra

A quintessential hill town

During our vacation in Italy, one of our driving goals is to get some time to relax and not hurry from location to location in an effort to get as much viewed as possible.  Rather, spending some quality time in a smaller number of locations, which gives us a better feel for what these places are really like (and were like).  As we’re focusing on hill towns in Tuscany, that means we have to make some decisions about which ones we want to visit; one of these choices was between San Gimignano and Volterra, both of which are well known towns.

Stairs up to the Center of Town
Quaint Streets with (local) Traffic
Outside the Basilica
Commemorating the Dead
Beautiful Walks
Etruscan Excavation
Looking over Volterra
Roman Amphitheater
Volterra

Volterra became our first choice, as it is eminently walkable in relaxed fashion and has a great variety of points of interest.  We parked in the free lot (#3), which does require a considerable number of steps to be ascended in order to get into town.  In town, there are lots of quaint little streets, each with their own character and occasional vehicular traffic (locals only!).

The Basilica on the main square is beautiful in its construction of alternating rows of black and white marble, and impressive to see form the inside.  It’s located next to the town hall, which is a rather lively piazza with lots of places to have an espresso or shop for alabaster ware.

After a delicious meal at Torre del Porcellino (I enjoyed my wild boar!), we sauntered over to visit the Etruscan excavation, which is an active archaeological site.  Pay to enter and you also will get access to the Roman amphitheater at the other side of town.  The excavation is of a site with several temples and surrounding houses, and also includes a descent (8 m) into a cistern from Roman times.

The Roman amphitheater is also very impressive, as it leans back against the old town walls and well worth the visit.

The atmosphere in Volterra was very relaxed and provided lots of great shopping for leather and alabaster carvings.  The gelato at Isola del Gusto was fantastic!

A lazy Sunday in Tuscany

Relaxing doesn’t have to be hard work

Sometimes, vacation is all about doing as little as possible, rather than visiting every possible point of interest in the area.  This Sunday, started with a wonderful time to relax during the morning, as we slept in and enjoy a leisurely breakfast on the back porch of our AirBnB place in Colordesoli.  As we didn’t have any firm plans, the decision was to find a gas station that was open and then get some lunch.

The little Fiat 500 was pretty low on fuel, so gas first!  As I wasn’t used to how gas stations are operated in Italy, I mistook no human presence for the station being closed.  As I stopped by a station that, according to Google, was open 24 hours a day, I was still somewhat befuddled by the machine set up.  Luckily, a friendly motorcyclist was helpful and showed me the basics and the tank was soon filled!  After that we stopped by a trattoria for some delicious lunch and were treated to some free dessert.

Roaming around, we stopped by the Abbey at San Galgano, which was a rather interesting locale to visit and photograph.


A trek up the hill next to the abbey got us to the Eremo of Montisiepi, which is a beautiful round structure that was built over the site of the hut where San Galgano spent the last year of his life.  In the center of the round, is San Galgano’s sword, which has been stuck in the rock for over 800 years.

After visiting the hermitage, we stopped by a lovely little wine bar down the path for a bit of sustenance after our trek uphill.

Il Castello di Giulio II

Warrior Pope at this best!

Saturday was our travel day from Ostia Antica to Colordesoli, up in Tuscany. Before we left Ostia Antica, we wanted to take the opportunity to visit the papal castle of Julius II, as it is open for visiting during the weekend.

I mentioned Julius II in a previous post; he was nicknamed ‘The Fearsome Pope’ or ‘The Warrior Pope’ likely due to his rather active foreign policy.  He was elected to the papacy unanimously in 1503, due to a bit of backroom dealing, in which he made the Borgias believe that they would get lots of money as a result of his election.

However, upon getting elected, he stated:

“I will not live in the same rooms as the Borgias lived. He [Alexander VI] desecrated the Holy Church as none before. He usurped the papal power by the devil’s aid, and I forbid under the pain of excommunication anyone to speak or think of Borgia again. His name and memory must be forgotten. It must be crossed out of every document and memorial. His reign must be obliterated. All paintings made of the Borgias or for them must be covered over with black crepe. All the tombs of the Borgias must be opened and their bodies sent back to where they belong—to Spain.”

He very much became his own Pope and was ambitious in building, as much as striking out into foreign lands.  His building projects included the destruction and rebuilding of the St. Peter Basilica (it wasn’t big enough before) and the commission of the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel by Michelangelo.

The castle in Ostia Antica is not huge by castle standards, but nonetheless very impressive.  It is clearly set up for battle, both inside the castle and taking on any siege that may be laid upon it.  Canon and gun ports are everywhere, and they even used the residual heat from gun fire to warm that water for bathing.  In its more recent past, the castle has also been used as a prison, as evidenced by prisoner’s markings on the walls of cells, counting down the days till their death.

The guided tour of the castle is full of information, and even though our tour was in Italian, a couple of our fellow tour participants were nice enough to provide us English translation of a number of tour highlights.  So, if you’re in Ostia Antica during a weekend, check out the Castello de Giulio II!