The Travelling Buncebury's

 Tuscany 3. Into southern Tuscany   some classic Tuscan countryside - Stone pines, vines and a dilapidated redbrick farmhouse Having walked downhill being dragged by our suitcases out of Assisi back to  the carpark, we set course for Montepulciano via a picnic lunch on the edge of Lake Trasimeno. It was quite hot now around lunchtime and I estimate that it was about mid 20’s C, high 70’s F. a town gate and our house right next to it chillin' out in the living room of our house The house we had rented had a large ground floor room which was kitchen, dining and living area all in one with a very high ceiling. Bedrooms and bathrooms were on upper floors and like most of the accommodation we’ve stayed in on this trip, idiosyncratic is the word which springs to mind. It was spacious and importantly had a good sitting area where we could all sit together. Restaurants and shops were close by and we chose what was described as a wine bar but was really a smart restaura...

Tuscany 2.  Assisi the gate through which we entered Assisi  yes, very helpful Via Frate Elia Via Georgetti All of these towns have changed since we first came here in the way they handle tourists. That was in 1990, not long after a serious earthquake which had damaged the main cathedral here quite badly. There are so many more visitors these days that the days of driving up and parking on a bit of waste ground next to the city walls are long gone. Indeed many of the places we visit on this trip allow no traffic other than service vehicles and taxis into the old parts of town. Assisi is certainly no exception and we had to park in an underground multi-storey car park outside the city walls and get a taxi in to our accommodation. It wasn’t far but was steeply uphill and we would be wheeling suitcases. everybody tries the combination - and fails We’re in an old town house with a keypad lock which we can’t open. The instructions have been written by someone who knows w...

  Tuscany 1. Rome first and then into Tuscany the Ponte Sisto, our route from Trastevere over the Tiber into the centre of Rome For some reason we’ve been to Rome three times in the last couple of years and we’re staying in an area I particularly like, Trastevere. It lies just across the Tiber from the centre of this relatively small city and all the main sites. Trastevere is very lively and stuffed full of restaurants, more than I’ve ever seen in one place although many of them have either the exact same menu or variations on it. It’s a great place to stay. We were meeting up with our old friends from Massachusetts, Bonnie and Newt for three weeks in Tuscany and as our taxi pulled up outside our hotel, there was Newt walking towards us from a cafe with our first cup of Roman coffee. Bonnie and Newt had flown in from Boston a couple of days earlier and had a five hour or so time difference but we had to suffer only a one hour time change from Greece. This was Wednesday and we’re du...

  Greece 3. Paros - the second Greek Island on this trip a ferry backing up to the dockside in Paros It was only about a 45 mins ferry ride from Naxos to Paros and we stepped off onto the quay at Parikia in the middle of the seafront parade of shops and restaurants. After a leisurely coffee we checked just where our accommodation was and discovered that it was only about 300 level yards away and 50 yards from the middle of the main shopping area. It was very refreshing not to have every other person ask if we wanted a taxi. There was a striking difference between our modern apartment on Naxos and our traditional Greek cottage here with a small kitchen/dining room, a bedroom and a bathroom. We liked both. Our cottage was one of a group forming the hotel with quite a large courtyard garden containing various citrus fruits growing in it, many with oranges hanging from them. This was where we had every breakfast while we were here, real Greek yogurt, fruit, honey, bread and ...