Italy – turnrightoutofportsmouth

How to head home to the UK from Italy

Heading home from Venice we decided to head through Austria, so were able to visit Lake Garda and Verona on our way home 🙂

After 4 nights we reluctantly bid farewell to Venice. Our next destination: picturesque Lake Garda. On our way though we decided to stop in the historic city of Verona, a place steeped in romantic lore.

Our first glimpse of Verona was a pleasant surprise. We parked the van at a dedicated area near the rather impressive Porta Palio before heading off to walk into the city in the relentless heat of the day. Under normal circumstances we would have waited, but as we had only 1 night here we thought we should push on.

We first encountered the castle walls and another gateway randomly facing the river, and then made our way through a labyrinth of narrow streets and alleyways, each one revealing a piece of Verona’s rich history. The city’s architecture was a delightful blend of medieval and Renaissance styles, with charming towers, arches and frescoed facades around every corner.

One of the highlights of our Verona adventure was discovering Juliet’s house, or at least the 15th-century residence attributed to her. It was a lovely building with its iconic balcony, but whilst there were many people who seemed to be stroking the left breast of Juliet’s statue in the hope of finding true love, we were struck more by the sheer commercialism of the house, beautiful as it was.

Just a stone’s throw away, we also found ‘Romeo’s house’. While the authenticity of these sites may be debatable, there’s no denying the lure they have on tourists (more so Juliet’s house).

Verona also revealed itself as a treasure trove of historical and artistic wonders. We stumbled upon ancient mausoleums that spoke of a bygone era, a rather disturbing set of stocks with a metal neck ring in the centre of a piazza, their solemnity contrasting with the romantic legends that surround the city.

As the day turned to dusk, we sat outside the van with a neighbour, a young Israeli lady travelling on her own towards Norway with her dog Lady. She had the much better idea of wandering into the city in the evening when the heat had abated somewhat!

After a memorable night in Verona, our adventure continued as we made our way to Peschiera, a charming town nestled on the shores of Lake Garda.

We decided on Camping Butterfly, although we quickly realized that it was a rather regimented place with its specific schedules, including designated times for taking out the rubbish.

On our day in Peschiera we cycled along the scenic shores of Lake Garda, heading towards the town of Garda itself. The path proved to be challenging at times, especially the beach section, but the breathtaking views of the lake made it all worthwhile. We paused for a leisurely lunch and a stroll in the lovely town of Lazise, where we discovered a hidden gem of a bar called Nautica. It turned out to be one of the best dining experiences of our trip, with delicious food and a warm atmosphere.

On our way back, we couldn’t resist the temptation to cool off with a refreshing swim in the lake. Thankfully, we had remembered to bring our water shoes, which proved essential for navigating the stony lakebed.

Our second evening in Peschiera took us to a bustling bar, Mida’s Strube, where we found ourselves in the company of Italian triathletes on a training run/swim/ride – we think they may have been international competitors 🙂

As much as we enjoyed Peschiera, we decided to move on to Garda, where we found a dedicated parking spot just a short walk from the lake. This location was perfect for us, and we once again took a dip in the lake, even though it was a bit rockier and less convenient than our previous swim – still a welcome respite from the heat.

In Garda, we made a big mistake by choosing an empty lakeside eatery. Initially presented with an a la carte menu that didn’t quite appeal to us, we were surprised by the waitress’s lack of grace when clearing our table. After a while, we decided to ask another waiter for a different menu – which they did have. We enjoyed our meal and drinks but were taken aback by a hefty bill, including a cover charge of 4E each, reminding us of the importance of choosing wisely when dining in touristy areas. We were really annoyed with ourselves as we are fully aware of these potential issues…

A stroll around Garda led us to a brass band playing, a delightful déjà vu from a previous visit to the town. We had hoped to find the market to replace a cherished tablecloth from years ago, but alas, the market day was the next day, and we missed it as we drove away.

Our final stop in Italy took us to South Tyrol, just south of the Austrian border, where we explored the stunning scenery, admired mountain views, and stumbled upon a mysterious circle of standing stones. As we crossed into Austria and headed towards Germany, we reflected on all the memories that made our 2023 trip through Italy an unforgettable journey, at the same time we looked forward to our meander home through Germany, France, Luxembourg and Belgium, which turned out to be a rather wonderful few weeks 🙂

We stayed: Porta Palio, Verona

Camping Butterfly, Peschiera

Garda Parking, Garda

Italy’s East Coast in a Motorhome

Heading over to the East Coast of Italy and finding an issue with noisy trains along the coast. A couple of nights in Termoli, 1 night in Pineto (cut short due to the trains) and finally a mini-break in San Marino

From Pompeii to Termoli: A Coastal Adventure

Continuing on our journey from the ancient ruins of Pompeii to the opposite coast we settled on an aire in the town of Termoli. Our route took us along the SS85 and SS650 roads. As we neared the opposite coast we picked up River Trigno and ran alongside it almost all the way to the coast. There was obvious evidence of the recent deluge. The river raced towards the sea, its waters darkened by sediment and laden with debris.

Arriving in Termoli, the effects of the storm were still visible. The sea, typically clear and inviting, now carried a band of discoloured water stretching about 50 meters from the shoreline. The normally bustling beaches (evidenced by the rows and rows of sunbeds and umbrellas) wore a deserted look, their allure temporarily dimmed by the aftermath of the heavy rainfall. Clean-up efforts were well underway though with several people working away on the shore and several piles of debris waiting to be collected by the little diggers.

Once again though payment was clearly required to visit most of the beach, with the less salubrious areas left for those not paying.

Termoli welcomed us with its own unique charm. We found a lovely spot in the marina’s dedicated aire, and found that there was a comic and games convention being held there over the weekend. There were several attractions apart from this – a resplendent cathedral resonating with organ practice, a historic castle and remnants of ancient city walls. Notably, Termoli boasts, reputably, the narrowest street in Europe, Rejecelle, a passage that, much to our delight, we navigated successfully 🙂

We managed to get lost just the once, necessitating a minor detour as we assumed there would be another way down to the harbour. As we bid farewell to Termoli, our next destination was Pineto, just beyond Pescara. However, our plans took an unexpected turn. A campsite next to noisy train tracks provided a sleepless night, leading us to alter our route.

On doing some more research we could see that the track ran pretty much alongside the coast all the way up to Rimini (with a minor respite at Pesaro). As this was so close to one of our intended destinations we decided to just head there without another stop (we normally try to drive 100 miles or less).

So we jumped on the motorway (it’s not expensive after all) and headed straight to San Marino. San Marino is a charming principality steeped in history and definitely worth a visit. A few days spent at a campsite in this independent enclave felt like a true holiday, a refreshing change of pace from our usual travel routine.

We jumped on the bus to visit the historic center, and loved the quaint streets, the cable car, which offered stunning views and the fortress towers, which also offered amazing views. San Marino’s tax haven status was evident in the plethora of shops, providing ample shopping opportunities, if that’s your thing.

Back at the campsite, a dip in the pool offered solace from the heat, and a meal at the on-site restaurant proved a quirky but tasty experience. Our time in San Marino felt like a well-deserved pause, a chance to rejuvenate before the next phase of our adventure.

And so, from San Marino, we continued our journey, deciding that we would visit Venice after all (we had had our doubts – I still don’t really know why).

We were now into the last month of our latest adventures and resolved to make the most of these last days. We certainly did that, with very little time to stop we still had another 19 places to visit as we made our way north and home

We stayed: Termoli – Parcheggio Marina Di San Pietro

Pescara – Pineto Beach Campsite (ACSI)

San Marino – Centro Vacanze campsite (ACSI)

Fulfilling a Childhood Dream: Exploring Pompeii, Herculaneum & Vesuvius

A summary of our time in Pompeii visiting the famous ruins, Vesuvius and Herculaneum

Introduction: Visiting Pompeii has been a long-held childhood dream of mine, and finally, the time came to visit & explore the ancient city. We stayed on the outskirts of the city which meant a rather uninspiring and not particularly enjoyable walk of just over 1-1.5 miles into Pompeii; note, we had to endure this walk 6 times (3 x there and back), but it was worth it for what we saw. Pompeii exceeded all expectations and proved to be a place where time seemed to stand still. Ever since our visit Calv has commented with ‘It’s not 2,000 years old though is it?’ to every new sight that we’ve seen…. We didn’t limit ourselves to visiting Pompeii though – we also ‘conquered’ Vesuvius and explored Herculaneum 😊

Pompeii: A couple of people advised us that we needed to allow about 2 hours to exploring the ruins…I know, right?? 2 hours?? Were they mad? We could have spent 2 days nosing around and probably still not seen everything. We spent about 5 hours exploring and barely scratched the surface. Our feet were screaming at us by then in the heat; we did intend to go back a 2^nd day but by the time we got back from Herculaneum (and knowing we still had another 1.5 miles to walk) we simply couldn’t face it (I’ll just have to return another time)

Wandering through the ancient streets, we marvelled at the remarkably well preserved ruins, the wheel ruts along the streets, the high pavements and stepping stones across the streets, the numerous ‘fast-food’ outlets with the amorphae still in place, the mosaics, the friezes, the fountains – the list is endless. The ampitheatre was amazingly well preserved. We were aware of many archaeologists working around the site uncovering more of it all the time (I think that only 2/3 of the site has been uncovered so far) – you can see the depth to which it was buried where excavations have yet to begin.

Finally we wandered through the ancient burial area before viewing the preserved skeletons – they’re actually reproductions that you see, but very poignant nonetheless.

It was a simply amazing visit and I cannot recommend it highly enough.

Note: If you enter near the Ampitheatre entrance there is likely to be less of a queue (we didn’t even have a queue – we thought we did but, we got into the queue only to realise that it was actually for the audio guides!) We just needed to go to the ticket machine and buy our tickets and go on through 😊

‘Conquering’ Vesuvius: We wanted to go up Vesuvius and, preferably, look over the crater but we were being offered ‘tours’ for 45E each, that consisted of, in effect, a taxi ride to Herculaneum and then up to Vesuvius (not including tickets), so we decided to make our own way to both sites. However, our plans hit a roadblock when we discovered that tickets to see the crater were sold out for the next two weeks. No doubt due to the opportunistic operators buying up all the tickets so that tourists have little choice if they want to see the crater. Determined to explore on our terms, we managed our own transportation (we used the local bus and were lucky to get a fairly sane bus driver) and saved a significant sum of money (about 50E), AND saw just as much as we would have done if we’d fallen for it.

On finding the ticket office closed and therefore a short hike up to the crater closed to us, we took an alternate route up the mountain, which afforded us much the same views as we would have seen the other way (but without the crowds). We could now easily see that Vesuvius is actually a volcano within a volcano as we could see the outline of the older Somma clearly.

Calv genuinely believed that we would fool ‘the authorities’ and make it up to the crater on this alternative route…. He was proved wrong when we were stopped by a ranger and asked if we had a ticket (it costs 12E each to look in the crater… assuming you can get a ticket that is…)

We loved the hike that we were able to undertake but, in all honesty, I find the hike up and the views from Snowdon to be very much more stunning. Everyone’s different and I’m sure there will be those who disagree with me on this (not many though!!).

Herculaneum: Pompeii’s Lesser-Known Gem

While Pompeii often steals the limelight, its smaller counterpart, Herculaneum, offers an equally interesting view of the calamitous events of 24^th August 79BC.

After our adventures in Pompeii and conquering Mount Vesuvius, we hopped on a commuter train from the same location that we had taken the bus, ready to explore the lesser-known ruins of Herculaneum. we needed to use was the commuter train and couldn’t help but notice the need for modernization throughout the whole train system (something that has been clear to us on most of our train journeys in Italy). However, amidst the worn-out stations and dated trains, we did notice one station that had either been recently upgraded or was completely new—hopefully, for the Italians who have to use this infrastructure daily, a sign of things to come? The short ride to Herculaneum was a true reflection of the local daily commute, adding an authentic touch to our overall experience and what awaited us at Herculaneum made the journey worthwhile.

On arriving in Herculaneum (Ercolano as it is known nowadays) a brief walk from the train station brought us to the entrance to the ruins. As we crossed the bridge, we were able to look over the entire site – it is vastly different in size to the Pompeii ruins. We could see whole buildings along whole streets, some with 2 stories still intact. Due to the nature of the explosion and the fact that Herculaneum was much closer than Pompeii it was buried in a different way, from the bottom up, which meant that buildings were less likely to collapse and therefore the site seems to be more complete.

The ruins of Herculaneum, while smaller than Pompeii, were no less impressive. Our eyes were immediately drawn to the remarkable 9-meter-long wooden boat, a fascinating artifact that showcased the advanced maritime technology of the time. Additionally, the abundance of gold jewellery on display transported was amazing for the fact that you could imagine many of the pieces being on display in any jewellers today.

While some areas, such as the “urban baths,” were closed during our visit, we made it a point to explore all accessible sections. Learning from our previous experience in Pompeii (aka a ‘scatter gun approach’), we became more circumspect, ensuring that we didn’t miss any hidden corners or intricate details. Herculaneum, with its well-preserved structures and intimate atmosphere, allowed us to immerse ourselves in the daily life of its ancient inhabitants.

Once satisfied that we had seen everything, we treated ourselves to a light lunch at VIP Burger, a nearby eatery. The friendly staff seemed delighted to have customers and provided exceptional service (sadly not always evident during our trip). We even encouraged fellow travellers to take a seat and order here – it was a simple lunch but very tasty 😊

With our feet tired from hours of walking and my long-held dream finally fulfilled, it was time to bid farewell to Pompeii, Vesuvius and Herculaneum and embark on the next leg of our journey—heading towards the East Coast.

Conclusion: Visiting Pompeii fulfilled a cherished childhood dream, immersing us in the rich history and awe-inspiring ruins of this ancient city. The experience taught us that two hours are simply not enough to explore the vastness and intricacies of Pompeii’s archaeological marvels. Having said that, 2 hours is almost enough time to explore Herculaneum- we would perhaps suggest that you go to Herculaneum first, and then Pompeii on a different day. Additionally, our conquest of Mount Vesuvius, despite the unexpected challenges, rewarded us with remarkable views and a sense of accomplishment. As with any journey, it’s not just the destination that matters, but also the lessons learned and the memories created along the way.

Where we stayed: La Terraza di Hermes

How to get from Rome to Pompeii when on a Motorhome Roadtrip

Our journey from Rome to Pompeii – seeing more of Italy. Includes links for reviews of where we stopped overnight 🙂

Introduction: Travelling through Italy offers an incredible array of historical and cultural treasures to explore. As we bid farewell to Rome, we headed to the captivating Villa Adriana (on the recommendation of a friend), the surprise that was Anagni, the beautiful Montecassino Abbey arriving eventually in Pompeii to visit the ruins. This was to be my main stop of the trip (i.e. the one that if I could only go to 1 place then this was it) being a long held dream of mine to visit. Find out in my next post if it lived up to expectations!

Villa Adriana: offered a small glimpse into Ancient Roman Luxury. Leaving Rome, we headed towards the Villa Adriana (Hadrian’s, rather lavish, present to himself), located just outside Tivoli. The drive was interesting at the end, as the main road in (itself narrow and through a residential area) was closed so we had to negotiate the very narrow streets and the school run!!

This is a UNESCO World Heritage site which was once the opulent retreat of Emperor Hadrian. As we strolled through the sprawling complex, we were stunned by the sheer size and grandeur of the imperial palace, stunning gardens and intricate architecture. My favourite bit was the island inside a moat inside a theatre where, apparently, Hadrian really did retreat. From the villa. That he built for himself….

Anagni: Moving on, we found a stopover up in the hills next to a town called Anagni (Citta dei Papi) Quite a drive up and around the bottom of the old town to find our spot, but what a view we had!

In the morning we decided to go for an early walk around the town to see what it was like. Well it was a real surprise! Narrow streets led straight to a cathedral and bell tower (closed at this time on a Saturday morning, although the bells still rang!) Beautiful narrow, quaint streets leading to equally charming houses brimming with flowers and shutters, we were capitvated by the charming atmosphere. Even the usual Italian traffic racing through the (supposedly pedestrian) streets couldn’t spoil our initial impressions.

Anagni turned out to be much larger than we had anticipated, revealing hidden gems, tight links to a number of Popes (hence Citta dei Papi) and wonderful views at every turn. It was a most pleasant and unexpected detour that we were really pleased to have discovered.

Montecassino Abbey: Our next destination for an overnight stop was the historic Montecassino Abbey, known as the birthplace of the Benedictine Order.

I’d spotted this as I’d been plotting out possible routes to Pompeii from Rome. The only thing putting me off was the clear switchbacks on the map, but Calv gave me one of his looks when I mentioned this, so up we went!!

Perched atop a hill, the abbey offers breathtaking panoramic views of the surrounding countryside. However, reaching it proved to be quite an adventure. The narrow road leading up to the abbey featured six treacherous switchbacks, and our encounter with a coach made for an exhilarating and nerve-wracking ascent. (There’s a video of this event on my Instagram feed if you’re interested 😊-https://www.instagram.com/reel/CtT6GqtIKxd/) Nevertheless, the stunning beauty of the abbey and its rich historical significance made it all worthwhile.

I didn’t realise that this was actually the site of a huge WWII battle, and it made sense that the abbey looked so ‘new’ when I discovered that it has been rebuilt twice, the last time being after the war. The abbey is well worth a visit, particularly the crypt of the cathedral – I’ve never seen anything like it before!

Pompeii: I assumed that it was best to follow the SatNav on arriving in Pompeii and heading for our stopover – when will I learn?!. Instead she (yes, it’s definitely a she I’m afraid) lead us through the congested centre of town before I managed to takeover and direct us in a more sensible manner. At least we now knew exactly how to get back to the ruins on foot when we were ready to visit the following day! We also had wonderful views of Vesuvius (an ever changing view as the clouds scudded across the sky and the thunder storms came and went).

I will deal with our visits to the ruins of Pompeii and Herculaneum and our jaunt up Vesuvius on the local bus in a separate post 😊

Conclusion: All of the sites mentioned here are definitely worth visiting. If you only have time for 1? Not counting Pompeii (not dealt with that yet) it would be MonteCassino 😊

Where we stopped:-

Anagni –

Montecassino

Pompeii – la Terraz di Hermes

What is it really like Exploring Rome? The Reality

3 days spent exploring Rome and still not sure we saw it all! However, we saw everything that we wanted to 🙂

Introduction: Rome, the eternal city, is a treasure trove of history, art, and culture. Staying in a hotel in the heart of the city on a traditional city break can be exhilarating, but the way in which we travel offers a vastly different experience as we experience Rome proper, rather than just the edited highlights.

In this blog post, I will share our experience of staying in Flaminio on the outskirts of the city, taking the train in with ordinary residents and commuters from Due Ponti, and exploring the iconic landmarks of Rome in a span of four days (including 1, very necessary, day off!).

Day 1: A Journey through Ancient Rome: Our adventure began with a train ride from Due Ponti, a serviceable ‘updated’ station (1 day the turnstiles weren’t working; another day it was the ticket machine), sitting alongside the no longer used old station; although this is likely due to laziness I did love seeing the old station with the blocked off underpass 😊

Arriving in Rome, we dived headfirst into its ancient history and it’s most iconic sights, ‘The Colosseum, the Roman Forum and the Palatine Hill’ which still stand as monumental reminders of the city’s glorious past. Immersing ourselves in the awe-inspiring ruins, we (Calv in particular) marvelled at the ingenuity of the ancient Romans; the Colosseum delivered everything promised, the Roman Forum was never ending – with sight after sight and the Constantine Arch stood guard over everything.

However, we were constantly harangued by those trying to sell overpriced tour tickets – telling us the official queue (which wasn’t well managed) was 4 hours… (it was about 1 hour – quite long enough!) The ticket gets you entrance to all 3 attractions – we would have spent the extra 6Euros to visit ‘the underground’ of the Colosseum, but unfortunately it was sold out for the day ☹

Throughout Rome, whatever faults there may be, there is an abundance of water fountains available to fill your bottles.

From the Roman Forum and the Palatine Hill we could see a huge monument which we didn’t discover until our 3^rd day of exploring – it was well worth it 😊

These 3 attractions are in a very compact area, and we were therefore able to use the same metro to head home as we arrived at (there are not a huge number of stations to choose from unfortunately..)

Day 2: The Vatican City: On the second day, we set our sights on Vatican City, a city state within Rome. Once again, not well signposted from the minimal metro network, but we managed to find our way in the end.

There was a long queue for the Vatican museums (buying a ticket is the only way to see the Sistine Chapel unfortunately – as I wasn’t overly bothered about the museums we decided to give this a miss (which doesn’t stop the ticket sellers from haranguing you every step you walk))

Instead we headed straight for St Peter’s Square (again minimal signage to help you to negotiate the city and find the main sights). But once there we loved the grandeur of St. Peter’s Square, where the faithful gather in the shadow of the magnificent St. Peter’s Basilica. On this day they were preparing for a large gathering to be held in a couple of days.

The square itself is beautiful including a wonderful fountain (which provided a very welcome shower of spray) and a statue honouring all refugees over time. There is also a post office, which, had I realised or thought about it, I would have gone into to post a couple of postcards and perhaps had my passport stamped. But I didn’t ☹

Returning to visit the basilica later in the day, the opulent interior almost left us speechless. Note: the queues look longer than they actually are and are mainly to get through the airport type security that you will experience throughout Rome. Entrance to the Basilica is free and I would absolutely recommend it.

After lunch we headed to the Castel Sant’Angelo which stood as a testament to Rome’s layered history. Well worth the 12Euros entry fee, there is far more to this castle than you might first think. We arrived at a quiet point and didn’t have much of a queue. It was a lovely surprise wandering around discovering the delights of this attraction. There is a café/restaurant on a terrace near the top level which might be worth a visit for lunch.

Having returned to visit St Peter’s Basilica we were delighted to spot a couple of Swiss Guard in their iconic uniforms (never too happy to have their photos taken of course!)

We then, accidentally, exited the square and headed in the wrong direction (we turned right…) which resulted in us walking the entire circumference of the Vatican City’s towering walls in the course of the day, which is really not a particularly pleasant way to complete your visit!! And it was, of course, my fault….

Day 3: A Day of Rest: After two days of intense exploration, we decided to take a well-deserved break. It was a day of relaxation, basically doing a spot of washing and heading to the swimming pool to cool off 😊

Day 4: The Heart of Rome: On our final day, we ventured into the historic heart of Rome, to visit the last few sights on our list – the Spanish Steps, The Trevi Fountain and The Pantheon.

I had hoped to also visit the Piazza Navona, but a wrong turn early in the day (☹) and lots of walking around the busy streets meant that we didn’t make it. We did however discover some other sights that weren’t on our list – the Vittorio Emanuelle II monument (including the tomb of the unknown warrior) and the Teatro Marcello.

First stop was the Spanish Steps, accessed from the Spagna Metro station. The fountain at the bottom of the steps was quite impressive (and you could refill your water bottle here), but the steps themselves were largely obscured by the hordes of people on them. We did, of course, walk up, and down and then headed through the shopping district (where I did buy a new bikini…) in search of the Trevi Fountain.

Having initially walked the wrong way and unintentionally visited Piazzale Flaminio, we eventually found the Trevi fountain. Again a very impressive sight, but heaving with tourists. It is huge! I chose not to throw any coins in….

Last up was the Pantheon, but on the way we found the Vittorio Emanuelle monument, which was very impressive, and from which you can look over the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill. From there we spotted what looked like a mini colosseum, but was in fact the Teatro Marcello, an ancient open-air theatre that was completed in 13BC – very impressive 😊

When we eventually found the Pantheon there was a short queue to visit. It was much smaller than I expected, but no less impressive for that. Definitely worth the long walk to find it!

Conclusion: Staying on the outskirts of Rome and commuting in from Due Ponti allowed us to experience a different view of Rome than most who visit will see. This means that we don’t see the ‘fully sanitised’ version of the city, but rather the full reality, including walking through the less salubrious districts and ‘enjoying’ the real experience of commuting into the city (the trains and stations are very dated).

We very much enjoyed our time in Rome and saw all the sights that we wanted to. We’re glad that we went but we wouldn’t return (hence why I didn’t throw any coins into the fountain!)

How we got from Florence to Orbetello on the coast, (via Monteriggioni and Siena)

After leaving Pisa we headed inland to Florence before making our way back to the coast at Orbetello via Monteriggioni and Siena. Next stop – Rome 🙂

Visiting Florence (or Firenze as it’s known in Italy), the cultural capital of Tuscany, is a dream come true for many. We felt that we should visit and see the main sights, but there wasn’t anything we particularly wanted to see. In this post, I’ll take you on a whirlwind tour of Florence and the places we discovered after leaving there, and before making our way to Rome.

Florence: The Duomo and Beyond:

We stayed outside the city centre in a fairly uninspiring, but handy, camper stop in Scandicci. It was convenient as we had just a 10 minute walk to the tram which then took us into the centre within about 15 minutes. If you’re ever here, do make sure that you’re holding on when the tram starts up – the driving of trams, and trains, as with any vehicle in Italy is very aggressive, leading to people nearly falling over left, right and centre….

Arriving in the city centre, we picked up a map from the information centre and then made our way to the historic centre, where we were met with a view of the spectacular Duomo and Baptistery, both of which are truly breathtaking. It really is a sight to behold and as a result, after much umming and ahhing, we decided to join one of the long queues to go inside the iconic Duomo. Our queue snaked its way past the campanile (bell tower). Of course, there were no queues there as it is ticketed only!

Once inside the cathedral, we soon discovered that the real marvel lay in its exterior beauty rather than the interior. We looked at the dome from below, which was definitely worth seeing, and tried heading down the steps towards the crypt (the crowds were inhibiting) only to find another area that needed to be paid for and, of course, the gift shop….

With many warnings in mind we chose to sit outside a bar at the dome end of the Duomo for a drink – I enjoyed a limoncello spritz 😊 It wasn’t overly expensive and we were able to appreciate the exterior of the cathedral more – noticing that we were sitting at the point where they had yet to clean!!

We spent the rest of the day simply exploring the city’s other architectural gems, such as the Ponte Vecchio, populated entirely by high end jewellers shops, and various palaces (Pitti Palace), statues and fountains. We saw the Uffizi gallery from outside, but the queues were huge (and you really do have to book ahead if you want to go inside).

We enjoyed a nice lunch at Il Bargello (me, ravioi; Calv, meatballs) overlooking the magnificent building that the National Museum di Bargello is housed within. We also enjoyed our 2^nd gelato of the trip (the first having been in Lucca – it was more expensive in Florence!!)

We stayed:- Scandicci

Monteriggioni: Leaving Florence behind, we had found a camper stop with all services (including toilets, showers and electric – for 16Euros per night) at the enchanting walled town of Monteriggioni, a true hidden gem. Although we were heading for Siena (having seen it recommended by another tourer) we decided to stop here first and then just have a short 10-15 miles to Siena the next day. We ended up staying 2 nights as it was just perfect, with the most wonderful views over the Tuscan countryside 😊

Heading about half mile up the steep hill on the Via Fracigena (an ancient walk from Canterbury to Constantinople) we town itself. It is a tiny town that captures the essence of medieval Italy. The atmosphere was vibrant on a Sunday, as locals, cyclists, bikers, and tourists alike filled the narrow, windy cobblestone streets. We soaked up the town’s rich history, strolled around it’s few streets, and partook of a quick drink and ice cream sundae. The church was tiny but beautiful, and we enjoyed listening to the bells ringing.

(Campers note – there is a car park just below the city walls where you can park for a lower day rate. If you don’t fancy a bracing walk up the hill!!)

We stayed:- Monteriggioni

Siena: Moving on on Monday we continued just a few miles up the road to Siena, where we parked in an authorised stop which is used by coaches. Again, not overly inspiring – being in the middle of a roundabout – but perfect for our purposes (cost 20Euros).

We could see Siena as we approached, perched high above the main road. Walking up a road (which is normal it would appear..) we found the elevators to take us up to the historical centre. This is a city renowned for its medieval architecture and famous Palio horse race. Once we knew this all the mini ceramic helmets on sale in the tourist shops made more sense! There is a lot more to it, including, of course, a duomo, a magnificent piazza dominated by a tower (which you can go up – we couldn’t face it!!) We’re convinced that this square is where public executions were held (Piazza del Campo). For lunch we enjoyed a giant slice of pizza (which I worked out how to eat – after I’d finished and having made a bit of a mess!!) We later returned to sit on a narrow, perhaps you could say rickety, balcony overlooking the piazza, enjoying a drink and indulging in a bit of people watching 😊

The narrow streets were a labyrinth, with mopeds zipping by at every turn, defying the conventional rules of the road (as seems to be the norm in Italy ☹). Amidst the confusion, we stumbled upon a delightful surprise: the enchanting strains of a piano practice accompanied by a soaring opera soprano, drifting from a window high above us. It was one of those moments that will stay with us forever – and made the fact that we were lost, again, very worthwhile 😊

We also walked a fair way to find the fort shown on the map, then walked the whole way around the fort to find the entrance (we should have turned right… we always should (except when leaving St Peter’s Square in Rome, but that’s another story…)) and watching a fairground HGV going through one of the entrance arches with just cms to spare!!

Once again, we managed to get back to the van within a minute of so of the heavens opening and yet another thunderstorm ensuing – luck seems to have been with us so far on this trip; long may it continue….

We stayed: Siena

Orbetello: Finally after the hustle and bustle of the previous week or so we decided to head to the coast before making our way to Rome. Plus we had just discovered that Friday was Republic Day, a public holiday, so we thought it prudent to get ourselves onto a site to sit it out.

We identified our destination as being Orbetello, a coastal town on a narrow spit leading to an island. We spent the first couple of days indulging in beach and pool time, interrupted on the last couple of days by bike rides. The first of these was not successful – we couldn’t find the cycle path we’d been told about, and ended up heading the wrong way when we got onto the island. With fast moving Italian traffic (mopeds overtaking the cars that were overtaking bikes – not great when they’re coming towards you on a narrow windy road) this wasn’t enjoyable, so we headed back early having only covered 9 miles.

We then did a bit of research and found the cycle path, so set off again the next day. Much more successful (managed a full 14 miles this time)! First stop on reaching Orbetello was lunch in the delightful Café Gagu. We then locked up the bikes and went for a wander, stumbling upon another hidden gem when we discovered the town’s history as a seaplane base, adding a unique twist to its charm. Orbetello town turned out to be a delightful surprise, and we were so glad that we went out that 2^nd day as it would have been so easy to head back to the beach and veg out!!

We stayed:- Camping Orbetello

Conclusion: So we went to Florence, Monteriggioni, Siena and Orbetello over the course of just over a week. Our favourite? For me it had to be Monteriggioni, followed by the day we cycled to Orbetello and discovered it’s hidden history.

What we are finding throughout Italy is that there is a lack of information available. Often there will be information boards, but they tend to go into so much technical detail (architecture etc.) that even I, a voracious reader, get bored and give up!!

The moral of the story however is to head off the beaten track and discover those places that are not written about and photographed everywhere – these new discoveries were very much more pleasant to visit.

See the following links for photos:-

Florence:- https://www.instagram.com/p/CsuHQYuoRw4/

Monteriggioni:- https://www.instagram.com/p/CsvhOvlorhU/

Siena:- https://www.instagram.com/p/Cs1MLeZIJAx/

Orbetello:- https://www.instagram.com/p/Cs_qJZXIR2M/ https://www.instagram.com/p/Cs4VFmZI2OH/

Next stop on our Italian Adventure: Exploring Lucca and Pisa

The next stage of our Italian roadtrip taking in Lucca and Pisa 🙂

We set off from Celle Ligure hoping for a relaxing, picturesque run along the coast road to our next destination near Marina di Massa. Unfortunately it wasn’t to be; the road was far from picturesque or relaxing, so after suffering the clogged outskirts of Genoa, we decided to jump onto the toll road, which turned out to be surprisingly affordable (14.30Euros to go 73 miles). We looked forward to arriving in Marina di Massa, but were unfortunately rather disappointed on arrival.

The campsite, Camping Giardino, was not what we had been expecting and trying to find a supermarket was very frustrating involving cycling along a busy, uninspiring road to find a Carrefour Express with very poor produce ☹

However, the next morning brought a renewed sense of optimism as I ventured out for a short run along the coast. I ran the other way to where we’d cycled the previous day, which offered some slightly more promising scenery. We were in need of a rest though and chose to chill out by the van and around the pool for the day. We forgot to take our swimming hats though and chose not to use those that were offered to us (they’d clearly never been washed…)

We had some British neighbours for the first time and they told us about the region’s abundant marble quarries of Carrara. We had seen much evidence of this on our drive, seeing huge marble slabs waiting to be transported. Our neighbours had a motorbike with them and went up to undertake the quarry jeep tour, which they said was amazing.

After a restful 2 nights we moved on, passing through the much nicer area of Marina di Massa just a mile or so up the road…

Our next stop was the enchanting city of Lucca, a place that quickly won our hearts. We stayed at the dedicated motorhome parking area of Parking Luporini, which was absolutely perfect 😊

We had a quick wander down to the town in the evening but saved our main exploration for the following day when we were greeted by a vibrant and bustling atmosphere. Having to negotiate the city’s streets, competing with an eclectic mix of bikes, mopeds, delivery vans and even rubbish trucks was most certainly an experience! Even the supposedly pedestrianized areas were not immune to the bustling energy of daily life.

While in Lucca, I took the opportunity to collect a unique souvenir—a fridge magnet crafted by the talented artist Maria Guida. It serves as a charming memento, capturing a piece of Lucca’s spirit that I will keep with me.

Sadly, our visit to the iconic Torre de Guinigi was thwarted by its closure for maintenance. Nevertheless, we found solace in the city’s beautiful cathedral, its architectural splendour a testament to Lucca’s rich history.

For lunch, we discovered Undici Undici, a quaint restaurant with a mesmerizing view of the cathedral. The ambience was enhanced by the warm hospitality of a lovely waitress, who added a personal touch to our dining experience.

Later in the evening, as the sun set, we embarked on a bike ride atop the city walls, immersing ourselves in the vibrant tapestry of Lucca’s evening activities. The walls were alive with walkers, scooter riders, and an abundance of runners, all enjoying the shared space and the city’s unmistakable charm. From here we were able to appreciate all the sights of Lucca from a different perspective.

I wanted to start the day with a run along the city walls, but found myself succumbing to exhaustion from all the walking the day before!

From Lucca, we had just a short journey onto Pisa, where we finally fulfilled our long-held dream of seeing the leaning tower. The tower did not disappoint, and we realized that pictures alone cannot do justice to its unique lean.

The cathedral and baptistery in the Piazza dei Miracoli were equally impressive. We learned that the leaning tower started leaning during its construction but has been stabilized to prolong its lifespan – it’s thought by a further 300 years.

After enjoying a drink just outside the city walls, we walked along the city walls before finding our way back to the motorhome parking area, Camperisti Pisani, which had the added bonus of an old, abandoned running track nearby – so at least I managed to get a run in this time 😊

Our next destinations were Florence and Siena, and I will include details of both in my next post 😊

Note: for more photos see my instagram & facebook posts 🙂

https://www.instagram.com/turnrightoutofportsmouth/

https://www.polarsteps.com/turnrightoutofportsmouth/7279815-italy-etc-2023

A Scenic Road Trip: Chianocco to Cuneo to Celle Ligure, Avoiding Toll Roads

We all know that embarking on a road trip offers us an opportunity to explore hidden gems and embrace the freedom of the open road. In this post, I’ll take you on a journey from Chianocco to Celle Ligure, avoiding the toll roads.

Along the way, we stopped overnight in the charming town of Cuneo, with its fascinating history and laid-back atmosphere. From there, we continued to Celle Ligure, where the initial black gritty beaches morph into something a little more inviting.

Chianocco to Cuneo: We took the scenic route towards Cuneo, having made the decision to avoid toll roads wherever possible. At this stage we were happy with our decision and were finding that the roads weren’t THAT bad (certainly no worse than the toll roads in Portugal!)

Upon arrival in Cuneo, we quickly found our free park-up (okay there was a slight hitch, but that was our fault!) – at first it appeared to be full (as there was a sign on the barrier (which was up) saying ‘Complet/Full’). However, it wasn’t and in addition the terminal for payment was broken so we weren’t able to pay our 5 Euros – we would happily have paid as we had all services, including electric. We shared the sosta with a few occupants who did appear to be, shall we say, very at home there – they were quite loud, checking on anyone arriving and even cutting branches off the trees!

From the car park, a lift takes you up to the heart of town, where the enchanting Via Roma awaits.

The first thing we noticed though was a sign detailing a 5k running route along an avenue and back – I fully intended to take advantage of this in the morning. But it was raining. Hard ☹ (I had also thought that I might take advantage of the swimming pool – but I didn’t do that either!!)

We strolled along this beautiful street (Via Roma), lined with beautiful architecture and many shops. This is where we found a Vodafone shop and managed to get 100gb of data 😊

We then made our way to Piazza Vittoria, a central square known for its lively atmosphere and the poignant speech given by Ducca Galimberti when Mussolini’s regime fell. This historical moment is deeply etched into the city’s identity. There is a recreation of the speech being given on the balcony where it happened. Read more about Ducca Galimberti’s story here.

We then visited the magnificent Duomo di Cuneo, where we were fortunate enough to wander in during an organ practice, the sound reverberating through the grand cathedral. We took a moment to admire the intricate details of the church’s architecture and soak in the peaceful ambiance.

Cuneo to Celle Ligure: Moving on from Cuneo, we headed south (again avoiding the toll roads) towards Celle Ligure. As we hit the coast road, we noticed that the beaches were of the black gritty variety. As it was raining still I don’t think we had the best views of the Ligurian Sea!

However, on arriving in Celle Ligure we realised that here the beaches were different, being of sand. Not quite golden but certainly a more appealing hue 😊

This was quite a hard drive along the coast roads, and we had to head towards the motorway to reach our aire, this time navigating a series of switchbacks up the hill (this holds no fear – Calv drove the Mont Cenis Pass!!)

Once set-up and fed the rain eventually stopped and we ventured out down the steep hill (already with the dread of having to come back up it!) to explore a little of Celle Ligure. This is a coastal town exuding charm and character with multi-coloured villas, street art and a walk/cycle tunnel (Galleria Crocetta), a unique attraction housed within a former train tunnel. This repurposed space now occasionally hosts various exhibitions, showcasing contemporary art and cultural events.

It would appear that in Italy you may have to pay to visit many of the beaches – we have noticed signs showing short stretches where it’s free. We also noticed that in just a short stretch of the seafront Celle Ligure had 2 lidos. It was a very relaxing wander until we had to make our way back up the steep hill to our van!

In summary travelling from Chianocco to Cuneo to Celle Ligure without taking toll roads is certainly achievable and provides a delightful journey through history and coastal charm. Cuneo’s rich heritage, highlighted by the lift to town, Via Roma, Piazza Vittoria, and the Duomo, offers a taste of Italy’s past contrasts with Celle Ligure’s seaside vibe, but both were worth a visit in their own right.

However, I think, with hindsight, that we should have driven further east from Chianocco before taking the road down past Genoa as we headed further South.

My next post will look at the last week or so, including staying near Cassara and the marble quarries (we didn’t visit – we just needed to stop!) and then moving on to Lucca, Pisa and, presently, Florence 😊

Note: More photos can be found on my instagram, (https://www.instagram.com/turnrightoutofportsmouth/) and facebook (https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100028126913740) pages

Traversing the Mont Cenis Pass: A Motorhome Adventure from France to Italy

We unexpectedly ended up heading through the stunning Mont Cenis Pass, to get from France to Italy, and it was an experience that delivered breath-taking views, thrilling twists and turns (lots of them) and an abundance of historical and natural wonders to enjoy. This scenic route gave us Fort Marie Therese, from where you can take several via ferrata routes on the Via Ferrata du Diable up to Fort Victor Emmanuel; stationery chairlifts hanging empty and silent just metres above us; a beautiful lake at the summit and the remains of Grand Croix abandoned village which was the only village ‘saved’ when the dam was built and all the other local villages were flooded. Join us as we take you on a captivating journey through this picturesque mountain pass.

Fort Marie Therese and Via Ferrata: As you make your way through the Mont Cenis Pass, a stop at Fort Marie Therese is almost impossible to resist. This impressive 19th-century fortress offers up a large car park, a snack bar (not open when we visited), toilets, high ropes courses and picnic tables. We stopped to drink in the amazing scenery.

Serene Lake and Grand Croix Abandoned Village: After winding our way through the twisty, steeply climbing roads and hairpin bends, we were eventually greeted by the serene beauty of Lake Mont Cenis. Not particularly blue on the day we passed by, and with the water level not as high as it really should be, it is still breath-taking and certainly merited stopping, again…. At the head of the lake we stopped for a spot of lunch while it snowed lightly outside the van 🙂

As we began our descent towards Italy and just a short distance from the lake, we stumbled upon the ghostly Grand Croix abandoned village – I say stumbled, we could clearly see it from our lunch spot, but it wasn’t clear just how abandoned it was from there. Frozen in time, this ghost town offers a hauntingly beautiful sight. We explored the crumbling houses (I waited for Calv to head back to the van to get his raincoat before venturing inside 1 of the buildings) and overgrown paths, and imagined the lives that once thrived in this remote location. It would appear however that the chapel is still in use (much like the church in Dorset’s abandoned village of Tyneham). As we left I spotted the sign saying it was too dangerous to enter (as I said to Calv I’m not daft, and I was careful to not step anywhere dodgy…)

Customs and the Border: The village is behind a large car park and hut. This is the customs hut (no longer used). This isn’t the actual border as we first thought (hence the daft photo – we thought that 1 of us was in France and the other in Italy…), but where the border is, a little way further along the road, there is no possibility of a customs point. There is also evidence of the original road here. Whilst at the village we spotted some more Marmots running around and hiding from us behind clumps of grass – although we could still hear them squeaking to each other (and, who knows, perhaps to us as well 🙂

Overnight in Chianocco: By the time we were in Italy we were shattered, so made a quick stop at the first Lidl supermarket we saw – Calv stayed in the van whilst I went in to get a couple of essentials (it would appear that Lidl in Italy is way better than Lidl in France).

For our first overnight stay in Italy we headed up just beyond Bussonelo to the village of Chianocco. We parked up amidst the scenic beauty of the countryside enjoying views of mountains and grapevines, and enjoyed a restful night’s sleep after sitting out for the 1st time on our trip (with coats on though!!). This set us up nicely for our onward journey south through Italy (starting with a stay in the beautiful city of Cuneo)

Conclusion:

We’re so glad that we met up with Gary from @Happy2Dream who persuaded us (although it didn’t take much to be fair!) to abandon our plans to go through the Frejus tunnel (which would have cost us at least 68Euros – probably more like 80Euros) and head over the pass.

Because driving over the Mont Cenis Pass, even in an 8.5m motorhome, from France to Italy gave us an unforgettable experience, and is the highlight of our trip so far 🙂 (especially the village of Grand Croix). I watched Calv enjoying every minute of the drive – he said it’s so much better than using the motorways 🙂

So, if this is something that you’ve considered and dismissed, or are still undecided, our advice is to go for it (unless it’s snowing….) You won’t regret it – we didn’t 🙂

Coronavirus and Travel Plans – To Go or Not To Go…..?

So here we are at the end of February with a planned date to leave for Europe of 5th March… Our plans? Head down through France to Italy, take in Rome and Venice on our way through Italy to visit Croatia, Slovenia, Austria, Germany and Belgium.
Hmm – little spanner in the works now called CoronaVirus means our plans are up in the air – what to do?

Do you ever get that feeling that you should be more excited for your upcoming plans than you are? And then something happens that suggests you were right not to be excited – you’re pshycic – you knew all along that this might happen (or not, as the case may be). Ever been there?

Well, I suspect that we’re not the only people in this position currently. Only perhaps we are slightly more fortunate in that we have nothing booked and we can just do what we want, when we want – to a certain degreee anyway.

What am I talking about? Well our plans for our next trip were well underway – in sofaras we ever plan. This time the plan was catch a ferry, possibly on 5th March (we haven’t booked it yet), pootle down through France, finally crossing the Millau Viaduct on the way; head into Italy and down Continue reading “Coronavirus and Travel Plans – To Go or Not To Go…..?”