Saturday - Tuscany to Assisi

Prior to leaving Australia, we had not booked anywhere for the two nights between Tuscany and Positano. Instead we decided to workout where to stay when we got here. A few days ago we decided to book at a hotel in Assisi.

We packed up at our Tuscany castle, bade farewell to our trusty servants and set sail (in our hire car) for Assisi.

We had decided to visit some towns along the way. The first one was Montalcino. It looked like a nice spot because it was high up on the hill but the weather was not great. Because of the cloud, we couldn't see the view and it was too wet to wander around. So we just had a cup of coffee in a coffee shop and moved on.

At lunchtime, we passed through Pienza and decided to stop there. An excellent decision! We went to a restaurant that had been recommended by a friend of Graham & Joan. His recommendation was perfect and the waitress who served us was full of fun.

The rain had eased when we left the restaurant. We discovered the old part of town about 100m away. What a great discovery. It had great buildings and fabulous views.

Next we stopped at Montepulciano, another old town. This was the best stop of the day. It would have been worth the visit just to see an old couple drive out of a tiny "garage" in the old stonework. It looked more like a cupboard. I took lots of photos as a little man put a timber ramp outside the opening and drove his tiny car out of the tiny opening and drove off.

Further on, we heard music and a brass band came marching down the street towards us. A very fitting welcome for people who had become accustomed to living in a castle for the last week.

Then, we stumbled across the entrance to an old hall and realised the reason for the band. Inside the entrance was a flight of stairs lined with men in medieval costumes. A friendly local explained that they were celebrating the 100th anniversary of the local Catholic church's newspaper. He invited us to have a look inside the hall. It was magnificent. Just like you see in the movies. Three or four levels of balcony seating overlooking the auditorium and stage. We took some quick photos and left before the ceremony started because we needed to get to our hotel at Assisi.

We reached the hotel at about 6:15pm. It was at the foot of the hill leading up to the old town of Assisi. Fairly comfortable.

We had dinner in their restaurant downstairs. It was a set menu but gave us a good range of food. Ralf thought the waiter looked like someone out of Mission Impossible. We thought he was probably the owner but we weren't sure.