WoodWalkAbout

Wood Walkabout

MARCH:
ITALY:

Amalfi & Pompeii
Tuscany (Chianti, Sienna, Piza, Florence, Rome)

Amalfi/Pompeii: (aver. 10 deg. C)
As we made our final descent into southern Italy, we passed the heavily built up & densely populated city of Naples better known locally as Napoli. We had always talked about one day going to Amalfi, so our expectations upon arrival were high. We were to learn though, that travel, had no guarantees, especially where the weather and children’s health was concerned. Having successfully negotiated the tiny narrow roads with “Madge,” our monstrosity of a car (relatively speaking,) we found our apartment in the tiny mountainside village of Pergerola, next to Amalfi.

The Amalfi Coastline

Cassidy & Mitchell on our balcony in Pergerola

Littered beach in Majori

Following a comprehensive debrief by our host, Monica, on everything we needed to know and the stuff we didn’t know why we should know, ( like which rubbish bag went in which roadside bin on which day & where the fuse boxes were,) we settled in. We were perched on the side of a mountain above countless lemon grove terraces which began at the sea, whilst above us, towered the tiny village and a rock face which stretched up hundreds of metres.
On our arrival, the weather seemed promising, despite the thin layer of fog and mist masking the horizon. What we didn’t realise was that this was to be the best day during our stay. This hazy & overcast view of the beautiful coastline, so well documented in all the travel mags. soon gave way to 6 days of continuous rain. This coupled with black outs, storms, heating failures, road closures, malfunctioning appliances, and Sheridan getting a virus with 40 deg. fevers for most of our stay, meant that we probably missed the true Amalfi that we’d heard so much about. Knowledge of our fuse box location had become a priority!

Gardens and coast line view from The Villa Ravello

Town Square in Ravello during siesta

Sheri and Cassi sharing some pizza with some new friends

Nontheless, we did our best and In the limited opportunities we had to explore, we visited some interesting spots. The first & best of them was Ravello, (photographed) especially it’s beautiful hilltop villa overlooking the ocean, which still plays host to annual summer time opera and orchestral concerts. Majori and Minori, two seaside towns to the south west of Amalfi, towards Salerno, also offered us momentary relief from school work and some of the frustrations of our stay. As you can see, the grey, littered sand was quite a contrast to the beaches of home. Amalfi itself was pleasant, although not overwhelmingly so, given the weather. A short stroll around the town square and the promenade was about all we were up to. We would just have to imagine what it would be like in the full swing in summer.

Our attempts to see Sorrento and the Isle of Capri (which we’d both visited 20 years ago,) and Positano, (which we’d been told was a “must see” ) were foiled, because of a rock slide and road closure from all the wet weather. This was disappointing and did nothing for Julie’s peace of mind for our apartment’s stability during the two nights of bad storms that followed.

Alfonzo telling Mitchell all about the bakery at Pompeii

Sheri with her favourite Italian car

One side trip we were determined to do though, come rain and sick kids, was Pompeii. We’d left it till the end, hoping that Sheridan might be fully recovered and that the rain might have eased, neither of which eventuated. So we saw Pompeii, but only just, under the guidance of Alfonzo, who we hired out of desperation to “see something” despite the unrelenting rain and a far from well, child. He was a godsend, and Sheri, we have to say, was a trouper! We saw and learnt a lot despite our predicament, much to Mitchell’s delight, and appreciated how much more had been uncovered in the past 20 years since our last visit. It was amazing, and they’re still going, with more ruins being uncovered all the time.

Benito and Mitch at our local geletaria bar in Pergerola

Julie with the locals at mobile fruit and veg. truck

Man from Pergerola moving steel

Pergerola itself though, was what held special charm for us. Being restricted to go too far on our outings of discovery with Sheridan not peaking, meant that we got to know the local village quite well. The simple things like getting Gelato from Peitro at the Geletaria, buying fruit and veg. from the locals and recalling the church bells from the church at the top of our hill, (which rang every 15 mins. mind you,) and the size and volume of lemons that were grown everywhere, will remain fond memories of our stay. As luck would have it, we saw the horizon for the first time as we pulled away down the hill and headed for Tuscany, leaving the real Amalfi for the summer tourists.

Tuscany: (4 deg. C to 22 deg. C)

The trip to Tuscany was a long one, so much so, that we noticed the “Madge’s” temperature guage rise about 5 degrees during the course of the day. We arrived late, having driven all day, stopping into our soon to be, new local village of Panzano for supplies before meeting up with the owners of our next temporary home. The countryside of the north was so different to that of the south - so much more dry & rugged, but pretty at the same time. The rolling hills, each one carved out with its unique grape vine pattern, coupled with the scattered hilltop towns, smoke trails (from indiscriminate burning off) and stone homes with their wooden shutters , showed us why Tuscany held a reputation for rustic charm.

Our house "Compana de Remoli"

Steve and Sheri out on the terrace over the hills

Steve trying to get access to the outside world

Antonella, did not speak English, so she relied heavily on her semi-english speaking daughter to communicate with us. Not surprisingly, this debrief was short. We had landed in something of an oasis, a lovely stone farmhouse, (filled with “secret passages” as the kids liked to call them,) a pool (which we wouldn’t be using yet,) a generous sized garden and spectacular views of the surrounding countryside. We couldn’t quite believe our luck and continued to pinch ourselves into the next week. It is always such a lottery when booking accommodation, you just never know what you’ll get. This, our 10th stop of the trip, would be our home for the next month and we couldn’t have been more pleased about it, after the trials of Amalfi.

Cassi hard at school in the kitchen

Cyclists in Panzano

Cassi and Mitch with an Italian Scooter-truck

Panzano In Chianti as the name suggests is part of the Chianti wine region, one of the better known wine regions of Italy. Our house was just a 300m walk to the village of Panzano and was on the direct bus route to Florence. Located exactly half way between Florence and Sienna, with some of the most drivable and scenic roads we’d come across, it was a mecca for passing cyclists and motorbikes . So much so that on the weekends it was like living next to Philip Island or Albert Park raceway listening to the Ducati’s doing what they do best. Panzano had all the essential shops and a few non essential ones as well. It’s butcher was famous locally, we were told, with people coming from miles around just to experience his lunches outback and smorgasboard servery out front.

Much to Julie and Sheridan’s delight Panzano, also hosted a regular Sunday market in the town square, so this became a regular feature. The kids enjoyed seeing “the cheese man” each week as he freely gave them samples of his beloved parmesan, which they’d all grown to love. The fruit and veg. man was also a hit, as we couldn’t get over how different the fruit and veg. tasted relative to home. The capsicums, tomatoes, cucumbers and strawberries in particular, were amazing, so firm and crisp and full of flavour, like nothing we’d ever tasted.

Sheridan and Guillietta making hand made pasta

The girls sporting their new Italian hairdo's hairdresser, Elysia in Greve

Learning about Chianti wines with Stefano in Panzano

Our new found food prowess prompted Julie and Sheridan to do a traditional Tuscan cooking class with a lady in the local village whilst we were there. In her home among the vineyards, Guilietta guided them through the preparation of a three course meal, including handmade pasta. Steve, Mitch and Cassi were quick to take up Guilietta’s offer to come back and try the results a few hours later. It was amazing! It tasted so good, but was so simple, (when you have a pasta machine, that is.) Sheridan proved to be quite the whiz in the kitchen even showing up her mum with her pasta making technique. She had always been interested in cooking at home, and had been preparing salads & playing waitress whilst we’d been away, so she really took to it.
Being in one of Italy’s best wine regions really required some further investigation. During an afternoon walk up to the old part of Panzano, set high up on the hill, we stumbled upon Stefano, the local wine merchant at “Accademia,” his wine shop. A few reds later, we realised that apart from being a lovely guy who had spent considerable time working in Palm Beach and Dolls Point in Sydney, he really knew his stuff, and deserved the title of Wine Professor as he liked to call himself. Regular visits during our stay soon followed.

Our second closest town, was called Greve (pronounced Gravy) was just 5km away. We spent quite a bit of time there, because of the supermarket & the greater selection of shops. If the truth be known, it also had the best chocolate gelato we’d ever tasted, so was a natural magnet when deciding where to get bulk supplies. Here we made friends with Lordana, from the Laundromat, and Elysia, the local hairdresser, both of whom spoke relatively good English and were thrilled to be able to try out their skills. In Italy, English is not compulsive at school and is only learnt if elected in secondary school or university.

We were so taken with our little spot of paradise, that our glowing reports, (especially the warmer weather,) soon prompted an impromptu, long weekend visit by Nick and Kirsten from Scotland. Being only an hour and a half’s flight away it was very doable. The kids were beside themselves to see them. So excited were they, to see people they knew, other than their parents! Nick and Kirsten, whilst eager to see us too, were excited to be leaving the Scottish winter behind them for some of that Tuscan sun. But as we found in Amalfi, you can’t always bank on the weather, and despite the 22 degrees we’d been experiencing prior to their visit, the weekend they came it snowed! It not only snowed (lightly of course,) but it was incredibly windy and rained a lot making it virtually impossible to enjoy all the outside vantage points we’d raved about.

Three local pastry chefs lighting the candles at Montifioralle Fritter Festival

Flag dancing

The hilltop town of Montifioralle which dates back over 1ooo years

Despite the weather, we introduced them to all our local haunts, and visited the medieval hilltop town of Montifioralle for it’s annual Fritter Festival. Here we enjoyed flag dancing displays by local children and their parents and a taste of the enormous custard topped birthday cake to mark the 40th Anniversary of something, although we weren’t sure what. We must have lost that in the translation....Oh well, never one to refuse the offer of a good cake, we indulged and got into the spirit, mixing it up with the locals who were out in force.

Nick and Kirsten were also treated to some of the newly found traditions that a month long stay had given us the luxury of having. To the childrens delight, they were good sports, participating with great enthusiasm . A favourite was the Friday night disco held in the underground bunker room, closely followed, (pardon the pun,) by Little Athletics Wood Style which involved a lap through the garden in the quickest time possible. The most memorable though would have to be the Saturday night children’s Art show where Mitchell and Cassidy auctioned their drawings in “Sheridan’s Crystal Gardens Cafe,” whilst she served refreshments , (for a price.) The bidding was fierce, with the most sort after pieces of the night being their individual interpretations of “Uncle Nick Running” which fetched a whopping 2 Euros, 50. With no TV around, creative money making enterprises had become quite the thing as the children tried to extend their pocket money .

Out for lunch at Lamole with Nick & Kirsten

Steve, Kirsten and Nick, limbering up for some artwork bidding (good tactic's on the waitresse's part.)

Mitch and Cassi with the highest ranking pieces of the night, entitled, "Uncle Nick Running 1 & 2"

Panzano was ideally located so day trips were very easy. We visited Sienna for the first time in 20 years and found it hadn’t changed a lot, possibly with a few more designer shops. The main Piazza, “ Piazza Del Campo” where the Palio (the famous horse races) are still held in the town square twice a year, still acted as a great meeting place for the locals, (especially the men who seemed to congregate for a chat.) Mitchell and Steve made hay whilst the girls perused the shops, checking out the Museo dell’Opera and climbed the tower.
Climbing tall buildings was becoming a habit. Being just over an hour from Piza, meant that a trip to climb the leaning tower was a must. Little did we know that you had to be 8yrs old before you were to do it. Some skilful reselling by Steve, and a couple of scalped tickets later, Cassidy took on a very grown up persona instantly graduating to eight, so she could partake in the experience. Thankfully she coped with the steps so no one was any the wiser.

Mich holding up the clock tower in Sienna

Cassi (now 8 yrs old,) at the top of the Leaning tower of Piza

On the way back from Piza we stopped by the lovely, and surprisingly, little known town of Artemina. Here we had lunch at yet another Buon Ricordo Restaurant, called La Defina. Restaurants throughout Italy that are part of the Buon Ricordo group are all individual, and serve regional dishes typical of their location. We have visited a no. of them during our stay and had begun to collect the complimentary pasta plate at each one which showed the speciality dish as a momento. Buon Ricordo, we were told means “happy memory.”

Receiving our Buon Ricodo Plate at La Defina Restaurant

The kids in Artemina

San Gimignano towers at dusk

San Gimignano was a real find, being just under an hour's drive away. It is a medievil village with Manhattan like towers, something quite unusual for those times. With some very charming cobblestone walkways, and quaint shops, like most of these small villages, it remained pedestrian only, with no room for cars. We arrived late in the afternoon on our way back from Sienna, luckilly catching the end of the town's feast day celebrations. Despite a few market stalls still being around in the evening, we probably didn't get to see as much of it as we'd have liked, but we could see it could have easily been the sole destination for the day. Oh well, something for next time.....

We also visited Florence twice, whilst collecting and farewelling Nick and Kirsten who had come via Florence to and from Piza for their direct flights for Edinburgh. Sadly both days were not good ones weather wise, but it didn't matter as we mainly just popped in and out of museums, eateries and shops. We climbed the Duomo which was enormous for a good view of the city, where Julie got slightly claustrophobic & Mitch very aware of heights. Both were glad to get down, and vowed never to repeat the exercise. We did all the usual things like seeing Michaelangelo’s David, visiting the Uffizi Museum to see Botticelli’s “Birth of Venus” and

“Spring “ and checking out the scarf and leather shops.

Rome was also on our agenda but required more time being two and a half hour's away, so we planned a 3 night stay there the last week of our time in Tuscany. We had the most fantastic time, it was a real adventure, details of which (like having mass with the Pope in St Peter's Basilica,) will follow in the next blog, along with Chinque Terre, Lake Como and Anzac Day in Turkey.