Yesterday Seth and I took a nice long walk (7.5miles from our apartment) around one of the larger hills just south of Florence (Monitici). I had picked up a walking map from the tourist office and thought this would be the perfect way to celebrate autumn. It was a great day to be out and the walk was very scenic, but what the tourist office failed to mention was that the roads were abominable. Winding through the hills they were extremely narrow and curvy, there were no sidewalks or walking/biking paths, and in fact the roads we were led through were barely wide enough for one car--yet most were two-way! Cars had to give out warning honks every few seconds as they drove, and in the unfortunate event that two met head on, one would have to go in reverse until it found a spot in the road wide enough to let the other car pass. Unbelievable! Clearly the tourist office doesn't care much for tourists. Also, it was ironic that the map gave descriptions of the numerous villas along the way, yet almost all the villas were concealed by high walls or fences and impossible to peek into. We still had a good time--and a good laugh--though it did seem rather dangerous...
One must be patient to dial the telephone number for this 'Faive Star Villa'
These are two-way roads. We became very good at hugging the walls.
And to the right you'll see a reconstructed 15th century villa
The most rewarding part of the walk: stumbling upon a fig tree!
One must be patient to dial the telephone number for this 'Faive Star Villa'
These are two-way roads. We became very good at hugging the walls.
And to the right you'll see a reconstructed 15th century villa
The most rewarding part of the walk: stumbling upon a fig tree!
Looking for a suitable place to stop for our packed lunch
About 6miles into the walk, the road temporarily widened, though not enough for a sidewalk. Could have used a bit of Chianti at this point...
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