Florence Day 6 - Driving Around and Not Getting Lost

Well, I should go out gambling, because today was a lucky day: I managed to successfully drive to a tiny little place called Cacciano as a test-run for meeting up with the Stark Raving blogger (with whom I'll have a cello lesson tomorrow) then drive all over Chianti and back to my crib in Florence without getting even a little bit lost. Miracle of miracles, especially since my sense of direction, in general, continues to disappoint me (after breakfast today I thought I'd take one little side street, then found myself on a road with nice jewelry shops thinking "oh, these jewelry shops are much nicer than the ones on the Ponte Vecchio" and "look, some of the closed jewelry shops have those same cool wooden-trunk-looking doors just like the ones on the Ponte Vecchio", and not until I saw the Arno did I realize that I was ON the goddamn Ponte Vecchio. Bad sherpa! Still, after that snafu I was a walking GPS system. Or, I was just able to follow directions and read signs.

The good thing about getting lost was that I got to see a big traffic jam near the Ponte Vecchio:

(even the crazy scooter people couldn't get by)


(a bunch of cars trying to u-turn)

Took the A1 to Arrezzo first -- love the way the highways work The setup really eliminates confusion and (kinda shocking for Italy) because there are very few exits, and every now and then there's a rest stop or gas station but you can't actually leave the highway except to refuel car and body. The scenery was beautiful, and I had time to take it in since, unlike every single other vehicle on the highway, I was going the speed limit. Hit a very small hill town called Civitella in Val Di Chiana, which had the remains of a castle and a stunning view. Looked it up later on ye olde wikipedia, and found that "it is one of the best-preserved of the network of Lombard fortresses of the 6th and the 7th century in central Italy, strategically placed to control the whole territory. "



It was also the site of a massacre of over 200 citizens in WWII, as retaliation for killing two German soldiers. There is a memorial and plaque with a quote from someone who was actually shot in the head point-blank, but ducked a little to the left, played dead, and managed to survive. Wow.

I found the only open restaurant and hung out on their terrace for an hour or so, where it was hot but shady and breezy, with a view that made you forget about how hot it is. Read my book and enjoyed prosciutto, prosecco (just a tiny glass since there was lots more driving to be done), and a divine ravioli with zucchini filling and sage butter sauce:


Then drove a little further to investigate Cacciano, which I assumed was a town but is actually a villa/compound at the top of a nearby hill, up an incredibly steep and winding gravel road, which is of course barely the width of my Fiat Panda and yet is a two-way road. Made it all the way up to the top (first gear the whole way...car started to just give up when I was in second), then discovered that it was not a town but a building, turned around and headed back down (will go there tomorrow and actually get out of the car, yell for Emily and hopefully get a cello lesson).

Then I drove all over the Chianti region, enjoying stunning views (very few pictures to prove it, unfortunately -- not a lot of places to pull over and get a kodak, so you just gotta watch and take it in and get yourself some mental pics). Finally stopped in Castellina in Chianti, which is a charming town with excellent gelato and nice food and wine shops.

Good Panda!


Good gelato!


Got some gelato (I can't seem to get past pistachio and chocolate...I really need to branch out before it's too late), walked around, bought a bottle of Chianti Classico from Lamole (a town where Jim and I had enjoyed an absolutely spectacular meal back in '06), picked up a couple etti of finnochiona (salami) and hit the road.

Driving past Panzano in Chianti, where Jim and I spent a week in '06:


The pizzeria/osteria/internet point/sports bar where Jim and I spent a good deal of time:


Magically found my way right back to Via Senese, which goes straight to my neighborhood. Sigh of relief to park in my bamboo forest after nearly 8 hours of driving around.

A note about radio in Italy: it is pretty much just the same wasteland as American radio (without anything unusual and cool like our KEXP -- where The Purrs appear to be on heavy rotation, I might add!), but still kind of enjoyable. There seemed to be this one station that does vapid covers of classic American rock songs, but with the lyrics are changed freely. I couldn't turn the dial when I heard a cover of Sweet Home Alabama...kind of like gawking at a car accident...you want to look away but you can't. They used the same riff and solos, and sometimes said "Sweet Home Alabama", but the words to the chorus were completely different. There was also a sickening cover of Hotel California. Maybe there's a "Best of Tasteless Radio Covers" album out there so I can share it with you. On the brighter side, as I was driving around a particular stark and beautiful area (like that narrows it down), a piece came on the classical station that I think was called Benjamin Britten's Symphony for Cello and Orchestra. I've never heard of it, but it sounded really intense. Will have to check it out when I can get my hands on a recording.

After arriving back at my crib, I ate a little dinner of finnochiona, parmigiano, pecorino, and Chianti. My new version of the four food groups: cured meat, cheese, more cheese, and wine.




Dudi who lives in the villa came by to say goodbye, as she's leaving for her beach house tomorrow. She asked if I would please play my cello tonight. And so I did. And that was my day.