Hi Natalie,

VERY much enjoying your fantastic trip report.

Rome: Santa Maria dell Concezione, I was laughing at your description, we went there as well, with three teens (two of the teens, boys). They, of course LOVED it, thought it was cool.

Venice: LOVED your "Isn't this the part of the movie where everyone yells, 'Don't go down there you idiots...the street is full of vampires!!!!!'".

Wonderful and entertaining trip report, thank you, and continue...

Best wishes, T.

Hi Natalie:

Your report is one of the best on this site right now. Many of us are anxiously awaiting your final installment. Please tell us the finale!!

Van

Yes please. More, more.:-)

Trip Report - Part 3 (at last!)

DAY 10 - SATURDAY This morning did a little shopping en route to the train station, and left for Florence. We had arranged to pick up the car in Florence, rather than have to hassle with getting to the mainland and driving from Venice...this was much simpler. The downtown Auto Europe office is walking distance from the train station, so easier than picking up at the airport. We piled into our 5 person "people mover" which looked small, but even accommodated all of our luggage with nothing on our laps! (maybe a cat mask or two) With detailed directions from the car rental people, we sped out of the city...o.k. we probably weren't speeding, but we were moving with traffic, and that was close enough. We found that driving worked best with two navigators, one to read the map, and one to watch for road signs. By now we were starving, so stopped at the first "auto plaza" we saw. Eventually, as in most of our driving forays, the map became meaningless, and we simply followed the signs to Cortona. We found the key to stress free travel was simply to accept this, trusting that the appropriate sign would show up eventually!

Lodging: Our house in Cortona was a beautifully renovated farmhouse that dates back to the 1600's. Because of it's very reasonable price, we kept preparing ourselves for something not as nice as the photos...reminding ourselves, "It's not REALLY a villa." On arrival, though, it really was...Our apartment consisted of the main floor and included 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, a cozy living room with fireplace, and full kitchen. We were in Italian piglet heaven the entire week! We found our rental through a special connection related to a timeshare we have. The owners could not give me permission to list the property here, because they have formal agreements with agencies...but did say if anyone asked I could refer him or her to them directly. Anyway, in subsequent research I've noticed that there appear to be a large number of very nice renovated country homes in Tuscany. Some are quite expensive, but there are many that are very affordable (literally in the $100 to $150 per night range). This is a wonderful way to see Tuscany, if you are comfortable having a car.

Tip of the Day: There are frequent "auto plazas" along the major highways. These offer a variety of food options, and also have grocery stores in them...A very convenient way to eat and shop without venturing off the highway and into towns while traveling (though not as charming). In addition to fast food, they usually have a large cafeteria, with excellent food at reasonable prices.

Back to the story...We had no way to contact the owners on arrival than to find their home inside Cortona itself. The walled city has a number of parking lots outside it (as many Tuscan towns do), so we parked and my sister and I set off on the quest to find their home. There are several entrances to this hilltop town, and I'm sure we picked the steepest! For the most part, the townspeople do not speak English, but were very friendly and by now our ability to understand directions (or charades) was getting better. Once there, our host met us outside the wall with his car to escort us to the property. I couldn't understand why all this was necessary, as the house was just a half mile or so away, but it would have been impossible to find on our own. No street names, no house numbers, just cute little farmhouses everywhere!

Fernando and his wife showed us all around the property, including the "cooking house"...a beautiful little building with a kitchen, dining area, and fireplace for barbecuing...then opened a bottle of wine and stayed and visited with us. They spoke no English, but we, amazingly, were able to learn all about the house, the renovations, and their family. At last, a use for my obscure Italian vocabulary learned the week before our trip! Whenever I got a word right...usually something complex, like "sister" or "house"...Fernando would offer an enthusiastic "Bravo!" and more wine, giving me great encouragement and, I'm sure, making me insufferable for the rest of the trip! This kind of experience marked the highlights of our trip...visiting with real people in real places...and gave me the answer to a recent, but unrelated recent post, THIS is why I travel!

Activities: Since it was the night before Easter Sunday, a few of us decided to hike up to the town and see what was going on...and, perhaps, even go to midnight mass. To our surprise, the church had only a very small crowd of mostly elderly people...We thought everyone would be there! Cortona has a beautiful old theatre in the center of town (complete with marble steps and pillars) where, we discovered, scores of people were pouring out. Families and children were everywhere....We assumed we must have just missed some concert or other Easter pageantry. Upon investigation, however, we discovered that we had missed the opening night showing of "Robots"...the new animated movie! Rather than the solemn crowd we were expecting, the square was full of families and groups of teenagers on spring break. The primary activity appeared to be getting gelato at "Snoopy's". The most cool of the teens drove around the square very quickly in very small cars...I guess that's what you do if you can't drag Main! The polizia were EVERYwhere, and they quickly dispersed...I don't know what the police might have been expecting, but they were ready for anything. Apparently the night before Easter can get pretty wild in Cortona. Exhausted from our day's adventure...did I mention the wine?...we decided to skip mass and walked downhill to our cozy house. I commented that we might have died and gone to heaven, to which my brother-in-law replied, "oh good...if this is it, it's all we need!"

Oh my gosh...that was just one day...I will continue soon, I promise. Thank you all for your kind comments!

Trip Report Part 4

DAY 11 - SUNDAY This was our first full day in Cortona, and Easter Sunday. For this occasion we planned...NO ACTIVITIES!!! Woke to find that the Easter bunny had found us in Italy and left chocolate rabbits...Bravo! Enjoyed the day soaking up the atmosphere, but nothing more industrious than taking walks. Surprised to find that a number of shops and restaurants in town were open, and the square was quite busy. Our hosts told us that there were an unusual number of visitors for the Easter weekend. Cooked a feast in our own little kitchen, and enjoyed a cozy fire in the evening, and contemplated our blessings.

Sights: Our house is adjacent to the Tomb of Pythagoras (Tanella di Pitagora). This is an Etruscan tomb that, legend says, may be the tomb of THE Pythagoras. The "official" info says that this belief resulted from confusing "Cortrone" where he really lived, and "Cortona." We choose to believe the more colorful story that we really are staying next to the grave of Pythagoras, however.

DAY 12 - MONDAY Continued our low key exploration of Cortona, greatly enjoying the fact that there was nothing we "had" to do. Walked around town and browsed at the little shops, then walked down the hill below Cortona to the cemetary. The cemetaries (there are two) first caught our eye when walking at night. Each grave has a tiny electric candle light on top, and at night they look like a mass of twinkling stars. We thought the cemetary might be very old, but few of the graves were pre-1920 or so. We were unable to find out if there was an "old" cemetary somewhere else. Cortona must be conducive to longevity, as we noticed that many of the residents were in their 80's and 90's or more when they died. It must be from walking all those steep hills every day!

Tip of the Day: Be sure to leave a few days of your trip to simply "be"...This is the quintessential Italian experience, and more important than seeing everything. As Pietro, our guide in Rome, said, (when I fussed that we would not be able to see everyghing) "So? It's been here for over a thousand years...It will be here when you come back."

DAY 12 - TUESDAY Walked around town again, which we seemed to never tire of! Visited the Etruscan Museum, one of the few "sights" of Cortona noted in the guidebooks. We found it completely confusing, until it was explained that it has been charmingly "organized" by donor, rather than subject. So, for example,in any particular room Egyptian artifacts may intermingle with Etruscan, with a Roman statue or two and Rennaisance paintings on the wall. Apparently this is so that when the Capiletti family visits (not actual name), they can see all of grandmama's treasures in one place. This just didn't seem to work for us as visitors, however, as it made us feel even more historically inept than normal. After a relatively short visit, we retreated for gelato and cappuccino!

Favorite Shop in Cortona: Il Girasole, adjacent to the museum with a sign that says "Museum Shop," although they don't really seem to be related. Very neat store with unique jewelry (Etruscan replicas), statuary, and beautiful linen. The owner, a very gracious lady, is also wonderful!

Activities: We also finally "discovered" Via Nazionale which, despite visiting town several times, had eluded us. This is the main street with lots of shops, small galleries, and restaurants. While eating lunch the street filled with what appeared to be hundreds of children and teenagers. There were so many that we thought there must have been some huge field trip, but our waiter explained that school had simply let out. This was the largest number of people we had seen in Cortona, and we still can't figure out where they all lived!

Most Unique Event Award: When inquiring about Easter activities, we were told that the "Procession" would take place on Tuesday at 5 pm, and started at the Cathedral. So, we joined the crowd assembled there to find a dozen or so young boys dressed as medieval pages with drums. What appeared to be the local marching band (using both the terms "marching" and "band" very loosely) was also there, its members ranging from about 10 to 100 years old. A number of priests and bishops (?) (not sure about this, but they had the hats) emerged from the Cathedral, followed by ten or so men carrying a large platform with a statue on top. This was especially dramatic as they swayed a bit under its weight. Despite our Catholic roots, this was a statue none of us had ever seen and, in the absence of any official input, we named it "Happy Jesus." I promise, this was a smiling, walking Jesus, with one hand out as if waving. Anyway, the procession went through town, with the drummer boys, the priests, and statue bearers followed by the "marching band." After this many of the women of the town joined in, followed by a large group of men. Finally, the rest of the crowd joined into the now quite large procession...which included us, because it seemed like the right thing to do. Even though we still don't know what it all meant, it was wonderful to be part of this little celebration.

DAY 13 - TUESDAY Spent the day touring sights near and around Cortona. Started with the Church of Saint Margaret (Santa Margherita), the patron saint of Cortona. This is above the town, and includes a very pretty church and Saint Margaret, herself, in a glass casket. (Causing me to have to say to my husband, "You know how I promised no more dead people...") Afterwards we visited the Medici Fortress at the top of the hill. We were lucky to find it open for, like many things in Italy, it doesn't seem to have actual "hours". Very interesting castle/fortress structure that gives one a good view of what living in a castle must have been like (not so good). The view from here is spectacular, as you can see the surrounding mountains and town of Cortona just below the fort.

Best Kept Secret: On advice from our hosts, we visited the monastary of Le Celle which, surprisingly, was not noted in our tour guides. This is a monastary tucked away up against the mountain adjacent to Cortona, with beautiful architecture, gardens, and a stream running through it. We were also told that Le Celle is one of the only monastaries you can actually enter. It was founded by St. Francis, who also lived there for some time. If St. Francis is of particular interest to you, a visit here (where you can see his actual room and bed) may be more personal than a visit to Assisi. This was, without a doubt, one of the highlights of our trip, and the most beautiful/spiritual place we visited. It was early spring, but I can imagine how incredible it must be when flowers are in bloom. [Note:We did not even see this on our maps. Take the main road up to Cortona, and as you drive along the city wall on the right, watch for a left turn down the hill with a small brown sign (le celle).]

To be continued...

I love this report! I took so many notes for my trip in June!

Can't wait for the next installment!

Hello NatalieM, I just wanted to say I have so enjoyed reading your trip report! I wish I could keep such wonderful notes and write a report like you do. I feel like I travelled with you. And it sounds like you like to travel as I do. Thank you for sharing your beautiful trip to Italy with us.

Thank you, Natalie. Your last installment was just in time. We leave tomorrow! Thank you for a wonderful report. I enjoyed it very much.

NatalieM, Your trip sounds great. I am staying in the same apartment in Rome. Can you please email me with the details of your rental in Cortona?

I'm enjoying your report, Natalie, and found a lot of helpful info in your Rome section. I will be taking my mother and sister there in March, so your insight is appreciated.

DH and I returned from our second trip to Venice the last week of October and our apartment was also in Cannaregio this time. We really loved the local feel of the area, so I enjoyed reading your insight about it, as well.

I also agree that Murano was nice, but not awe inspiring. We were more thrilled with Burano and Torcello, ourselves.

Looking forward to your next installment! :)