Jamikins and Bikerscott do Le Marche (Again)
Jul 17th, 2017, 09:50 PM
#21
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 10,321
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Welcome along everyone!!
Bvlenci - Uliassi was another option but having been to Senigallia I thought parking in town on a Saturday in July might have been difficult! Now I will have to give it a go next trip!
Turns out Kate, our sat nav, is not as familiar with the roads here and has led us astray a few more times. Good thing the signage is so good here! Sometimes you need to rely on a map and not the sat nav!
We couldn't figure out the Winnipeg exchange either but she was so excited we just gave her some tips about Tom Hortons, poutine and hockey!
The internet in the agriturismo isn't great so still trying to upload pics! Hopefully today because this area is stunning!!!
Off to Ascoli Piceno today and we will get to the coast and the recommended Torre di Palme tomorrow I think - thanks for the tip bvlenci!
Bvlenci - Uliassi was another option but having been to Senigallia I thought parking in town on a Saturday in July might have been difficult! Now I will have to give it a go next trip!
Turns out Kate, our sat nav, is not as familiar with the roads here and has led us astray a few more times. Good thing the signage is so good here! Sometimes you need to rely on a map and not the sat nav!
We couldn't figure out the Winnipeg exchange either but she was so excited we just gave her some tips about Tom Hortons, poutine and hockey!
The internet in the agriturismo isn't great so still trying to upload pics! Hopefully today because this area is stunning!!!
Off to Ascoli Piceno today and we will get to the coast and the recommended Torre di Palme tomorrow I think - thanks for the tip bvlenci!
Jul 18th, 2017, 04:29 AM
#22
I am Australian and thought my German to be pretty good (German parents), so in Nuremberg was chatting/ ordering in German; dismayed to found out later they assumed I was Russian...not sure if that had any bearing on the service>>
We had a similar experience in Germany a long time ago - pre 1989. They thought that we were Polish.
as you say, dismaying, after all that practice.
We had a similar experience in Germany a long time ago - pre 1989. They thought that we were Polish.
as you say, dismaying, after all that practice.
Jul 18th, 2017, 04:46 AM
#24
Join Date: Jan 2008
Posts: 23,813
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Hi Jamie, hi Scott,
I always look forward to your trip reports and this one is especially well-timed for us. I'll be interested to read about Ascoli Piceno and Torre di Palme -- maybe we'll be adding them to the tentative day trip list!
I always look forward to your trip reports and this one is especially well-timed for us. I'll be interested to read about Ascoli Piceno and Torre di Palme -- maybe we'll be adding them to the tentative day trip list!
Jul 18th, 2017, 08:54 AM
#25
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2004
Posts: 541
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Day Four
Another night, another sore back. Jamie got up before me again, but not quite as early as yesterday. At 6am I realized that if I shut the windows it would cut out the noise of the chickens and dogs barking. Still no coffee. This was becoming a bit of a problem for me, although I’d gotten quite friendly with my headache and had named him Larry. A bit of bright morning sun on the balcony woke us the rest of the way up. We lounged about for a bit, reading our books and soaking up a bit of vitamin D.
We felt after an hour or so that we should be productive on our holiday so got ready and took off in the car. We had lunch planned for the afternoon but no real rush to get there so stopped in the small town Mogliano. It seemed quite busy on the outskirts of town but this seemed to be the newer bit. We found a parking spot and walked the short distance up the hill into the old town. Unlike San Ginesio yesterday there didn’t seem to be much obvious damage, but there also wasn’t anywhere to sit and have a coffee. The old part of town seems to be completely residential. We found out later that there evidently had been a few shops and cafes in the old town but they’d been damaged by the earthquake and had either shut down or moved into the new part of town.
We gave up and got back in the car. We’d made the minor error parking in the sun, and it was like the sun when we got back in. The downside of a black steering wheel is that it absorbs the heat and amplifies it back. I didn’t quite burn my hands, but it wasn’t comfortable. Fortunately, the aircon in the little car seems to kick in quite quickly so we didn’t suffer for too long.
Between Mogliano and the next stop was a small winery called Murola which had been recommended to us. We had run out of wine at the flat and rather than buying random bottles at the grocery store we wanted to do a tasting and pick up something local. We programmed Kate the SatNav with what we thought was the right address and set off. Kate was wrong, very very wrong. We ended up starting down a gravel road in the deep countryside and decided that we had been sent astray. We thought we knew where it was on the map, so backtracked about 10 minutes and found it. We booked a full tasting for later that afternoon and hit the road again.
Next stop was the slightly larger town of Urbisaglia which was only about 20 minutes away. Urbisaglia seems to be designed for tourism in a way that not many towns in this area are. We followed the signs for parking, and rather than a few little spaces, they have a fairly large multi-level car park just outside town. We were impressed – plus the added bonus of it being covered, so no screaming hot car when we got back.
The centre of town was basically across the road, and consists of a main square and a few little roads leading off of it. We found the restaurant, but were a bit early – not many places are open at noon I think. We walked back to the main square and popped into a little corner grocery store for coffee grounds for the espresso machine in our flat and some shaving crème – I always forget something. We followed this with a well-deserved pre-lunch gelato and coffee on the other side of the square at a little café. The owner was very nice, and I think appreciated that I ordered everything in flawed Italian – at least I made the effort, and it was enough that he understood me I think.
At 12:45 we walked back to the restaurant to see if it had opened; it had. The B&B had called ahead to make a reservation for us at Le Logge so we scored a prime table outside in the covered portico. They have a menu which changes pretty much weekly, if not daily, depending on what’s available at the market, so ordering is done by the number of courses you want. We both went with the full menu, so two antipasti, two primis, a secondi, and a desert. This seems like a lot, however the portion sized are reduced to allow for it. You’ll be full when you’re finished, but you’ll get through it.
The highlight by far, possibly of the entire trip, was my main course. A piece of pork which had been cooked slowly, for 18 hours evidently. It melted. The crust on it was dark brown and a bit crunchy, the inside was unbelievable. It will go on the list as one of the best pieces of pork I’ve ever eaten, and this includes highlights from a southern US BBQ driving trip a few years ago.
We finished lunch and collected the car – as expected, it was a reasonable temperature inside, and my hands remained unscorched from the steering wheel. We retracted our route back to the winery, with only a minor detour (apparently keep right means take a sharp right turn in Kate’s electronic mind). We were only a little late, but the girl in the winery didn’t seem too bothered. She took us on a quick tour of the winery, which had only been built in 2006. The building is very modern, but they’re growing mostly traditional grapes.
We sat down under the pergola for what ended up being by far the longest wine tasting of our life. I couldn’t really taste anything other than having little sips as I was driving, so we chose the top of the range tasting which included plates of meat and cheese and four of their top wines. We figured we’d be there maybe an hour, didn’t expect after two and a half to have to go inside to get our last glass. The poor girl in the winery was there by herself and had been run off her feet both by a seemingly endless stream of people into the shop to buy wine, as well as a group of tourists who’d for reasons we can’t quite grasp decided that a wine tasting at a winery was a good place to bring 8 children under the age of 7. They put the kids at the table closest to Jamie and me, and then took a table for themselves at the far end of the covered area. We were NOT impressed.
Fortunately the wine was delicious, so despite the frustration of the extended tasting and the noise of 8 rambunctious children we decided to buy a few bottles of the delicious white and a couple more of the red. While Le Marche isn’t known for its wine, some of the wineries there are making some really good wines. These might not be bottles you’d put away for decades, but for a wine to drink with a meal, they’re up there. Complex, smooth and intriguing reds and light fresh buttery whites. I’d put the bottle of Cama from Murola up against a bottle for the same price from Bordeaux any day.
Somewhat beaten by the noise of the family hour at the winery, we drove straight back to our flat to enjoy the rest of the evening sun and a bottle of our new wine. We sliced up some of the homemade sausage that Jason and Ashely from La Tavola Marche had given us when we met with them in Senigalia and enjoyed a very relaxed evening.
Another night, another sore back. Jamie got up before me again, but not quite as early as yesterday. At 6am I realized that if I shut the windows it would cut out the noise of the chickens and dogs barking. Still no coffee. This was becoming a bit of a problem for me, although I’d gotten quite friendly with my headache and had named him Larry. A bit of bright morning sun on the balcony woke us the rest of the way up. We lounged about for a bit, reading our books and soaking up a bit of vitamin D.
We felt after an hour or so that we should be productive on our holiday so got ready and took off in the car. We had lunch planned for the afternoon but no real rush to get there so stopped in the small town Mogliano. It seemed quite busy on the outskirts of town but this seemed to be the newer bit. We found a parking spot and walked the short distance up the hill into the old town. Unlike San Ginesio yesterday there didn’t seem to be much obvious damage, but there also wasn’t anywhere to sit and have a coffee. The old part of town seems to be completely residential. We found out later that there evidently had been a few shops and cafes in the old town but they’d been damaged by the earthquake and had either shut down or moved into the new part of town.
We gave up and got back in the car. We’d made the minor error parking in the sun, and it was like the sun when we got back in. The downside of a black steering wheel is that it absorbs the heat and amplifies it back. I didn’t quite burn my hands, but it wasn’t comfortable. Fortunately, the aircon in the little car seems to kick in quite quickly so we didn’t suffer for too long.
Between Mogliano and the next stop was a small winery called Murola which had been recommended to us. We had run out of wine at the flat and rather than buying random bottles at the grocery store we wanted to do a tasting and pick up something local. We programmed Kate the SatNav with what we thought was the right address and set off. Kate was wrong, very very wrong. We ended up starting down a gravel road in the deep countryside and decided that we had been sent astray. We thought we knew where it was on the map, so backtracked about 10 minutes and found it. We booked a full tasting for later that afternoon and hit the road again.
Next stop was the slightly larger town of Urbisaglia which was only about 20 minutes away. Urbisaglia seems to be designed for tourism in a way that not many towns in this area are. We followed the signs for parking, and rather than a few little spaces, they have a fairly large multi-level car park just outside town. We were impressed – plus the added bonus of it being covered, so no screaming hot car when we got back.
The centre of town was basically across the road, and consists of a main square and a few little roads leading off of it. We found the restaurant, but were a bit early – not many places are open at noon I think. We walked back to the main square and popped into a little corner grocery store for coffee grounds for the espresso machine in our flat and some shaving crème – I always forget something. We followed this with a well-deserved pre-lunch gelato and coffee on the other side of the square at a little café. The owner was very nice, and I think appreciated that I ordered everything in flawed Italian – at least I made the effort, and it was enough that he understood me I think.
At 12:45 we walked back to the restaurant to see if it had opened; it had. The B&B had called ahead to make a reservation for us at Le Logge so we scored a prime table outside in the covered portico. They have a menu which changes pretty much weekly, if not daily, depending on what’s available at the market, so ordering is done by the number of courses you want. We both went with the full menu, so two antipasti, two primis, a secondi, and a desert. This seems like a lot, however the portion sized are reduced to allow for it. You’ll be full when you’re finished, but you’ll get through it.
The highlight by far, possibly of the entire trip, was my main course. A piece of pork which had been cooked slowly, for 18 hours evidently. It melted. The crust on it was dark brown and a bit crunchy, the inside was unbelievable. It will go on the list as one of the best pieces of pork I’ve ever eaten, and this includes highlights from a southern US BBQ driving trip a few years ago.
We finished lunch and collected the car – as expected, it was a reasonable temperature inside, and my hands remained unscorched from the steering wheel. We retracted our route back to the winery, with only a minor detour (apparently keep right means take a sharp right turn in Kate’s electronic mind). We were only a little late, but the girl in the winery didn’t seem too bothered. She took us on a quick tour of the winery, which had only been built in 2006. The building is very modern, but they’re growing mostly traditional grapes.
We sat down under the pergola for what ended up being by far the longest wine tasting of our life. I couldn’t really taste anything other than having little sips as I was driving, so we chose the top of the range tasting which included plates of meat and cheese and four of their top wines. We figured we’d be there maybe an hour, didn’t expect after two and a half to have to go inside to get our last glass. The poor girl in the winery was there by herself and had been run off her feet both by a seemingly endless stream of people into the shop to buy wine, as well as a group of tourists who’d for reasons we can’t quite grasp decided that a wine tasting at a winery was a good place to bring 8 children under the age of 7. They put the kids at the table closest to Jamie and me, and then took a table for themselves at the far end of the covered area. We were NOT impressed.
Fortunately the wine was delicious, so despite the frustration of the extended tasting and the noise of 8 rambunctious children we decided to buy a few bottles of the delicious white and a couple more of the red. While Le Marche isn’t known for its wine, some of the wineries there are making some really good wines. These might not be bottles you’d put away for decades, but for a wine to drink with a meal, they’re up there. Complex, smooth and intriguing reds and light fresh buttery whites. I’d put the bottle of Cama from Murola up against a bottle for the same price from Bordeaux any day.
Somewhat beaten by the noise of the family hour at the winery, we drove straight back to our flat to enjoy the rest of the evening sun and a bottle of our new wine. We sliced up some of the homemade sausage that Jason and Ashely from La Tavola Marche had given us when we met with them in Senigalia and enjoyed a very relaxed evening.
Jul 18th, 2017, 09:07 AM
#26
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 10,321
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
And finally got some pictures uploaded! They are the first 30 or so pics (when you hit the tomato pictures with Jason and Ashley that is our last trip).
Hope you like them:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/pug_gi...57634528008046
Goddess - Ascoli Piceno was lovely...but I am not sure it is worth the 2+ hours to drive down to it from the northern part of Le Marche. There are lovely places up there to enjoy. The long drive on the autostrada would 'waste' valuable time in our opinion.
Hope you like them:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/pug_gi...57634528008046
Goddess - Ascoli Piceno was lovely...but I am not sure it is worth the 2+ hours to drive down to it from the northern part of Le Marche. There are lovely places up there to enjoy. The long drive on the autostrada would 'waste' valuable time in our opinion.
Jul 18th, 2017, 09:53 AM
#27
Join Date: Jun 2013
Posts: 1,118
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
We drove through the Sibillini Mountains and stayed overnight in Ascoli, a lovely town with a wonderful piazza. I don't think I would drive 2+ hours to do a daytrip there, though. Highly recommend the drive through the mountains, it's beautiful.
Jul 18th, 2017, 10:10 AM
#29
Join Date: Oct 2013
Posts: 1,001
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Lovely, Jamie. I always drool over your photos, and Scott's reports are always an adventuare. Having traveled in 2015 and 2016 to Umbria, we've wondered about the extent of the damage from last year's earthquakes and appreciate heairng your first-hand account. We have tenative plans to go to France next year, but part of me would prefer to spend our travel dollars in this part of Italy again (and who am I kidding, it would hardly be a sacrifice) because I can appreciate how much they need the business.
Anyway, thanks to the both of you for sharing!
Anyway, thanks to the both of you for sharing!
Jul 18th, 2017, 10:13 AM
#30
Join Date: Jan 2008
Posts: 23,813
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I'm still undecided about our last day(s) in Italy and if we decide to take an extra day before going home, we could drive a bit out of our way to visit Ascoli Pecino. However, I know my SO well enough to know that by that time he'll be champing at the bit to get home, so maybe we'll just have to visit the towns we can get to within a reasonable driving distance.
Jul 18th, 2017, 10:22 AM
#31
I loved Ascoli last summer but it was our home base for four days. We never made it up north--stuck to the area around AP and nearby in Abruzzo. We drove from Spello, up and over the mountains, stopping at the Piano Grande. I therefore second sundried's rec.
I'm in Ortisei right now, my last night in the drop dead gorgeous Dolomiti. Knees screaming from my hike today. ��
I'm in Ortisei right now, my last night in the drop dead gorgeous Dolomiti. Knees screaming from my hike today. ��
Jul 18th, 2017, 12:35 PM
#34
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 10,321
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Thank you everyone! My camera is a Nikon 5200, but some pics have been taken on my iphone. To be honest the biggest thing for taking great photos is composition!
We love this area so much so would definitely encourage people to visit!
We love this area so much so would definitely encourage people to visit!
Jul 18th, 2017, 09:56 PM
#38
I can't see your photos--only have my iPhone and Wi-Fi is really slow here. but I wanted to say buona vacanza! And let you know that yours was one of the trip reports that convinced me to come here to the beautiful Dolomiti. Many thanks! I love the part of Le Marche that I have seen (southern area). Although Sabina, our GPS, always always always wanted to take us through industrial areas. We eventually just shut her off.
Jul 18th, 2017, 10:44 PM
#39
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 10,321
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Thanks everyone, glad you are enjoying the trip report and pics.
People here have been telling us that tourism is down 30% this year due to the earthquakes so these towns could certainly use the tourist dollars (but don't tell too many people, we don't want it to get too crowded
)
Leely2 - hope you had a lovely time in the Dolomites, it is still one of our favourite trips! Did you make it up to the phone booth lifts?
People here have been telling us that tourism is down 30% this year due to the earthquakes so these towns could certainly use the tourist dollars (but don't tell too many people, we don't want it to get too crowded
)Leely2 - hope you had a lovely time in the Dolomites, it is still one of our favourite trips! Did you make it up to the phone booth lifts?
Jul 19th, 2017, 09:35 AM
#40
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 10,321
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Scott is working on the trip report and I have updated the photos for today
https://www.flickr.com/photos/pug_gi...57634528008046
https://www.flickr.com/photos/pug_gi...57634528008046
