Walking in East Sussex

Jun7

The main aim of my stay in Sussex was to meet up with two Swiss friends. Last year when I was staying with Barbara in Bern for the weekend the idea of visiting Charleston and all those ‘Bloomsbury’ related places in Sussex was suggested. I said I’d also wanted to visit them and showed Barbara the Landmark Trust website. When she saw Laughton Place tower she would not be budged to look elsewhere for accommodation. So we ended up last weekend in the tower and visiting as many Bloomsbury locations as we could manage.

Alfriston Church and Village Sign

Badgers Alfriston (Note the Boot Bags – it’s on the route of the South Downs Way)

Barbara and Kathryn first wanted to have a few days in London so I spent the first two nights at Laughton Place on my own. But for the most part I wasn’t alone thanks to Fran being able to spend Tuesday afternoon and all day Wednesday with me.

Knowing my love of hiking she had planned a walking expedition for us but the weather was not kind on the Wednesday morning so we took lunch in Alfriston and drove later in the afternoon to the Seven Sisters Country Park car park, donned our boots and set off on a shorter walk following the River Cuckmere to where it joins the English Channel. At the sea’s edge you have a wonderful view of The Seven Sisters cliffs over which we might have walked part of the South Downs Way had the morning’s weather been different.

The Seven Sisters (looking east)

Looking west

River Cuckmere behind the Footpath Signpost

River Cuckmere with Ox Bow Lakes, Meanders and the English Channel

Meanders and Buttercups

Thank you, Fran, for your good company and for being the most informative guide possible!

The Village of Firle nestled below the South Downs

On Sunday Barbara, Kathryn and I drove to the car park above the village of Firle and walked a mile or so each way to Firle Beacon and back. At the Beacon (an Ordnance Survey Triangulation Point) we could see the Channel and a cross-channel ferry arriving at Newhaven in one direction and the flat levels and meadows that surround Laughton Place in the other. There right in front of us but a little distant was our Tower itself.

Sunday Morning on the South Downs

After our walk we headed down into Firle village. Vanessa Bell and Duncan Grant (see future posts about ‘Bloomsbury-on-Sea) are buried in the churchyard; Virginia and Leonard Woolf had a house in Firle before they moved to Monk’s House and we had a drink in the warm sunshine at The Ram Inn.

Firle Churchyard : Graves of Duncan Grant and Vanessa Bell

Little Talland House, Firle

I also managed to fit in a short walk directly from the Tower towards Laughton village but I never quite made it. I was anxious to see the village but had the time constraint of meeting the London train too so after a mile or so I turned back and drove to Laughton (the village of the buckle).

Complicated Bridge/Stile near Laughton Place

Laughton Place in its Landscape

D Day Commemoration Normandy : The Green Howards

Jun6

Watching today’s commemorations of The 70th Anniversary of the D-Day Landings on BBC TV I’m reminded of my own holiday in Normandy in 2006.

We stayed for one week at Le Clos Normand right on the beach at St Aubin Sur Mer. In June 1944 the beach at St Aubin served as Juno; a Canadian landing beach.

The beach St Aubin Sur Mer

Canadian Memorial, St Aubin Sur Mer (Juno Beach)

On the first day we were driving along the road that hugs the French coast noticing signs to Commonwealth War Graves and talking about my father-in-law who served in The Green Howards Yorkshire Regiment (he actually served in the North Africa Campaign and was later a prisoner-of-war in Austria) when out of the blue we saw a small signpost indicating “Green Howards Memorial”.

Of course, we turned the car round and headed up the lane to the small village of Crepon. There on a bend of the road – no one could miss it – was the Green Howards Memorial. We learned that Green Howards were two of the first battalions to land at Gold Beach on June 6 1944. Read more about this day here.

“When night fell on D-Day, the Green Howards were as far forward as any British troops.” But sadly they suffered many casualties, of course.

Memorial unveiled by King Harald of Norway 26 October 1996

We noticed there were lights around the area and went back on at least one evening to see the beautifully floodlit memorial to these brave young Green Howards.

“Remember the 6 June 1944”

Laughton Place : The Tower of the Buckle

Jun6

If Laughton is the Village of the Buckle then Laughton Place is the Tower of the Buckle. Buckles turned up everywhere. Regular Commenter here, and now good friend too, Fran, visited me twice during my stay and together we enjoyed spotting the buckles. Here are the ones we found and some other photos of the wonderful Laughton Place.

Laughton Place on the first evening

Laughton Place by day

“The tower we see at Laughton today was built in 1534 by Sir William Pelham. It is all that survives of a house that existed from the 13th century until the 1950s, undergoing many alterations and rebuildings on the way. From 1401 until 1927 Laughton remained in the single ownership of the Pelham family, who owned great estates in Sussex. In the 15th and 16th centuries it was indeed their chief residence and it bears the emblem that they traditionally used to mark their property – the Pelham Buckle – claimed to have been won by military prowess at the Battle of Poitiers in 1356.

Terracotta Window Decoration with Buckle

In 1534 Sir William Pelham remodelled the house on a grand scale around a moated courtyard and with terracotta decoration in the newest Renaissance fashion. All that has survived is this bold brick tower, which stood close to the main hall as an outlook post and set of secure private rooms combined. By 1600 the family had abandoned Laughton, driven by the damp to build again on higher ground and slowly the house decayed.

In 1753, Henry Pelham, politician and brother to the splendid Duke of Newcastle, had the idea of surrounding the tower with a new Gothick farmhouse. The result was very charming, with a pediment between crenellated side-wings, and pointed windows. Thus it continued until sold by the Pelhams in 1927. The new owner pulled down the wings, leaving only the tower. Laughton Place stands, with a couple of other buildings, within the wide circle of the Downs, down a long drive.

The plain, but comfortable, sitting room

When the Landmark Trust bought it in 1978 the tower had great cracks in its sides and the floors had fallen in – much engineering and lime mortar went into its repair. The rooms inside are plain, apart from the delicate arabesque decoration of the terracotta windows, the moulded terracotta doors and the Pelham Buckle.”

[Adapted from The Landmark Trust website]

Buckle Curtains

Buckle Window Catch

Buckle Door Latch

Buckle Door Handle

View from the Tower Roof Platform

Over 60 steps lead up to the third floor bedroom

Third Floor Twin Bedroom

Laughton, East Sussex : The Village of the Buckle

Jun5

Laughton in East Sussex lies about 5 miles NE of the county town of Lewes and that is where I spent 6 nights last week. Actually, not quite in Laughton itself but at the Landmark Trust property Laughton Place about a mile and a half from the village on foot but probably two miles by road. I’ll write more about Laughton Place next time but just show some pictures of the village and explain about the Buckle here.

“What time ye French Sought to have Sackt Seafoord;

This Pelham did Repell them back Aboord”

This poem and the buckle on the village sign represent the colourful Pelham family whose own history dominates that of this area. During battle in 1356 Sir John Pelham managed to capture the King of France. The English king [Edward III] was so impressed that he removed the buckle of his sword belt and handed it to Sir John as a reward. It henceforth became the badge of the Pelhams and can be seen throughout the village. [Adapted from Wealden Walks leaflet]

All Saints Church, Laughton

Below Laughton church lie the remains of over sixty Pelhams, including two Prime Ministers [Henry Pelham (1694-1754) and his brother Thomas Pelham-Holles (1st Duke of Newcastle) (1693-1768)]. The latter rebuilt the chancel and donated a new set of bells to the church in 1724, which he had cast on the spot by a travelling founder.

War Memorial in Laughton Church

“In front of the now blocked north door an impressive war memorial was erected in 1921 in honour of the eighteen Laughton men killed in the Great War. The striking war memorial in the nave was dedicated in 1921. Sculpted in Italy of Carrara marble, it was paid for in Italian lira to take advantage of the exchange rate at the time. Four names were added following World War II.” [Source]

A tablet on the same wall records the death of five people killed by a flying bomb in Shortgate.

Laughton has a pub, the Roebuck (shouldn’t that be Roebuckle??) which I didn’t try and a village shop and Post Office, which I did. The kind shopkeeper was able to point me in the direction of The Hammonds where the poet and author Eleanor Farjeon lived during the First World War.

Eleanor Farjeon wrote The Little Bookroom for children and the Martin Pippin books which are based on the East Sussex countryside.

Farjeon is most famous for her hymn Morning Has Broken which became a popular track on Cat Stevens’ album .

Morning has broken,
like the first morning
Blackbird has spoken,
like the first bird
Praise for the singing,
praise for the morning
Praise for the springing
fresh from the word

Sweet the rain’s new fall,
sunlit from heaven
Like the first dewfall,
on the first grass
Praise for the sweetness
of the wet garden
Sprung in completeness
where his feet pass

Mine is the sunlight,
mine is the morning
Born of the one light,
Eden saw play
Praise with elation,
praise every morning
God’s recreation
of the new day

Oh, yes, we’ve still got our Teaser and the Firecat LP record (1971)!

Teaser and the Firecat LP Cover

Kiplin Hall : Country Seat of the Founder of Maryland USA

May18

For many years I have picked up the leaflet describing Kiplin Hall and tempting me to visit. My interest was even more piqued when I read fellow blog poster nilly hall‘s description of her visit to the house and garden last October. Then earlier this year I was lucky enough to join friends to attend The History Wardrobe Premiere : Women and The Great War. Although organised by Kiplin Hall the performance was presented in nearby Scorton Village Hall. Finally last week I visited the hall itself.

We arrived nice and early in good time to give the tea room a try and have a walk around the gardens and estate before lunch. The house was not due to open until 2pm. During the process of deciding on a day to visit Kiplin we pondered as to why the opening hours were rather unusual: generally Sunday to Wednesday 2 – 5pm. The grounds and tea room being open on the same days between 10am and 5pm. Could it be that they host weddings on Fridays and Saturdays? As we ate our delicious salad lunch we soon realised the reason for this. The volunteers began to stream in, greeting each other, checking the rotas and signing their attendance book. Of course, a house like this cannot operate successfully without the generous assistance of a host of local volunteers. Sunday to Wednesday must be their preferred days of working so it’s Sunday to Wednesday that Kiplin Hall is open. I should add that in each room we talked to the volunteer room stewards who added much to our enjoyment of the day.

On arrival at Kiplin Hall you are greeted by giant topiary peacocks

Our walk started at the White Garden

Walking through several gardens you eventually arrive at the Lake Walk

Grassy paths lead round the lake to The Folly or ‘eyecatcher’ which, until the 1990s gravel extraction work which brought much-needed to funds to the hall and created the artificial lake, originally stood in the west parkland. The lake provides a habitat for many aquatic birds and wild flowers.

The Folly

Kiplin Hall from the Lake Walk

We didn’t have time before lunch to complete all of the garden/estate walk nor even touch on the Woodland Trails, although we managed to fit in the Walled Garden and the Garden Museum where we learned more about the house, gardens and owners. Kiplin Hall and Gardens definitely warrant a return visit.

Beautiful blooms near the Walled Garden

Kiplin in 1780 by George Cuit The Elder

Christopher Crowe bought the house and estate in 1722

Crowe bought the estate from Charles Calvert, the 5th Baron Baltimore, whose ancestor in the late 1620s set sale for America and later founded the state of Maryland.

“After several years of negotiation over both the land and Calvert’s proposed charter, on 20 June 1632 Charles I put his seal to the patent for land to the north of Virginia, to be called Terra Mariae or Maryland in honour of Queen Henrietta Maria. Sadly, George Calvert had died in April that year and his son Cecil, 2nd Lord Baltimore, became the first Proprietor of Maryland. Cecil appointed his younger brother, Leonard, the first Governor.” [Source]

Maryland maintains connections with Kiplin Hall (or rather, they have been re-instated) through the Maryland Study Centre near the main entrance to the grounds. When students from Maryland University are staying at the Centre and involved in helping or research at the Hall the Maryland flag is always flying. As it was on the day of our visit.

The Maryland Study Centre

The ubiquitous Doggie Graves in the Kiplin Woodland

No photography was allowed in the house. The excellent website has links to each room with photos and descriptions. The theme of the exhibition and trail throughout the hall this year is “Kiplin Hall in times of War”. Various paintings, pieces of furniture and other artefacts connect the Hall with British fighting campaigns throughout the ages from the English Civil War (1642-1651) to The Crimean War (1853-1856). A further two rooms on the second floor have been preserved from the time when the hall was requisitioned by the Army during the Second World War and these two rooms were part of a flat later occupied by RAF officers.

The Lake from The Hall

A very satisfying day out!

In a Quiet Corner of Rome – The Aventine

May13

We’d both visited Rome before so I decided to book us at a hotel in an area slightly out of the main hustle and bustle of the centre of Rome and in a leafy residential area within walking distance of a certain cemetery that was brought to my attention on my first visit. The highlight of that trip, although we visited The Forum and The Coliseum and the Trevi Fountain and The Spanish Steps and The Pantheon and I had my picture taken at the Bocca della Verita, turned out to be the peaceful and tranquil Keats-Shelley House.

John Keats and Percy Bysshe Shelley are both buried at The Non-Catholic Cemetery in Testaccio and the more I have read about the place the more I have wanted to visit what sounds like a peaceful rural idyll so close to the centre of Rome.

The Keats and Shelley Graves in the Protestant Cemetery [postcard]

What I had failed to take into account – and I could have done nothing about it anyway – was the fact that a second Italian public holiday was to fall during our week’s visit. The 1st of May is a public holiday in Italy. So, after dropping our bags at our hotel room, we made our way at about 1.30pm to the Campo Cestio a 10 minute walk away only to find that it had closed that day at 1pm.

Very near to the Cemetery is the famous Caius Cestius Pyramid built during the 1st century BC when Roman funerary architecture was influenced by the ancient Egyptians.

The Cats in the Area even have their own website!

Disappointed, we turned to other entries in my ‘Quiet Corners of Rome’ book by David Downie.

I was first told about The Magic Keyhole by a former work colleague who had lived for some time in Rome. But it is also mentioned in the Quiet Corners of Rome book so we made it our next stop : “Piazza dei Cavalieri di Malta and Piranesi Monument”. There was about a half hour queue and yes, indeed, when you reach the front there is the dome of St Peter’s framed by the keyhole in Piranesi’s door.

This is the view that you get [source]

Needless to say my own photo turned out rubbish but with a long queue of people waiting behind you it is all a bit of a rush when you finally get to the front.

The Piranesi or Knights of Malta Square

The Keyhole Queue

“The doors seal off the grounds of the Knights’ [of Malta] headquarters and are opened only to the pious and powerful … The piazza is egalitarian. Flame cypresses and palms rise behind the extravagantly long, L-shaped wall, erected in 1765 and conveniently lined with benches.”

“Clivo di Rocca Savella, Parco Savello, Giardino degli Aranci”

Vatican View

Orange Tree

Drinking Fountain

Parco Savello Fountain

Next to the Knights of Malta HQ are several churches and two parks. One of the parks is the Parco Savello but both of them more or less fitted the book’s description: view of the Vatican, orange trees, drinking fountains.

The Clivo di Rocca Savello is a narrow car-free lane that slopes down to the Tiber “mossy and picturesquely weed-grown, the clivo is as atmospheric as it is empty”. Well one or two people were walking up and down and also as the book says “stray cats own it”.

The Clivo di Rocca Savello

With it being a public holiday none of the places were particularly people-free and the final venue least of all. It seemed that all of Rome wished to visit the Roseto Comunale (Rose Garden) on that sunny May 1st afternoon. 1,100 varieties of rose grow on the northern slope of the Aventine Hill. All types of rose and from all corners of the earth grow here and the park is only open for about one month a year. So this time we struck it lucky !

The Rose Garden with the Forum behind

Charles Darwin rose still in bud (UK)

We were very happy with our choice of hotel in a Quiet Corner of Rome.

The Villa San Pio

Padre Pio bids us Farewell as we make our way to the Airport

Acquapendente to Bolsena and Bolsena to Orvieto

May10

Day 6

Free day in Bolsena: Explore Bolsena, its ancient streets, castle, Etruscan temples and church, and catacombs of Santa Cristina, site of the miracle of Corpus Christi. Swimming in the lake. Optional walk from Acquapendente through the low Monti Volsinii (12.2 miles, 6 hours).

Bolsena comes into view as we complete our walk from Acquapendente

Being gluttons for punishment of course we’d decided all along on the optional walk from Acquapendente. Lucky for us that Tuesday morning had been assigned by Annalisa as our ‘feedback’ time for the trip. So, as previously arranged, we met Annalisa in the hotel lobby and gave our views on the walks and hotels, restaurants etc. This slightly delayed our departure so A, whose home is in Acquapendente, offered us a lift to the start of the walk advising on places to buy lunch and water for the day. We bid her a very fond farewell as she drove off to her next assignment.

Goodbye Annalisa and Thank you! – Keep Smiling! You’re doing a great job!

Day 7

Bolsena to Orvieto: An old Etruscan lane leads up through woods to a plateau and across farmland. The first view of Orvieto, situated high on its extinct volcano, is unforgettable (11.3 miles, 5.5 hours). Don’t miss the magnificent cathedral with frescoes.

Wednesday, the final day of our journey to Orvieto, the weather was back to its usual blue sky and sunshine. We walked up through the old town of Bolsena and up out of the crater following a paved Roman Road and an Etruscan Lane. We were told that the route follows the historic trail of the procession of the Miracle of Bolsena.

Lake Bolsena as we leave the town

Historic Bolsena

Old Bolsena

La Medusa Shop – Maker of Replica Roman/Etruscan Artefacts??

La Medusa

The Rooftops and Lake – Bolsena

Bolsena Castle

Leaving the town we soon turned from the tarmac road onto a long ancient track. “You are now walking on the old paved Roman Road to Orvieto with the flagstones clearly visible underfoot” declared the Route Booklet. I think possibly our route diverted quite a bit from the typical Roman straight-line road but we certainly approached Orvieto downhill and then uphill in a straight line.

The Roman Road leaving Bolsena

Flagstones clearly visible underfoot

We crossed the border from Lazio into Umbria (Bolsena and Acquapendente are both in Lazio we left Tuscany behind between San Quirico and Latera on Monday). A couple of kilometres later we visited our final 9 Etruscan tombs. They appeared rather abandoned and the Information Board had been stripped of all information. About 5 km from our hotel in Orvieto we had our first view of the city perched on its extinct volcanic rock.

Some of the 9 Etruscan Tombs

Our first view of Orvieto

We made it! We arrived at our hotel in Orvieto with a great feeling of satisfaction and achievement. Our last night was spent in Orvieto but although the ATG holiday finished with breakfast the next day we were to travel on to Rome for a further night before returning to Yorkshire on Friday.

The Orvieto Duomo or Cathedral at night

Begun in 1290 it is probably the finest example of Romanesque Gothic in Italy – The Duomo by day

Like our achievement – Magnificent!!

Sovana to Bolsena – Tracks and Tombs and Troglodytes … and Rain

May8

Day 4

Sovana to San Quirico: Paths across farmland lead to an isolated church and fine Etruscan lane that descends into a gorge, from which rises crag-top Sorano. After exploring Sorano, paths along the gorge lead to the troglodyte habitations at Vitozza and the village of San Quirico (10.3 miles, 5 hours).

On the Sunday the walking began in earnest. Over 40 miles in 4 days – not bad going!

The Abandoned Isolated Church of San Rocco

Crag-top Sorana from San Rocco Viewpoint

Etruscan Lane of San Rocco

Tombs along the Via Cava di San Rocco

Near the village of San Quirico (our destination on Day 4) we passed through the abandoned troglodyte village of Vitozza. This fascinating, rather eerie, place had been a medieval settlement dating back to the 12th century. There are the remains of castles, churches, and many other buildings plus many caves which were used as stables, storerooms and homes.

Cave homes at Vitozza

Dovecote or Columbario – 1st Century AD

Day 5

San Quirico to Bolsena: Cart tracks across farmland lead to an escarpment, where paths descend towards the small town of Latera. A climb through chestnut woods to the rim of a volcanic crater offers superb views. Tracks lead down to Lake Bolsena (10.4 miles, 5.5 hours), from where a private boat takes you across the lake to Bolsena (town).

Approaching Latera

We ate our picnic lunch on a bench in this square in Latera: Church of San Clemente and 1790 bell-tower

Pretty Doorway in Latera Piazza San Clemente

Leaving Latera

After leaving Latera and as we approached the crater edge with views of Lake Bolsena the rain began. Unfortunately, this meant that we were unable to take the boat trip across the lake. Annalisa had to come to our rescue and drive us round the lake to our next hotel by the lakeside at Bolsena.

Our path is blocked by sheep – but not for too long!

An early view of Lake Bolsena in the rain

We arrive at the Trattoria Da Giggetto jetty

Tracks and Tombs around Sovana, Tuscany

May6

“Day 2

Pitigliano to Sovana: Free morning to explore crag-top Pitigliano, its Etruscan houses, medieval fortress and synagogue. Then follow an Etruscan lane to a small plateau, with pastures and vines, to the charming village of Sovana (4.9 miles, 3 hours).

Day 3

Free day in Sovana: Visit Sovana’s fine Romanesque churches. Walk to see the outstanding Etruscan necropolis, including the Tomba della Sirena, restored by the ATG Trust (2.5 miles).”

After breakfast and our orientation meeting with Annalisa we set off on our first day’s walking. We felt that we had explored Pitigliano sufficiently the previous afternoon and were happy to get started with the walk in earnest.

Our next port-of-call was to be Sovana a pretty village, popular with day visitors (especially so probably because Friday 25 April was an Italian public holiday and the weather was good), just a few miles from Pitigliano.

Our path lead us through further fine examples of Vie Cave, past ancient Etruscan tombs carved out of the local tufa rock and along the ubiquitous strada bianca (small gravel country roads connecting farms) – marked ‘SB’ in our trusty route booklet.

Via Cava di San Giuseppe

Etruscan Tombs – good examples of ‘tomba a camera’

Our first Strada Bianca

After this relatively easy walk along open tracks and through woodland and further vie cave we arrived in Sovana in the early afternoon allowing us plenty of time to have lunch, explore the village and relax in the beautiful gardens of the Sovana Hotel and Resort right next door to the ancient Duomo.

Arriving in the main Piazza in Sovana

The Via Del Duomo, Sovana

The Romanesque Duomo from the hotel gardens

The Duomo from the Hotel window

The Carved Cathedral Doorway

It was lovely to spend two nights at the Sovana Hotel. The ‘free’ day was a Saturday and many people were visiting the village but our circular walk was mostly very quiet although we did join some others at the necropolis Parco Archeologico “Citta’ del Tufo”

“Discovered by S.J. Ainsley and George Dennis in 1843, the Etruscan Tombs are situated along the road from Sovana to S. Martino Sul Fiora. This valley, lined with tombs, is possibly the best preserved Etruscan necropolis. Whilst the tombs themselves are underground, above many of them Greek ‘temple’ style monuments have been carved into the rock. They were not only burial tombs but the flights of steps up the ‘temples’ meant they were places of worship as well. They were stuccoed and painted.” [Adapted from the Route Booklet]

At the Parco Archeologico

Tomba Pola

Artist’s Impression of the Tomba Pola

Tomba Ildebranda

Close-up view of the column at the Tomba Ildebranda

About the Tomba Ildebranda it says in the Route Booklet : “The magnificent tomb/temple was discovered only in 1925 and named in honour of Pope Gregory (who was previously Ildebrando [and born in Sovana in the Middle Ages], with whom the tomb clearly has nothing whatsoever to do! It was evidently the tomb of some wealthy, Etruscan-Roman governor of the municipium. It has an exterior resembling a Greek temple, with pillars and roof – all carved out of the rock in the 3rd to 2nd centuries BC.”

La Tomba della Sirena impression

A short walk away and across the road from the Tomba Ildebranda etc is the Tomba della Sirena [Tomb of the Mermaid] the restoration of which was partly paid for by the ATG Trust. Dating back to 250 BC it was the first tomb to be discovered by Ainsley and Dennis in 1843.

La Tomba della Sirena from the Information Board

La Tomba della Sirena

La Tomba della Sirena – Acknowledgement of ATG Contribution

The now closed-off Via Cava di San Sebastiano

We spent much of the morning inspecting the tombs area and then completed the circular walk back to Sovana for lunch again at a pavement cafe on the Via del Duomo. We had hoped to take the opportunity this afternoon to visit one of the nearby thermal springs. Before the trip we had understood them to be within a short distance of the village but it turned out that they were over 20 kms away, were located within private spa resorts and transport seemed complicated and not helped by it being a public holiday weekend. They also threatened to be very busy. In the end we opted to relax again in the afternoon in preparation for the next four days walking – over 10 miles each day!

Etruscan Lanes to Orvieto – Day One – We arrive at Pitigliano

May5

ATG’s most unusual trip!

“Crag-top towns approached by ancient Via di Cava, then lakes and plateaux, and finally Orvieto with its magnificent cathedral.”

This was our ATG Footloose Walking Holiday this year. Our third altogether. My sister and I travelled to Italy on 24 April and returned last Friday 2nd May. We flew to Rome from Leeds Bradford Airport where we were met by a driver and his Mercedes limousine in which we travelled in style and comfort for two hours to the picturesque town of Pitigliano in the very south of Tuscany.

Pitigliano from our hotel window

Day 1

“Arrive in Pitigliano: Dramatic approach to Pitigliano on foot (1 mile) via 2,500-year-old Etruscan lanes is strongly recommended. Alternatively this walk can be done as an excursion after arrival (2 miles).”

After settling into our room we soon set off on the excursion recommended above by ATG. Here are some highlights from that walk.

The Aqueduct “Built in 1545 by Sangallo for the Orsinis”

The Romanesque wall panel depicting Christianity defeating evil on the wall of the church of San Rocco, Pitigliano

View of Pitigliano from the Church of Madonna delle Grazie

Returning to Pitigliano via a Via Cava

Vie Cave : Our first Etruscan Via Cava – “cut by hand from volcanic tufa rock between 2,000 and 3,000 years ago. They were the main routes to crag-top towns such as Pitigliano and used for millennia by travellers and local farmers with their flocks and herds. Their scale carefully planned gradients, drainage channels, walk-ways and steps for animals make the Via Cava one of the major engineering achievements of the era. Some are still in regular use today, although tree roots during the past 2,000 years has caused rock falls and blocked others.”

We walked along many Vie Cave on the first few days of the trip. The friendly dog accompanied us from town to the viewpoint and we wondered how we would shake him off but when we arrived back in town he joined up with a small group of walkers heading out on the same route we had just taken.

A typical Etruscan Tomb

Another feature of the walk that occurred again and again was the Etruscan tomb. On this first day we passed through a ‘honeycomb’ of tombs on our path out of, and back into, Pitigliano. Many are now used for wine storage and for farm implements.

Before we began our trek to Orvieto the next day we met our Route Manager – always a highlight of ATG holidays – Annalisa! She helped to make our trip as successful as it was. Thank you so much, Annalisa!

Meeting Annalisa at the Hotel Guastini in Pitigliano before we started our journey

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