Bagno Vignoni, Pienza and Lago Bolsena

Our ritual bath commenced at 8am, where we were only one of three couples in the pools – later we’d notice the pools were full of people in bobbing around in their bathing caps (a requirement). Following our soak, we had breakfast at 9am. Afterwards, we decided to hike down to the river. Little did we know the trail was a make-shift type of museum to the watermills that used to line this hill in the 1700’s. We followed the water all the way down from our hotel, past several natural pools, to the river. A couple of the natural pools – those nearer to the top of the hill – were amazingly clean, a lipid blue. By the time we got down to the river, the water was gushing a gritty brown. It was a beautiful, warm and sunny day and we enjoyed the scenery.

Palazzo Piccolomini

After leaving Posta Marcucci and Bagno Vignoni, we headed off, again, to Pienza. Having spoken to the museum staff, we were confirmed for the tour that began at 12:30pm. That gave us enough time to stroll the small village and take in the wonderful views. Monte Amiata was clear in the distance. It turned out that our tour of Palazzo Piccolomini was private as we were the two to turn up. The Palazzo was continually inhabited until 1962 at which time, without heirs, it was bequeathed to the historical society that owns it today. While it was originally built in 1459 for Pope Pius II and his family, the collection of furnishings, artwork and armaments is from many differing epochs. We visited only the part of the palace that was retained in its original form – on the piano nobile. Had we been allowed to visit the first floor, we would have found an apartment with all the modern conveniences where the descendents of the Piccolomini family lived until 1962, and where members of the historical society still live today.

Some of the most beautiful features of the Palazzo are, of course, its courtyard, its garden and its terrace with views over the entire valley.

After our tour, we were hungry (again) for lunch. We chose La Buca delle Fatte, a family-run place recommended by Nancy (the Rome guide). Another great meal. We went for round two of the pici d’aglione and Josh couldn’t resist more Tuscan pork. Today, we even enjoyed a homemade desert and some Vin Santo to ensure we digest it all properly.

It was time to start our drive back to Rome. But we had a few stops planned. First, we visited the nearby town of Montichiello where we discovered a “torre” that is privately owned by Finnish sculptress. On a north-facing hill, the remaining snow in Montichielli made it difficult to get around everywhere but we were ready to move on anyway.

We chose to take the scenic route and drive to Lago Bolseno. Once at the lake, we took in the views from its perimeter before driving up the hill to the town of Bolseno. There, we found a fortress, built over a three hundred year period from the 1200’s to 1500’s, and which today houses a museum. We were too pooped for the museum, but we did climb to the top of the fortress to take in the beautiful 360 degree views of the lake and the surrounding countryside.

Enough of the back road driving, it was time to get on the Autostrada, thereby necessarily taking us by the town of Orvieto. The sun was just beginning to recede behind the hills and cast a beautiful glow on the town. Josh stopped to take some photos (that may or may not ever be posted to my blog?)

We arrived home at around 7pm and reunited with the kids. Once they all went to bed. Josh and I enjoyed the remnants of our wine and pecorino for dinner, with a plate of sliced meats and toast. A perfect way to cap-off our get-a-way.