Monday, November 19, 2018

On the Road to Tuscany


Hello, Dear Friends, when I last posted on our recent trip to Italy, 
we were enjoying our Last Day in Rome

It was very sad to say goodbye,
but Rome was just the beginning of our adventure. 
So come along with me and we will take the long drive north
to the beautiful hills of Tuscany. 


We rented a large, 8 passenger van for our main family group, 
while my newlywed daughter and husband, who arrived 
on our last day in Rome, rented their own vehicle. 

My eldest son drove. 
There are no speed limits or apparent traffic laws in Italy. 
Yikes. 

As we whizzed through the streets of Rome on our 
way out of the city, I snapped this photo of a corner flower market
up against an ancient wall. 


The city immediately gave way to open fields, framed by 
lush, green hills and purple mountains in the distance.




It was haying time! 



I could almost believe we were back home in Washington State! 


But it was just an illusion........

Our first glimpse of a medieval village on a hill
quickly dispelled that myth!




We traveled through a narrow valley, gradually rising in elevation, 
 with rolling hills on either side. 
Some hills had entire villages on them and others had 
a single villa, or a few grouped together. 



All had olive groves and vineyards which created 
beautiful tapestries along the hillsides.


The skies were filled with dramatic clouds
worthy of a Michelangelo painting. 


  In between, open fields of cut hay, 
 or sunflowers and poppies
gone to seed, created beautiful scenes. 



This abandoned villa awaits some love.......


The sign prepares us for what lies ahead. 


We find ourselves winding up and down the rolling hills
that were punctuated by the region's iconic Cypress trees. 




I took these photos from 
a van full of people, traveling at break-neck speed. 

It's impossible to drive slowly here.......even on hairpin curves. 
If you try to slow down, you have impatient 
Italians passing you on steep, winding roads. 

-      -
o     o
^
0

This was a true test of my faith in prayer :)
xoxo





I kept myself distracted with the breathtaking scenery. 



After a 2 hour drive, we reach our destination - the tiny, 
hilltop village of Montisi
(Click on the name for more info)










We arrive at the villa.......
ready for our next adventure! 

xoxo

Next time we will explore the inside. 
I hope you will join me! 

xoxo






20 comments:

  1. Hi Karen. I have traveled a lot this year. I have been to England, France and Italy. All through the hearts and souls of some of my wonderful blogging friends! I am so happy that you all went on these trips and took me along with you. Looks like you had a beautiful trip. The scenery is so gorgeous and your pics are wonderful. Thank you! Hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving and thanks for your special visit. I always love hearing from you..xxoJudy

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  2. I loved this, Karen. I've been to Tuscany a few years back so this brought back fond memories. And your photos are so beautiful. I hope you're having a wonderful time.
    Amalia
    xo

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  3. Hello, I enjoyed the countryside and the views of Tuscany. The villa looks lovely from the outside. The driving sounds a little scary, I would want to leave the driving to someone else. I enjoyed the post and your photos. Enjoy your day. Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family. PS, thanks for the comment on my blog.

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  4. ❤! Wonderful photos of the beautiful (and familiar) views. I love the Tuscan-Emilian Apennines.
    Here I must defend a little bit my beloved Italy. There are speed limits and you can get stopped and fined for speeding. Italians do drive fast... and well. :D
    I'm very much looking forward to reading more and seeing photos from your trip, Karen!
    Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours! xxx

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  5. Ooh Karen, the scenery is breathtaking, but I'd be praying and holding my breath along the drive and hairpin turns!! How nice that your newlywed daughter and SIL joined you. Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family, and thank you for your visits and friendship. xx

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  6. I enjoyed reading the information you provided along with the collection of fantastic pictures of Tuscany in Italy.Italy is a beautiful country steeped in history.
    Shakespeare's Julius Caesar set in Rome is a poignant portrayal of the fickle and tragic politics of that era.

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  7. Oh, be still my heart....what an enchanting place to visit, my friend. And you...you look just darling in your pretty sundress :) My, what a fabulous experience and you are so sweet to share it with us.

    Wishing you a most blessed Thanksgiving. Love and hugs to you!

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  8. Tuscany is so beautiful, and it was such a joy to see all these wonderful pictures, Karen. I remember when Jess went to Tuscany, she told me to watch "Under The Tuscan Sun" so we could be
    together in spirit.....and I did! What a charming picture of the red flowers on the sill of the brick building, and the alley picture is charming as well. Such beautiful scenery and rolling hills and quaint villages. Yikes, that must have been scary driving the rolling hills with cars racing by. This is a sweet picture of you to remember your special time there. Happy Thanksgiving to you, dear Karen.

    ~Sheri

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  9. no road rules! Yikes indeed. The pic of you is so pretty! What a dream to be there!Loved all the pics

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  10. What a wonderful trip to Italy! It’s been many years since I’ve been there. I enjoyed looking at the pretty photos.
    Have a Happy Thanksgiving

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  11. Hi Karen, I'm enjoying your travel adventures in Italy. What beautiful photos you have shared! Have a blessed Thanksgiving holiday with your dear family. Pat 🍁🦃🍂

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  12. Oh Wow! I feel as though I'm there with you! What a wonderful trip -- and you tell the story so well. The photos are breathtaking. I can't imagine (or maybe I can!) what it's like to come to the top of a hill and see a vista like that before you! All those vineyards and villages -- it's like a movie! And you look so in your element in that doorway!

    How wonderful you could do this trip with your family. That's very special indeed.

    On a somewhat different note, thanks for joining me in my blog-revisit of Paris (and soon, England!) --I appreciate your comments but google isn't letting me reply individually!

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  13. Hello Karen, firstly I must tell you for some reason your blog doesn't come up on my reading list with your recent posts. It seems to stuck 8 months' back at the "The Northwest Flower & Garden Show - Part 111" post. It is happening on my sidebar too. I've unloaded and re-loaded and am perplexed as to why. Perhaps I'm the only one, perhaps Blogger is not working properly in Australia. Anyway, I purposely look back to your blog to check for new posts, just letting you know in case I'm not the only one.

    Now, to your beautiful post - oh I too have been in the position where I had to just hold my breath and hope for the best in regard to travelling ... fast.... along a road! You got there though and can put it down to another adventure ;D). Your photos are fabulous, what a truly enchanting place and the scenery is amazing!

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    Replies
    1. Hello Karen and Sue,
      my sidebar behaves exactly in the same way with Karen's blog. I too have tried to fix it many times. :) Greetings from Finland!

      Delete
  14. What a truly beautiful post.
    Your photographs are a joy to see.
    The scenery is so lovely.

    All the best Jan

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  15. Hi dear Karen!Thanks for this amazing tour!Gorgeous landscapes!I also love your charming photo,so happy!Hugs!

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  17. I have to disagree - there are speedlimits in Italy. In the city there is 50km/h - the same as in whole Europe :) It;s possible that they haven't made any signs and it exactly means 50 :P
    When you exit a city there is 90-110 and on the high speed road you habe 130-150km/h.

    Rome is a beautiful city. Maybe next year we'll go to the Italy again and we'll definitely visit this city :D

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  19. i can't believe i missed that beautiful post dear Karen
    thanks for link so i could explore with you the awesome and scenic scenery of road to Tuscany :)
    oh my neck break speed sounds upsetting indeed .although the whole way is full of splendor of Nature and touch of certain ancient architectural glory which Rome is famous for .
    you look divine in red i found your personality charming and impressive !
    hugs and blessings

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Thank you for stopping by! Your comments are important to me and are very much appreciated. xx Karen

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