We Stay Close to Home

Traveling around can be tiring, even when the trips are short.  Sitting in the car, stopping in random towns – it can make you a little weary.  We took a day or two just to stay around Anghiari and the general area.  This is a beautiful area with lots of small, undiscovered hill towns.  So it’s always worth it to spend a day just taking in the local sights.  Tim and Julie hadn’t been around here very much, so it was a nice break from our travels to stay near home and relax.

We went to Monterchi for lunch one day at one our favorite places, Al Travato.  It’s a great enoteca that serves wonderful food and has a good wine selection and cheeses.  We were so taken with our gigantic meat and cheese tray that I didn’t take any pictures.  It’s a shame.  It was divine.  Afterwards, we drove up to Lippiano, which is just above Monterchi.  It’s a tiny little place with great views of the countryside and was the site of our friends Livio and Anna’s wedding reception.

Then a drive to Citerna, one of our favorite hill towns.  The views are wonderful and the town is beautiful and not touristy at all.  We’ve taken everyone there and they’ve all loved it.

These are the days that I love the most.  Aimless wandering, stopping along the way, mostly just admiring the scenery and enjoying the company.  No agenda, no time frame – just doing what we want.  This area is getting very familiar for us – we know the roads and the directions and the towns around here.  Italy has so much to offer – mountains, beaches, lakes, plains – it’s tempting to want to go somewhere every week.  And I completely understand when our visitors want to see other parts and go other places.  But I think they all see the simple beauty in Anghiari and its area and are glad that this is their base.  Tim and Julie have been here several times.  But there’s so much to this area that they had never seen or done, just like us when we first got here in August.  It’s very rich in history, culture and tradition and it’s a great place to call home.  At least temporarily.