Day 15: Castelmuzio-Massa Marittima
It is hard to leave the villa and Castelmuzio, but today we are off to the far southwest corner of Tuscany--the area called the Maremma; we are staying in a hill town about 10 miles from the Mediterranean--Massa Marittima.
We say our goodbyes to Mark and Rebecca--they have been wonderful hosts; we tell them that we will be happy to "test-drive" any of their villas whenever they need us. We have one more errand before we leave the area--we want to stop in and buy some olive oil from Miriam's neighbor, Ruth McVey, who produces and sells her own oil. She is an American university professor who bought land in Montisi. Her oil was written up in Saveur Magazine about five years ago and we stopped to buy some then. On our way to her house, we see her driving the other way into Montisi so we turn around and catch up to her in town. She tells us that we can buy some oil from her associate, who is back at her house. We return and buy three liters of beautiful, thick green oil....
The drive to Massa Marittima goes through a very picturesque section of Tuscany; it is more wooded than the Pienza area, but it is very green and hilly. It is not very populated; the towns are few and far between.
The weather today has turned overcast and slightly cool. We are planning to have a picnic so we are looking for two things--the sun and a picnic table. Miraculously, as we hit the top of a hill, there is fenced off area with three picnic tables at the side of the road. We stop there, figuring we can't wait for the sun; who knows if there will be any more picnic tables down the road? Lunch is very pleasant, even with the overcast sky--bread, cheese, ham, salami, tomatoes, fruit....all in our own private picnic grove.
There is one important tourist attraction on the road to Massa Marittima....the deserted abbey of San Galgano. After one wrong turn--taking us about five miles in the wrong direction--we find the abbey. It is a roofless church from the 15th century, that was abandoned in the 17th century and became a ruin. It had been the seat of a very rich order, which had connections with the Sienese government. Now it sits quietly and mysteriously in the middle of a field, waiting for the few tourists who come this way. It is pretty impressive to see and to walk around. There is also another church, still in use, on the top of a nearby hill, It contains the sword of San Galgano, which he plunged into a rock in the 14th century as a symbol of his renouncing the material and warlike world and taking holy orders. It is also noteworthy because of its unusual octagonal dome and for some 15th century frescoes.
The gray skies give way to a steady drizzle as we continue to Massa Marittima. It is a very pleasant drive, up and down the scenic green hills. We approach Massa M. from the back; it sits on a the slope of a hill facing the Mediterranean. As we climb the hill, the vista stretches all the way to the water. We find the signs pointing us to our hotel, the Residence La Fenice, and locate it without difficulty.
The hotel has been open for less than a year; our room--actually a suite--is on the top floor. There is a separate living room with a kitchenette and a sloping roof with exposed beams. The ceilings also have skylights, so even with the gloomy overcast, the rooms are quite bright. It is also very nicely furnished with lots of wood and wrought iron. Once we are settled, I go out to check out the town. I walk towards the centro storico, which you enter through the old Sienese walls. Once through the wall, I am taken aback by the street that leads into the town; it is a very steep ramp that drops off sharply for about 100 yards. It is not a hill one will want to tackle after dinner and a bottle of wine.
Once down in the center of town, the main piazza and surrounding streets are fairly level. The main piazza is particularly striking, with an impressive cathedral set high on a platform over the square and other medieval buildings arranged on all sides of the piazza. All the angles are slightly irregular, giving the piazza a very distinctive feel. The raised platform adjacent to the cathedral serves as a stage for open air operas in the summer and the steps serve as seating for watching the passing scene in the piazza. You also have wonderful views over the countryside from some spots on the square. I also note, with some relief, that there are several parking areas just below the center of town, so driving down to town for dinner shouldn't present a problem.
The climb back up to the hotel convinces me, beyond any doubt, that we will be driving to dinner. I pick a restaurant out of the Slow Food Guide--the Vecchio Borgo--and call to make reservations. When it is time for dinner, we drive right down and park in the central parking lot. We stroll around town for short time, but the weather is getting nasty so we head for the restaurant.
It is already quite crowded- I am glad to have called to make the reservation. The restaurant iss all brick and stone, with rounded ceilings and heavy wood furniture. We order the speciality of the restaurant--the "gran misto antipasto". This is an endless series of dishes--both hot and cold--which is a sampler of all their appetizers. We eat them all with relish--the best is a carpaccio with a very savory dressing, but everything is very good. I order the local tortelli alla maremma--filled with ricotta and sauced with a meat ragu--and Diana has the ravioli with a walnut pesto. No dessert--we are too full. The wine was a hearty red from a neighboring town.
We walk back through the square, admire the cathedral in the night light, get in our car and climb the hill (the easy way) back to the hotel.
Diana and Jim
We say our goodbyes to Mark and Rebecca--they have been wonderful hosts; we tell them that we will be happy to "test-drive" any of their villas whenever they need us. We have one more errand before we leave the area--we want to stop in and buy some olive oil from Miriam's neighbor, Ruth McVey, who produces and sells her own oil. She is an American university professor who bought land in Montisi. Her oil was written up in Saveur Magazine about five years ago and we stopped to buy some then. On our way to her house, we see her driving the other way into Montisi so we turn around and catch up to her in town. She tells us that we can buy some oil from her associate, who is back at her house. We return and buy three liters of beautiful, thick green oil....
The drive to Massa Marittima goes through a very picturesque section of Tuscany; it is more wooded than the Pienza area, but it is very green and hilly. It is not very populated; the towns are few and far between.
The weather today has turned overcast and slightly cool. We are planning to have a picnic so we are looking for two things--the sun and a picnic table. Miraculously, as we hit the top of a hill, there is fenced off area with three picnic tables at the side of the road. We stop there, figuring we can't wait for the sun; who knows if there will be any more picnic tables down the road? Lunch is very pleasant, even with the overcast sky--bread, cheese, ham, salami, tomatoes, fruit....all in our own private picnic grove.
There is one important tourist attraction on the road to Massa Marittima....the deserted abbey of San Galgano. After one wrong turn--taking us about five miles in the wrong direction--we find the abbey. It is a roofless church from the 15th century, that was abandoned in the 17th century and became a ruin. It had been the seat of a very rich order, which had connections with the Sienese government. Now it sits quietly and mysteriously in the middle of a field, waiting for the few tourists who come this way. It is pretty impressive to see and to walk around. There is also another church, still in use, on the top of a nearby hill, It contains the sword of San Galgano, which he plunged into a rock in the 14th century as a symbol of his renouncing the material and warlike world and taking holy orders. It is also noteworthy because of its unusual octagonal dome and for some 15th century frescoes.
The gray skies give way to a steady drizzle as we continue to Massa Marittima. It is a very pleasant drive, up and down the scenic green hills. We approach Massa M. from the back; it sits on a the slope of a hill facing the Mediterranean. As we climb the hill, the vista stretches all the way to the water. We find the signs pointing us to our hotel, the Residence La Fenice, and locate it without difficulty.
The hotel has been open for less than a year; our room--actually a suite--is on the top floor. There is a separate living room with a kitchenette and a sloping roof with exposed beams. The ceilings also have skylights, so even with the gloomy overcast, the rooms are quite bright. It is also very nicely furnished with lots of wood and wrought iron. Once we are settled, I go out to check out the town. I walk towards the centro storico, which you enter through the old Sienese walls. Once through the wall, I am taken aback by the street that leads into the town; it is a very steep ramp that drops off sharply for about 100 yards. It is not a hill one will want to tackle after dinner and a bottle of wine.
Once down in the center of town, the main piazza and surrounding streets are fairly level. The main piazza is particularly striking, with an impressive cathedral set high on a platform over the square and other medieval buildings arranged on all sides of the piazza. All the angles are slightly irregular, giving the piazza a very distinctive feel. The raised platform adjacent to the cathedral serves as a stage for open air operas in the summer and the steps serve as seating for watching the passing scene in the piazza. You also have wonderful views over the countryside from some spots on the square. I also note, with some relief, that there are several parking areas just below the center of town, so driving down to town for dinner shouldn't present a problem.
The climb back up to the hotel convinces me, beyond any doubt, that we will be driving to dinner. I pick a restaurant out of the Slow Food Guide--the Vecchio Borgo--and call to make reservations. When it is time for dinner, we drive right down and park in the central parking lot. We stroll around town for short time, but the weather is getting nasty so we head for the restaurant.
It is already quite crowded- I am glad to have called to make the reservation. The restaurant iss all brick and stone, with rounded ceilings and heavy wood furniture. We order the speciality of the restaurant--the "gran misto antipasto". This is an endless series of dishes--both hot and cold--which is a sampler of all their appetizers. We eat them all with relish--the best is a carpaccio with a very savory dressing, but everything is very good. I order the local tortelli alla maremma--filled with ricotta and sauced with a meat ragu--and Diana has the ravioli with a walnut pesto. No dessert--we are too full. The wine was a hearty red from a neighboring town.
We walk back through the square, admire the cathedral in the night light, get in our car and climb the hill (the easy way) back to the hotel.
Diana and Jim
