I am pleased to present you the beginning of the new rubric – Tuscan landscapes! In it I will present you every corner on one of the most magnetic places in Italy – Tuscany! I love this region! The freedom that you feel driving calmly on hilly roads and watching the incredible landscapes, which are constantly changing – invaluable! I am not sure if there is another place in the world where you can feel like this… Here you will not see hurried and angry people lost between the daily engagements… everything is like a fairy tale…
We start with… Monteriggioni !
And our fairy tale will begin with Monteriggioni! The medieval town is among the few in Europe with preserved fortified walls! Situated on hilly area, Monteriggioni is visible from a distance. The easiest way to reach it is with car. The distance from Siena Is only 20 km. You can park on a paid parking. There is one large right opposite the main gate and one smaller, just after passing the gate. I used the second one and both are paid! The control here is very strict. I say parenthetically for something very useful for parking in Tuscany – Disco orario. This device gives you 1 free hour of staying on a lot car parks. The price here was about 2-3 euro per hour and there is a payment machine right at the entrance. We delayed with parking, let’s go to the town! I reached the main entrance after a short walk around the numerous olive trees surrounding the fortified walls on one hand and the revealing Tuscan landscape on the other side…
Let’s peep behind the city gates…
With the passing through the fortified walls you fall in a fabulous renaissance atmosphere… Everything here is preserved and looks the same as when it was built by Siena in 1214-1219. The city is located extremely strategically and has been actively used in military operations in the Republic of Siena. By entering, you are now in the main square – Piazza Roma. Here almost year-round there are crowds of people, shooting around the well in the centre of the square. Several restaurants and shops, a medieval church and the military museum. This awaits you here.
Let’s look from above…
The most impressive attraction in Monteriggioni is the opportunity to climb to come up to the fortified walls. Specially built platforms allow you to walk around some of them and to enjoy the views of the endless Tuscan fields and the town itself. The entrance is paid, about 2-3 euro and the ticket also applies to the military museum. The museum itself is nothing special, but you can dress like knights and touch the medieval weapons! Let’s go back to the fortified walls… You have the opportunity to climb two places, to the main gate Franca and to the other gate – Fiorentina. The walk passes around a few of the 14 towers. Oh, speaking of the towers, I missed to mention… at the entrance to the gate Franca welcome you the words of Dante Alighieri’s “Inferno “, where the author compares the towers of the city with giants:
“però che, come su la cerchia tonda
Montereggion di torri si corona,
così la proda che ‘l pozzo circonda
torreggiavan di mezza la persona
li orribili giganti, cui minaccia
Giove del cielo ancora quando tuona.”
/ Dante Alighieri, Inferno, chapter XXXI /
And in conclusion…
The whole city tour will take you more than an hour. The distance from one gate to the other goes in about 2-3 minutes. It is so small that you can’t even lose yourself in the olive woods. The places to sleep in here are not cheap, but there are almost always full… If you decide to refresh yourself with a drink or a meal, the best variant is Il Pozzo. Typically for many Italian restaurants and this one works a little at lunch and a little in the evening… Unfortunately it was closed during my trip but at least I enjoyed the beauty of the building… so colorful and typical Tuscan…
