The FRANCIGENA WAY - A FABULOUS WALK FROM SIENA TO ROME (Week One)

I've become addicted to long-trek walking vacations!

I love being outdoors and in nature.  You see and experience so much as you walk.  In my opinion, it is the best way to enjoy a foreign country. On foot, you can set your own pace, stop whenever you wish, and fully engage in the experience.  I highly recommend this way of travel, for those who are able and so inclined.

We booked this vacation with Camino Ways, (our 4th trek with them, so I am sure we are on their list of satisfied customers).

This fabulous two-week walk in September began in Siena and ended in Rome.  Although we stayed in hill towns most evenings (which meant obviously an ascent at the end of the day), we found this year's camino to be one of the easiest we have done. Gerry and I also agreed the accommodations and the meals were superior to all the other caminos we have done.

Walking under the Tuscan (and Roman) sun in a beautiful country and eating fabulous Italian cuisine, what could possibly be better?

We arrived in Siena by 7:00 pm on Tuesday September 11.  I'm glad we planned to spend two nights here, so we could rest up and also explore the city on Wednesday before we began our walk on Thursday, the 13th.  We were booked at the Hotel Minerva, a lovely hotel in a very convenient, central location.

We enjoyed our day in Siena, as we saw the sites and explored this charming town.

One of the views on our self-guided tour of Siena

The famous cathedral in Siena in the piazza, caught our eye.

The architecture and design blows the mind

The interior of the cathedral was amazing.  Definitely worth the $10 Euro admittance fee.

The floor was crafted between the 1300s and the 1800s

This cathedral floor has been called the "biggest and most magnificent floor ever".  We do not disagree. Most of the motifs are constructed of very tiny mosaics. 

This is one of my favorites

After a day of touring Siena, we were happy to return to the Hotel Minerva, where I caught up on my writing and reading.

The outside patio at Hotel Minerva in Siena

I'm glad we planned a full day in Siena before the start of our camino.

The city view of Siena from the backyard of the Hotel Minerva

Day One:  14.7 Miles   Siena to Lucignano
After a delicious and bountiful breakfast buffet, at Hotel Minerva, we headed out the door to begin the adventure.   

We step out of the hotel at 8:00 am and are on our way

The first few miles were a walk through Siena to the southern gate.

Goodbye dear Siena  We enjoyed getting to know you

Then we faced several urban miles on the outskirts of the city before we reached the more pleasant graveled roads and trails, which were undulating with views of the lovely Tuscan countryside, dotted with villages and hamlets.

The rolling Tuscan hillside beckons

In the hay fields (There are far worse places to be)

We approached the tiny town of Monteroni. I later learned from my cousin Antonella that the building on the right is the Pieri Nerli Chapel, built in 1861.

I guessed this was something religious, which was later confirmed

We made good time on this first day of the camino and arrived at our destination in the early afternoon before 2:00 pm.  Our accommodation for the evening was at  Borgo Antico.

We arrive happy but a bit weary

It took us all of ten minutes to explore this town of perhaps a dozen buildings.  The weather turned ominous and it rained for an hour in the early evening (perfect napping weather for Gerry) and perfect writing conditions for me.

View from the front balcony at Borgo Antico under ominous skies

Dinner at Borgo Antico set a high standard for all future meals. The three-course meal in the elegant hotel restaurant  was truly gourmet.  The first course could be considered a meal in itself.

 linguine with clams for Mary and macaroni with prosciutto in tomato sauce for Gerry

We both couldn't resist the choice of grilled calamari with a balsamic glaze for our entrees, which was served with a fresh salad.

Quite possibly the best calamari I have ever tasted!

There's always room for dessert, especially when you walk mega miles.

A flaky pastry filled with slices of kiwi, pear, and orange with a vanilla custard

Day Two: 8.2 Miles  San Lucignano to Buonconvento
This was a short but sweet walk to Buonconvento. We didn't see any hikers on the trail, which is quite the contrast from The Way of St. James in Spain.  No complaints from me, as I prefer the solitude.

This proved to be our easiest day on the camino.  I found it to be more scenic than Day One, as we walked by gorgeous fields of sun flowers and followed the Arbia river.  We had the trail entirely to ourselves, and did not encounter a single soul.

Standing  in a field of sunflowers on a gorgeous day

It is lovely to view the Arbia river which flows beneath the ancient bridges.

The Arbia river, graced by fields of sunflowers

We arrived at the entry gate of Buonconvento very early, before noon, which was perfect.  Plenty of time to relax.

Chilling, outside the entrance to Buonconvento

After a brief respite we enter the gate to Buonconvento

We stopped at a cafe, ate panini and drank carrot juice, and then made our way to our home for the evening, an excellent hotel with spacious rooms, nicely furnished with lovely wooden floors.  The rest of the world refers to this as the Hotel Ghibellino.  But I loved the GH logo.  In my mind, this will always be the "Gerry Hans" hotel.

GH in front of the GH

Day Three:  14.2 Miles  Buoncovento to San Quirico
This was a challenging trek with an elevation gain of 1,450 feet. Much of the walk was on trail, with panoramic views.  We got a bit toasty as the temperatures soared into the low 80s. We were definitely "under the Tuscan sun" but we enjoyed the glorious day.

The vineyards of Castello Tricerchi

Tricherchi castle, completed in 1441 was declared a historical heritage site in 1982

They offer wine tastings, but it is only 10:00 am, so we pass

A view of the hill town of  Montalcino in the distance

Another panoramic view of the lovely Tuscan countryside

Plenty of vineyards in this region and we enjoy wine most evenings with our dinner

Another lovely (one of many) Tuscan hilltop homes we saw on our trek

We pause, as we finally approach the gates of San Quirico

Time for a well-deserved and refreshing gelato!  (lemon and raspberry)

We were fortunate to be in San Quirico during the competition of the sbandieratori - the flag tossing - -and we watched a performance in the town square…fantastic!  Flags were flown high, and then caught while bands played.

Happy to stumble upon this ceremony, a delightful and unexpected surprise

Our gracious hostess, Manuella, gave us dinner vouchers to trattoria Osenna, and we enjoyed a delicious meal on their outdoor patio.  Gerry's first course was tagliatelle with basil, pine nuts, and burrata, and my first course was tagliatelle with asparagus, fava beans, and pecorina.    Portions were generous and delicious, so I ordered a salad with romaine lettuce, tomato, fresh mozzarella and sweet corn. Gerry ordered a steak with mushrooms, which he gave a "two thumbs up". 

Dining at trattoria Osenna and loving every minute and mouthful

Day Four:  11.2 Miles  San Quirico to Gallina
Highlights of today's walk included seeing the Vignoni Castle, built in the 11th century.  What remains of this castle today is a Romanesque church and watch tower in Bagno Vignoni. Not much remains of this ancient hamlet.

Ancient 11th C watch tower

Entry archway to the hamlet of Bagno Vignoni

Less than two miles later, we came across the Bagno Vignoni hot springs.  These baths have been used since Roman times.  Today is is a popular tourist destination.

Bagno Vignoni ancient thermal hot springs

A mile later we walked across a pedestrian bridge that was built to replace the ancient Roman bridge which was swept away in the great floods of 1929.  The bridge is over the Orcia River.

Rebuilt modern pedestrian bridge over the Orcia River

Orica River flows below us as we walk across the bridge

We arrived at the Agriturismo Passalacqua in the early afternoon.  Gerry and I agreed that this was our favorite accommodation of the entire camino.  Francesco and Helena were lovely hosts and they took good care of us!  We were fortunate to stay here two nights.

Talking with Helena and Francesco shortly after we arrive

Gerry fine tunes the hiking stick he found on the trail today

Both nights we were served exquisite gourmet dinners.  The first evening, we sat at the picnic table and watched the sunset while we were served a generous bruschetta (fresh tomatoes and olive oil from the premises).  Second course was homemade lasagna, that Helena's mother prepared.  Third course was boar sausage with a zucchini ricotta souffle along with a salad.  After dinner, we enjoyed Vin Santo with biscotti.

The lovely agriturismo Passalaccqua was built in the 13th century

Our room was on the first floor to the right. We actually had the whole right side of the floor to ourselves (with two spacious bed rooms and two bath rooms)t since we were the only guests the first evening at Passalacqua.

Sunset at this lovely hilltop agriturismo

Day Five:  15.7 Miles  Gallina to Radicofani
The camino route was supposed to be 9.7 miles, but we took the option of  6 bonus miles with our side trip to the San Filippo hot springs (4 additional miles) and the walk to the top of the Radicofani Tower (2 more miles).  Both of these side trips were well worth the time and effort.

Early in our walk, we approach the chesa di San Pellegrino, where we take a brief stop and pay homage.

This church dates back to to the 13th century

Once again, not a soul in sight

The "white whale" at San Filippo springs was a relaxing stop.  We bathed in several of the pools.  These springs are free, and not a well kept secret. Here there were dozens of people, all locals except for us.

Therapeutic waters and enough pools for everyone

Clouds formed and it rained as we approached Radicofani, but we were prepared with our ponchos.

On the trail by ourselves once again

The skies cleared up once again on our approach to Radicofani.

Radicofani

The camino did not call for the hike to the top of the tower, but we had nothing better to do in this hill town, so we climbed to the very top of the tower. The views were amazing, but skies turned stormy once again.

I'm at the top, standing in one of the "windows"

Lovely, despite the cold and cloudy conditions

Since there were no accommodations for us in Radicofani, we stopped at a bar in town and called for a ride back to the agriturismo Passalacqua (as was pre-arranged).

A beautiful full rainbow greeted us upon our return!

The left side of the rainbow

And, the right

Day Six:  20.0 Miles  Radicofani to Acquapendente
This was the longest day of our 14-day walk.  In the morning we were shuttled back to Radicofani to begin the trek.

Within an hour we are miles from Radicofani

We pass many vegetable gardens along the trail today.

Fresh vegetables in Tuscany are delicious

We leave the region of Tuscany and entered the region of Lazio.  The countryside remains lovely.

We're in Lazio now, which looks much the same as Tuscany

Today was a bit tough, as it rained off and on most of the day.  Maybe it was the humidity, but my right knee became sore and achy at about mile 10, which made the final 10 miles seem very long.

At about mile 15, we pass the home of a Good Samaritan.  He was an elderly gentleman who came out of his house and said hello. He has set up a "rest stop" for weary pilgrims like us, directly across the street from his house. 

Home of Good Samaritan

The welcome rest stop where we take off our backpacks and sit for a few minutes

This camino is very well marked.  We rarely wandered off the path.  The signage was usually pretty good and obvious.  (There were a few exceptions.)

One of the more obvious wayfaring signs

The dark clouds rapidly started settling in, and we donned our ponchos for the final four miles of the hike.  Before long, I put my IPhone in a safe, dry location and stopped taking pictures.

A lone house in the distance

Last photo of the day

We were a bit weary, but happy to arrive at Albergo Toscana, located in the center of town.  The Toscana had a  charming little dining room.  We were served pasta with a fresh tomato sauce for our first course, grilled chicken with roasted potatoes for our second course, and a slice of chocolate cake for dessert.  We were also given a complimentary and very-drinkable pitcher of their house wine.  We deserved it all, after this long day on the Francigena Way.

Day Seven:  15.6 Miles  Acquapendente to Lake Bolsena
This was a lovely 15.6 miles, mostly downhill. 

A little over an hour into our walk, we passed by the relics of an old abandoned stone building. It was fun to take a break and snoop inside.

An ancient abandoned building

We were curious so we stepped inside where there is a bunch of broken down furniture and bottles of who knows what.

The building towers over Gerry

We walked by potato fields galore (no wonder the roasted potatoes last night were so delicious.  I'm confident they were recently plowed and came from these fields we walked by today).

lovely landscape with potatoes galore

The town of San Lorenzo Nuovo was a small town on the camino a little over half-way to Bolsena.  We stopped at a cafe for a cup of coffee and a rest break.  When we leave town, we catch a glimpse of Lake Bolsena in the distance.

Lake Bolsena is 7 miles away from us

Gerry pauses at this marker which says, "Via Francigena, Welcome to the country of Bolsena"

In the "Country" of Bolsena

The second half of our walk was much steeper than the first half, with plenty of ups and downs as we approached the lake.  Fortunately, we took advantage of two fresh fig stops along the trail.

Picking some ripe figs for a tasty snack

We arrived at the historic center of old hill town of Bolsena, where we walk down the main street and explore.

View from the top of the hill

We find the best gelato of our entire trip at lolla gelato in downtown Bolsena. I chose a three-flavor medium cone: licorice, pistachio and coconut. It was so delicious!

Enjoying every mouthful of this

Thirty minutes we check into the Hotel Royal, and within 30 minutes of check-in  we are poolside.

Kicking back after a refreshing swim

We were assigned a room on the second floor, which was quiet.  I don't think they had many guests while we were there.  We had lovely views from the window of our room

Looking down and to the right, toward historic Bolsena

The view in the other direction is toward the lake

Week One on the camino is over.  99.7 miles total.   
It was a fabulous first week!  Plenty to see and do!