Retired Pimms: to San Gimignano

We leave the site at Siena late today; we had to get groceries from the shops, as we were out of everything, (the shops were shut when we were in Rome because of public holidays) and only got back at 10am with our groceries. Then when loading the bike, it fell over in the garage compartment as I had not taken the slope into account, and the van was slightly uphill.

No harm done to the bike, but lots of plastic crates had their edges knocked off. Easy to put right. Then the chap in the van next door told me one of the brake lights was not working, so I spent another twenty minutes finding a bulb kit and taking the rear light lens off, only to find that they were all working anyway. What was all that about? So we only left Siena at 1130am.

The journey out of Siena into San Gimignano took us through a small town called Colle de Val D'Elsa, and there were notices everywhere with weight restriction of 5 tonnes. I should have taken the lorry detour but was past the turn before I thought the route might be difficult. So I tried not to think about the narrow roads, the speed bumps and the impossibility of turning around.

These Italian roads are truly horrible, in town, and in the cities, and when you add hills and twisty stuff into the bargain, and narrow roads, it all becomes a bit much for a van. But the views are good.

Anyway we have arrived at a campsite in San Gimignano, not the one we were looking for, all a bit basic but only €22. We were looking for Il Boschetto di Piemma, which has a swimming pool and tennis courts, but did not see the turning. We did see a man with a campsite T shirt in dayglow yellow riding a scooter, and he led us to the Santa Chiara site, which is more of an area di sosta (overnight stop). We paid €36 a night in Siena, which was a bit steep. This overnight stop does have hot showers and drinking water, electric hookups, and free wifi. So in high season, €22 seems like a bargain. Especially when San Gimignano sells an ice cream cone and a small coffee for €3 each, while Croatia prices were 70p for the same thing.

We take the bike out and go up the hill into town to have a walk around

San Gimignano is a tourist magnet, and is heaving with day-trippers. There are lovely views from the town out over Tuscany. We resist buying anything, but I price up oil paintings of Tuscany landscape - about €800 for a canvas the size I am painting.

There are fourteen towers still standing in the town, at one time there were several more, but it still looks like medieval skyscrapers, and quite strange.

The town is full of art galleries, pottery shops, photo studios, and shops selling leather, trinkets, and wine. We like the piazzas, and people watching...