Saturday, 6 October 2018

OCTOBER 2018 : ITALY : VIA DI FRANCESCO : DAY 10 : Cisterna - Lerchi - 12 km (4 hours ); Bus to Cittá di Castello (15 mins)



Knees rested, blisters attended to (ah, yes!) and we are refreshed and ready for a new day. We don’t know what day it is and only vaguely know where we are going ... perfect holiday. Rain forecast today and a some hard stretches, so the guidebook suggests three options - the route as set with a long winding section at the end of the trail, from Lerchi take the highway or from Lerchi take the bus...sounds good to us!The waymarking was excellent throughout the day.

Sunrise


Delicious breakfast - we had to tell Claudia to stop bringing out treats. It is like we have won a surprise luxury package. The accommodation, the facilities, the food - excellent. It was €70 for a double room and breakfast. We are going to email the guidebook and tell them that Le Rasse should be on the accommodation suggestions.


Leaving up a grassed path to lead us back to our route


We head off down the highway with Cisterna in the background


Cool morning with misty rain as predicted.


A little shrine on the way


We met a French girl, Helena, who has walked from near Grenoble in France and will finish in Assisi.


Umbrella at the ready


Women out collecting chestnuts



Hunters calling their dogs from the surrounding forest


Then up a steep path with beautiful views of the hamlets in the valley


At the top of the hill a buffalo farm. Their milk used for the delicious mozzarella of this region.



Beautiful villas and farmsteads



Rain set in


Lerchi - our destination for the day - just in time


Only 3 buses on Saturdays - we caught the 2.38 pm - 15 mins


Our hotel was just by the bus station - Hotel Umbria.
Our Danish friends are here too.






Cittá di Castello. Towering above the town’s buildings are the 11th Torre Communale and the cathedral’s 12th century Campanile Cilindrico.



Time for a walk around the town.
The main piazza




Festival time


Some interesting alley ways


Archways connected to the 14-15th centre walls


The palace gardens 


Some attractive architecture, indicating the prosperity of past times


The original wall


Despite the beauty, there was a lot of graffiti 


A drenched Helena, who had just arrived 


We had a drink together. She was looking for a bed at a monastery in the city. She is training to be a GP in a city near Grenoble.


A set meal at the hotel, including biscotti and liqueur for dessert.



M&M

1 comment:

Julie said...

Apart from the rain it looked like a gorgeous day of walking. So interesting. Xx