1 October, San Gimignano, Tuscany, Italy

Our second day in Tuscany. Looking out of the windows this morning it is still hard to believe how beautiful the countryside is. It is easy to see why Tuscany has inspired generations of artists and writers

Our first stop today was the walled village of San Gimignano. It is a hilltop village which was first mentioned in the records in the year 923. In the above photo San Gimignano can be seen at the top of the hill.

To walk along streets and buildings which are over a thousand years old is a remarkable experience. Finished the morning off with a visit to a Gelateria which claimed that it made the best ice cream in the world. Tried it and it is true!

After that and a great Cafe Americano (long black) we were back in our minibus and off to Siena. Once again Siena is a typical Tuscan hill top city dating back many centuries. By now it had started to drizzle a bit but we were undeterred. Had to park the car out of town and walk about 1 Km up a pretty big hill but it was definitely worth it.

Despite a bit of rain we had a wonderful day. Tomorrow we will probably head off to Pisa to have a look at the Leaning Tower.