Valle D' Orcia and Pienza -September 11, 2023

 Valle D' Orcia and Pienza - Tuscany

Many people have heard of Tuscany from movies or books. It's a region (province) of Italy and located above Rome with Florence as it's major centre and just below Liguria and to the west of Umbria. We have passed through parts of Tuscany but decided with this central Italy tour we'd visit sights we wanted to see to include the better known wine centres such as Montepulciano.

Sandra's research found that the Valle D'Orcia named after the river that runs through there from Montalcino to Pienza was the heart of this 'golden' area of Tuscany. To this end as you drive through the region it appears that the place has been landscaped as a countryside.

The Cypress tree lined driveways are the first clue to this special region. 

It wasn't long before we got to the base of Pienza, a walled hilltown at the east end of the valley and found a great parking spot. This is the equivalent of parking at the front door to the bank. haha!

As we climbed up the steps to the walled city this is an example of the view that you can see anywhere in that valley. 

In the piazza we visited the amazing cathedral there, commissioned by Pope Pius II during the renaissance with large windows to encourage the 'enlightenment' of religious thinking and practice. It really stands apart from other churches.

Our walk through Pienza was beautiful and when we returned to the piazza when I was approached by a fellow (Peter) who asked if I could speak Italian and tell him what kind of stone the church was made of. I said I was from Canada and he said he was too, then quickly we learned that his parents lived in Parksville but now he and his wife and 3 kids were living in Switzerland for the past 20 yrs in Geneva. He was a bio-chemist working there and in Basel and his wife (Karen) was a Dulla and worked for a Swiss agency as well. Sandra visited with Karen for quite a while and I with Peter, until we were interrupted in our chats by the voice of a male opera singer who chose to entertain the crowds that were gathering near noon. In that environment the sound and his voice resonated so perfectly you could tell it is how opera should be heard.

I took a picture of him,

Opera Singer in the Piazza

and then decided to shoot a video, which is here. My recording didn't do it justice so I ended up finding a video shot a few weeks before with him singing.

After Pienza we drove past Montepulciano on the way to our hotel for the evening. We decided we'd come back for wine tasting the next day. But Castelgliani del Lago had other plans. See our next post.

stock photo