After touring the great cities of Europe for 7 weeks now, we had planned on a bit of a change in our schedule and booked some time at a very remote country Bed and Breakfast in the hillside of Umbria. So we took the train to the small city of Perugia and rented a car and drove through the beautiful hilly countryside to our accommodation. It was bit of a shock driving a car again after all this time and figuring out the Italian road rules, but we got right into it and got our Peugeot through the maze of roads right to the B and B.
Front view of B&B
Amazing garden
The B and B called Bellaugello, couldn’t be more remote, it is over 8 kilometres off the main road and at one point the road turns into nothing more than a dirt road with absolutely no traffic. But it was worth it, the 200 year old house sits high on the hillside with absolutely amazing vista views for miles in three directions. And our room was three times the size of all of other rooms on this trip and decorated tastefully with a wicked shower. The owner made us feel right at home the minute we arrived and so did his three dogs. Laurence and I got our dog fix for four days it was great, and we slowed right down and enjoyed the place.
Our room was on this side
The million dollar view that we saw everyday
The owner Alec, turned out to be an inspiration for us both. As he up rooted his life in England moved to Italy to turn a rundown shell of a house into a first class B and B and he is still working on finishing it, but he is living his dream. The location is amazing and the house a true result of his personal drive and ambition, a person living his dream to the fullest. Oh the lessons we are learning. And on top of that he was great host and the four days of rest in the country were a highlight of the trip. In addition Laurence finally asked the question that had been bothering him since arrving in Europe, "How do you use a bidet ?", and he got a lesson. We will be returning to the Bellaugello to see the finished product and his dream complete.
Gubbio street
We did do a couple road day trips with our car in the area around Gubbio. The town of Gubbio is a fascinating little medieval town located partly up a hill. The old town is mostly still in tack and you are free to roam through the cobblestone streets and absorb the character of this town. We also took a `bird cage`` like cable car to the top of the hill overlooking the town and walked down. Laurence took this all in stride but it was fun with a great view. The city was all decked out in medieval flags and looking its very best, and seemed like Laurence and I were the only tourists in town.
The lift we took up the mountian in Gubbio
The area of Umbria we were staying in is absolutely picturesque with its great mountain views and old towns and castles perched high on the hills. The vegetation was so vey green and fields were covered in red poppies a sight to see.
Poppies in the fields
No comments:
Post a Comment