Fiesole to Settignano, Part 5

After a bit more hiking we reached this location, Castel Vincigliata. It was an interesting looking place and the only thing on this section of the road so we took sometime to get closer.


The main entrance was guarded by these lions who had rather sad expressions. We went in and saw a few cars around and heard quite a few people in the interior of the castle.
These lions were on the inside. Whoever built this castle must have really liked the big cats.
We walked around a garden for a bit and managed to peak into an interior courtyard which I got a quick shot of.We think that there was a wedding inside. There were a lot of people in the windows of what appeared to be the dining room and a bunch of cars outside. We poked around as much as we could then head back on our way on the road to Settignano. This was certainly interesting stop along our way. Next stop, Settignano! We still had some more through the woods hiking to do before reaching the town, but this was the last really noted site along the way. I'll post up the final pictures soon...

Fiesole to Settignano, Part 4

Ahh, yes the next part of our intrepid adventure. We followed the path which was better suited for the cloven-hoof as described by our wonderful directions and ran into a few farm houses and some old Fiats which were rather neat to look at, but we weren't so sure we were getting closer to our destination...


Both of these Fiat 500's ( or cinque-cento) were sitting about 100 yards from a remodeled farmhouse and pretty cool to look at. This car was Italy's "Model T", small , affordable and mass-produced it changed the country for ever during it's modernization in the '60's. In the early '50's the average Italian family had no TV or car and most died in the same town they were born in often sharing a massive family property with their extended family. By the late '60's most people had cars, television was widespread and cities grew as Italy rapidly modernized. The Fiat 500 is considered a classic in Italy. In the US many would laugh at this diminutive vehicle, but they miss the point that millions of these cars made it possible for average Italians to get out there on the road and move at the pace of the modern world. This car helped Italy to move out of the dark times of World War II and become a modern nation.
We wandered past through some more olive groves still unsure of our route, but we did find this beautiful tree which sported an impressive canopy of festive yellow foliage.

We eventually found our way to a path and hiked through some woods then hit a road. We followed this in the direction which we felt was correct. We trekked on for awhile unsure of ourselves, but still having fun and watching the darkening sky hoping that rain would hold off long enough to see us through to Settignano. We reached this sign and the church (photo lost) and were rather relieved because it was referenced in the directions. We were on track, it was still dry and cool..In the church yard there was this sculpture of Jesus Christ which I got a quick shot of through the fence. Unfortunately, the pictures of the church itself are lost, but the humble house of worship appeared to be well-maintained and was the only structure we saw on this stretch of our trip.
I'll be posting up the next section of this hike soon and I hope you enjoy the pictures and stories from this trip!

Fiesole to Settignano, Part 3

The next part of our hike took us through some interesting terrain. We wound up doing a little trespassing and later on in this would do a lot. We hit an area where we had to walk along the road for a bit and were able to see this view before we headed back into the woods for awhile.

Matt posed ready to tackle the next part of the trek. Behind him you can see the edge of the road that we split from to head down some more trails.

We found our way into an area of olive groves. Tons and tons of olive trees. The directions were good for this portion of the olive trek, but later we spent some time confused in olive groves before we pushed across and got closer to our destination.
Here is where things got confusing our directions were busy explain how the path was more suited for "cloven-hoof" than for two wheels and how one would picture a laden cart being pulled by oxen down this section of the trip. This part was beautiful, but I think that some of the path has changed since the writing of the directions...
We stopped by another roadside shrine to get our bearings and forge ahead.
Next will be more photos from this trip which would soon lead us to an interesting and site after just a few more olive groves...

Fiesole to Settignano, Part 2

The path wound through some pretty thick forest for awhile and we gained some altitude, hitting "real" hiking trails. This is part is a park maintained by the village of Fiesole and the mountain is Montececri. We got our first glimpse of the Arno Valley. I really wish I had better pictures many of mine were lost when my old computer broke and these are just out of iPhoto.


We then found what used to be mines. There was a settlement up here at one time called Borgunto.
We continued on from here and we followed the signs to Piazzale Leonardo on the top of Montececeri. Unfortunately, those pictures are lost, but I did find this one telling you to not fall on your head.

Another view from further up the mountain. Piazzale Leonardo had a picnic table and a monument to Leonardo da Vinci. From the top of this mountain he led experiments in human flight. Let's just say he did not succeed, but the monument has a story and quote from Leonardo and makes for an nice place to break for lunch, which we did.

After lunch we came down the mountain and followed our directions into a small settlement there was a church and two or three other buildings, but no signs of any people. This horse was the only other living thing we saw on this section of the hike. We passed through this "town" and continued down the footpath, which we hoped was getting us ever closer to Settignano...Now, for those of you out there who would wish to check out Fiesole. You simply take the Bus #7 from downtown Florence to the end of the line the main square in Fiesole and walk around. The town itself deserves a day with a monastery, park with a great view, some restaurants, amazing Etruscan ruins and an archaeological museum. To get bus tickets in Italy you go into a shop that says "Tabacchi" and ask. They'll speak English in Florence or for the adventurous you can simply say "Vorrei un biglietto per l'autobus." Most likely they'll give you one and answer in English. Bus tickets were 1,10 Euro last time I was there. When you get on the bus remember to validate your ticket in one of the big yellow boxes near the entrances. Insert your card and a time and date will be printed on the ticket and your good to go. This trip is easy because you'll see bus stops all over Florence. The best place to get #7 is from the train station or across the street from the Duomo. Again, if lost, just ask! In general, people are very helpful and even a simple "Ciao" and "Grazie" is seen as an attempt at the langauge.

There will be more on this trip to come very soon. Enjoy!

Nice Day for A Hike...

One day two intrepid travelers decided to set off on foot using directions they had found through Google which were better at describing the poetic quality of the route than the actual route. This is the record of that trek from Fiesole to Settignano, Italy.

The path started in Fiesole, Italy. An ancient town which resides on a hilltop above Florence or the Arno river valley. The town has some amazing archaeological sites because it is where the Etruscans originally settled in the area.

A little further down the path we found ourselves on a road between two high, stone walls. Nice and quiet and not something you see everyday.
My fellow traveler, Matt, is ready to attack the road ahead. At this point he did not know how lost we would get or how much we would be able to see.

We stumbled upon this road side shrine. You see many of these all over Italy. On busy city street corners and here on quiet country paths. I've decided to do a series of posts from this hike sharing both the story and the pictures as a kind of photo essay. Enjoy!

Tampa Boat Parade...

Here are three pictures I took at the Tampa Boat Parade. These are my first attempt at shooting at night with the D300 and I have a ton of pictures, but just grabbed the ones I liked the best to put on here. My two favorite boats are featured and then a shot of the procession with Channelside in the background. The parade took place on December 20th and the boats came around Harbour Island and up to Channelside Plaza. I took pictures and watched the parade with my family from the bridge connecting Harbour Island with the mainland.

I'm hoping to post some pictures from some more traveling adventures soon and also to keep putting up pictures from the Tampa area. As the Super Bowl approaches I hope to get some good pictures from around the Tampa area and the Super Bowl-related activities. Enjoy these for now and expect more soon!

O! Christmas Tree...

While I know these pictures are just a bit late to really fit the current "news cycle", I have the pictures and wanted to share them as a good way to restart things here on the blog. Also, expect some pictures from Tampa Boat Parade '08 soon.