SketchTravel Italy 2022

October 3, 2022

In northern Italy
Vernazza on the Cinque Terre
*Note: we traveled to Switzerland, Italy and Spain in the fall of 2022. These posts are to show sketches I did along the way. There are separate posts for Switzerland and Spain.
Before leaving Switzerland, we managed to catch colds. By the time we got to our place in Vernazza, in the Cinque Terre region on the Italian Mediterranean, we were really feeling low. And the weather was rainy as well, with rough seas. So we laid low, and another day took the trail from Vernazza to Monterosso al Mare. It tends to get quite slippery after a rain, and that trail was closed on a prior trip. But this time we walked it, slippery steps and all.

To Umbria and Tuscany

Leaving Vernazza, we took the train to Florence, where we picked up a rental car and went south deeper into Tuscany. We stayed in the old town of Arezzo. Our place was rustic with contemporary kitchen and amenities, making it very comfortable and useable. The door opened onto the street, as we were in the heart of things. I loved the Etruscan museum there (Museo Archeologico Mecenate).

We later stayed in a 3-story farm building in the country that was built a thousand years ago. A very quiet area surrounded by farms. I heard coyotes at night. From there we explored the stunning hilltop complex of Assisi – a World Heritage Site.

Staying in the country allowed us to easily take all the small backroads we found, making for more scenic traveling. Orvieto as usual had endless interesting narrow roads, arched walkways, and of course bakeries, restaurants and bars.

Finally, we visited Civita on our way back to Florence. This World Heritage Site really deserved a day to explore, being so dramatic, beautiful and unique. But we just didn't have the time. Everything seemed to take longer than we planned, resulting in cutting short our time in some places. We loved all that we saw in Italy, and were excited to fly from Florence to Madrid to continue our little adventure.