13th December

Have I ever mentioned to you about the fact that Marc likes to go off the beaten track? He does not always like to stick to the usual touristy route….likes to give himself ( and me) a challenge!!!! Well today was one of those days!!!!

As part of this off the normal route days, my 5th day of touring Italy had me literally stuck in a lavatory , underground, in a horror torture museum. When I say stuck, I mean locked in, literally stuck!! But please let me start at the very beginning of the day!!!

Both of us for some reason awoke early even though we had ventured out late and stayed up in order to have 8 hours sleep, to awake at a more decent time, but we did not! So out came the iPad and phone and talked to Adam and to Tanya via the hotel internet. It was quite a few hours till breakfast. The internet was quite intermittent and annoying but it was lovely to talk to the kids again. At that point of time, I felt a rush of nature occur and that was the end of what I thought was a normal morning. Unfortunately another bout of gastro hit me, this time we think from the dried apples and cinnamon we ate yesterday combined with some flat mineral water we had from Monday….and so the morning was spent with me rushing to and fro to the toilets literally when I could find them. Not a good morning believe me….particularly when your stomach says you have to go and you cannot find an amenity close by!!! Manage to make it though every time. This is where it is hard to be overseas instead of the comfort of your own home.

Today we decided to leave the churches behind and look for the fortified towers and cities. We left Sienna and headed to Monterriggio , which is a walled small medieval town, used essentially in movies as it is basically untouched for near a thousand years. It was a fascinating place consisting of a small township with a high thick wall surmounted by fourteen towers….this town was also mentioned in Dante’s ‘divine comedy, ‘ probably little has changed since Dante wrote about it in his poetry. We climbed up along the walls and you could see the countryside outside..and imagined medieval times when this town was part of the northern protective defences for Sienna….by the way, Sienna fought with Florence for supremacy…Florence won!!!

But it was also so so cold…the temperature had dropped and I was finding it difficult to enjoy the views as I was so cold…not to mention the steps downwards…..oh yes more steps….. These steps were see through and I had to ask Marc to assist me down, holding onto his shoulder so I did not look down at all. Getting worse aren’t i !!! I think that steps just beckon to Marc and Lyndell has to follow…..down is okay…up…

From here, after a few more toilet stops for me…again…..( wonderful day) we headed to San Gimignano…another medieval walled town but this time usually much more frequented by tourists ( because you had to pay to use the toilet) however not many tourists there today. Probably the cold weather???? Judging by the large number of parking spaces available outside the city walls, the place must be wall-wall (literally given that it is a walled town) ha ha ha …tourists in summer!
Again….more steps and more walking uphill…if we do not at least come back fitter after all this walking and exercise, then I am not sure what we will need to do.
But here we enjoyed the taste of bicciarelli and cavallucci biscuits….the latter biscuits they only make this time of year in Tuscany and is a local treat. They are sweet biscuits, one with spices , the other sugar based…but both very moorish. This was accompanied by a very strong cup of coffee….which I shared with Marc. The shopkeeper was very helpful- she spoke English very well but indulged us with our attempt at Italian.

This was the town where I got stuck in the toilet!!

There was a museum with many artefacts left over from medieval times. Throughout the displays they emphasised that although these artefacts date from hundreds of years ago, torture still continues into present day in many countries however, the torture used by ‘civilised’ countries does not leave physical evidence of its use! the medieval torture used….( plus into present day). It was not a museum we would normally have gone into but it was something different from what we had seen so far.
Well being a visual person, it was very gross for me….all sorts of torture instruments plus pictures to accompany them (including some real photographs reinforcing that torture still goes on today) so you did not have to leave anything to the imagination. When reading the Tudor books and Phillips Gregory style novels you imagine the torture and the ways of inquisition and the historical aspects of the inquisition’s and Henry’s (the kings) use of torture..as well as other king’s and chamberlain’s use of torture, but somehow it seemed ‘foreign’, ‘ancient’ and as a reader, it was sanitised – not ‘real’. When we saw today some of these instruments of torture used, it made the brutality of punishments and forced confessions viscerally real. The instruments, not to mention the actual photographs and picture…made my stomach curl.

I must add here is what I learned most about was the fact that the chastity belt was not used to imprison wives when their men went away. It was impossible to do that because most of them would have died from the blood poisoning from the constant chaffing of the iron if they wore them continuously. Also the wearer would not have been able to give birth if pregnant, etc etc. It was more for the women themselves to put them on when soldiers came into the town to stop themselves from being raped. It was a protection, not a punishment. I found that interesting..plus seeing one first hand was interesting too!!! Such an intriguing basic protection!!

However, that was where the nice part stopped for me. I truly began to be affected by these instruments of torture…there were numerous rooms full of different tools used , including venturing down into an underground section of dudgeons and tools…..I found I could not take it anymore and began to feel sick. Combining that with my claustrophobic aspect (which is getting worse as I get older) I basically had to leave. I needed fresh air. There were no windows and it was stone cold…literally and I had to get out of there. Marc was very understanding as he was enjoying himself being intrigued by the mechanisms used….but he indulged me and assisted me to find the way out,

So out I go….and rushing…Heading upwards I literally rushed to the toilet…..
Ah relief……went to go and then found myself stuck inside.
It was a solo toilet….four small walls, inside this torture museum….
Feeling a little better I went to leave….BUT this was where it all happened .
I could not turn the key back again to get out. I was locked in !!
Of course I was calm and cool and serene……calmly asking for help…..talking politely with Marc outside the door informing him of what the problems was….no..nothing like that at all. I panicked.I was quite the opposite. I panicked and boy did I panic!!

Imagine the scene…inside this small toilet room, Marc on the outside, in a building filled with nothing but gross horrible torture instruments in a strange non English speaking country and the key would not unlock. I was stuck three…no way of climbing out or over, just walled in.
I can hear you laughing!!!

I was not laughing then..as my breath was coming in small gasps of air and tears flowing as I am crying , panicking loudly to Marc on the others Side to ‘get me out.’ It was not a pretty sight at all believe me..now I can laugh writing about it but at the time it was awful.
Marc had to get the attendant from the front desk who had to tell me calmly ( in my claustrophobic state of panic) In Italian mind you….to calm down, turn the key two and half turns and softly turn the door handle. When you are panicking , claustrophobic, locked in, you do not listen very well……and so it took a little bit of time to calm down. But I was free!!!
Crazy country…..two and half times to turn the key to get out of the loo!
I did but not quickly enough for me since despite the admonishments of the attendant, I was not calm enough to fully take it what she was trying to tell me in Italian. Finally, it all came together and
I was released from my toilet torture chamber and I raced outside to calm my nauseous shaking body
That was when we had to have the coffee!!!
I am not not ever going to lock a toilet door again until we get home!!!
And to this moment of writing to you, I have not. I am scared to do so!!!!!

Now this is where it gets interesting.
We went for a drive. The sun had come out and so we thought we would take advantage if this and instead if staying on the autostrada, we would take the country road for the 2 hour trip to our next destination. The countryside was an interesting mix of ploughed fields, Tuscan villas and farm houses and the tree foliage of russet yellows and browns that is so typical of Umbria and Tuscany.
Mistake!!!
First was a wrong turn near Firenze. This diversion caused the GPS to re-route us through the hills overlooking Firenze. Interesting enough initially because of the beautiful extravagant villas that we passed perched high above the city with views over the Duomo and city. Then, the GPS routed us through narrow suburban streets that seemed all ‘wrong’ except the ‘general direction’ was sort of ‘ok’. Finally we popped out onto roads that looked they were going somewhere. That ‘somewhere’ was up into the hills.
That is when we entered the fog. We rose higher, the fog descended heavier. Marc slowed right down as we drove, trying to keep to the right enough on the narrow road to avoid cars or trucks appearing suddenly out of the fog and at times dangerously coming close to scraping the right hand side of the car against guard rails or slipping off the side of the along mountainous road..filled with fog. Then snow on the roads….Lyndell gets more nervous at this point…… (Just a little)
Something new in this trip.

The sun comes out…and we find ourselves above the clouds looking out over countryside full of the Tuscan colours but with the valleys filled with blankets of fog proving we are still in Tuscany!
Ah…but only Five minutes of sun and we’re back in the cloud of fog as Marc drives the car down.
A quiet and intense trip ….believe me.
Eventfully we arrive in the town if STAI…It was not where we were intending on going but a town that looks big enough to have a hotel for the night. Freezing cold now and we make our way to a cafe to ask about a hotel. Oh no such luck…it is winter and the only hotel is closed till March. A very helpful customer in the cafe suggested Popi, about 10 kms away. This is all said mostly in Italian….we’re now away from the tourist track…not much English spoken at all.

Back in the car we head to Popi (which is where one of the castles is that we wish to see ….) and drive into the walled section of the town. Again a stop at a cafe to ask if there is a hotel open in town (all in Italian) to find that the hotel there is not open either!! Of course by now I was not feeling very happy, thinking….”He has done it again to me…off the beaten track…3 degrees outside and it is only 3 pm…having to sleep in the car….freezing to death…….goodbye my children, goodbye my parents…..
.’ Luckily when we had earlier driven into the outskirts of Popi and walked around looking for the centre of town where we had been told there was a hotel, we had seen a light dimly lit behind the door of a building proclaiming that it was an albergo (hotel). Therefore, after finding the one hotel in Popi to be closed for winter, we drove back down the hill to the area around the train station where we had seen the lit door earlier.

Ah..a light….warmth???

No one answers our doorbell ding and so Marc went to find someone. He found an elderly woman in the kitchen and this beautiful little old lady came out to greet us. About up to my shoulders in height. No English.
So between the three of us….all in italian, we worked out the price, saw the room , asked for heating , took our passports, determined when dinner and breakfast are served and we are here, sitting in the room, under covers..as it is still so cold..watching American television…with Italian dubbing.

Just another ‘ordinary’ day in our travels…!!! At least ‘ordinary’ when travelling with Marc!
Never!!!!

This was a day I shall remember for quite a while!!!