Ca' Maggio Nuovo Cagli

Sue

As we drove closer to San Marino, we all started saying, "Did she REALLY say "the NATION" of San Marino?? And that's exactly what it was: It's full title is "The Republic of San Marino". John will do doubt tell you of its history. It's set high on a mountain, with the most glorious view and was yet another treasure chest waiting to be opened for us! It was our nicest hotel by far - VERY upmarket! - and it was exciting to follow the ...

The Italian language is both beautiful and humble:

- Companion comes from "con pan" meaning “with bread”. Tuscans consider their companions to be those they share their bread with therefore.

- Rosemary is “rosmarino” or “rose of the sea”.

No program for the afternoon so we planned our escape to the beach by the pool. Whilst it is difficult to leave the pool adventure is a foot. Cagli was an option but the beach had the greater pull. about a 45 minute drive to Fano. Denis Hieke Mandy & I set off after lunch but the clouds were set to close in on us as we headed towards the coast.

Fano is a topical Italian beach resort town. I have never seen so many beach umbrellas and ...

We left for Urbino after breakfast for a quick trip (Birth place of Raffaello - painter) of course coffee & gelati was part of our plans with some sights thrown in.

Nice place and worth the trip. No time to view the museo a bit of a shame as there is a section with Rafael.

We had some great views going over the mountains going to/from Urbino. Mandy is handling driving the larger car just fine.

Ciao

... The best of all is a large pool to lazy around after Yoga and eating, what a life, the weather was fantastic during the week, high 20's

I think I did too much on the first day of yoga as I couldn't back up on the Tuesday (lucky to get out of bed) but once moving I did both afternoon sessions (playground) breathing in the afternoon and then meditation after dinner.

Wednesday afternoon is free time so we are planning on a trim to the coast Fano

Ciao

... to be a pattern forming here. Do I like provincial tourist resorts that are maybe just slightly past their prime? I'll save the existential musings for later. Right now I've got a country to catch, San Marino that is, should be about number 80 on my list, almost half way, give or take a medieval principality or two. San Marino lies at the top of a hill about an hour out of Rimini, and if Rimini's got the hotels ...

I can not understand why more people do not put this beautiful place on their list of places that must be visited...I feel in love with San Marino on our first trip and return there often. The Hotel Titano is located in a fantastic spot and makes the visit hassle free. Maybe that is what Ilike about it so much - it is stress free!

... view of this city who's streets are laid out like a spider web. On the first morning of my stay I wandered into the Piazza del Nettuno, to see the famous Fountain of Neptune, and there were student protests going on. I'm not exactly sure what the issue was, but it had something to do with recent changes that the government was making to the education system. While in Bologna I went to two museums, the Civic Museum of Archeology and the Civic ...

... of the apartment and we heared and spotted the most beautiful birds. The private garden was great to relax in after long walks in nature. After the first week we really were relaxed, all our stress was washed away - a great feeling. The owners do a lot volunteer work for a new local ...

... delight, and very expensive. We watched a man buy a rather small selection of truffles for 700 euros! David and I tried a sample of truffle paste on bread slices and thought it was quite tasty. The streets were packed with people taking in the fragrance at the many stalls of food items for sale, along with crafted items and home fair displays. Our time in rural Italy gave us a welcome respite from the busy city of Rome, and made us want to return to spend more time in the countryside.