Howdy!
We enjoyed a slower day today, starting with the usual breakfast buffet and its suspiciously wet eggs. After a brief wait in the lobby, our tour guide arrived. Today’s destination: the tallest tower in town, Cassero Fortress.
We hiked up the main road for the fourth time, learning about the history of the fortress. It was apparently built to spot wild animals from a distance; due to the warm climate of the area and its proximity to a now-dry lake, large game like elephants, giraffes, and lions roamed free. Passing through the city’s double arched doors, we learned how Roman and Etruscan architecture were combined after Roman takeover of the area. We hiked farther and farther uphill; a comment was made about the steepness being like that of Assisi.
Next, we summited the hill. A beautiful view awaited us, and we took a brief break on the oversized Italian bench. This bench was nice because the walk up the hill was treacherous. Then, we approached the tower. The climb to the top was fast but it sure wasn’t up to U.S. building code. Thankfully, the rickety wooden stairs did not collapse. The view from the top was spectacular. We had a great view of Castiglione Fiorentino and the surrounding Tuscan hills. We could also see clearly down a road. We learned that this road was once used back in Etruscan times, and the tower was aptly positioned to the see incoming traffic. These were strategic people.
Finally, we stopped by the church that was in the fortress. There were many great pieces of renaissance art to look at. But most notably, there was a golden, bejeweled cross. This cross was gifted to Castiglione by France. It supposedly contained two pieces from Jesus’s Holy Cross. Although we were not too sure if they were still there as there were almost no security measures in place. It was like one guy on his phone. In the other room. And the front door was wide open. Anyways.
With the tour finished, we were picked up by some local restaurant employees who introduced us to their dog, Dobby. They took us to this American, rustic themed restaurant. They served local Italian delicacies along with hamburgers. They were great. Most noticeably, the buns were impeccable! We need to take some Italian baking back to College Station.
Once we returned to the hotel everyone enjoyed a lazy afternoon. While some napped, a different group took an excursion up to the rooftop pool at the hotel. We were greeted with other hotel guests at the top enjoying the vitamin D and later forced to listen to Taylor Swift with us. They proceeded to leave the pool. We congregated for dinner, which was penne al pomodoro and a grilled pork chop? Tomorrow we have a lot time to work on our life mapping projects and our PechaKucha presentations! Ciao!
-Collin, Wes, and Tessa
