Bill Sharpsteen / Writer - Photographer: Murlo

Tuesday, December 22, 2015

The Less Visited Tuscany

My wife and I recently spent a week at a 1200-acre Tuscany estate called Compriano. She spent the week painting at the grounds there and I cruised around the area in a comfortable Audi pretty much depending on my good luck and eye to stumble upon good photographs. Oh, sure. Everyone tells you to do your research and be prepared. Yeah, okay. I perused the Internet until my eyes bled looking for places to go, but in the end, I decided to just wing it. The advantage of this is the sense of adventure and surprise one gets every day, but also, I ended up being attracted to places that weren't necessarily visited by the tourist hordes. Below are three towns I found that had a pleasant, medieval feel to them but apparently weren't on the tourist bus schedule. It was just the residents and me. And for the most part, they ignored me as I conspicuously set up my tripod or crouched low for one shot or another. I had fun.

Murlo

Montalcino

Buonconvento

Horti Leonini gardens, San Quirico d'Orcia

San Quirico d'Orcia

Horti Leonini gardens, San Quirico d'Orcia

Abbey of Monte Oliveto Maggiore

Sign at Abbey of Monte Oliveto Maggiore asking women to dress appropriately. And if they can't, the Abbey supplied a robe of sorts.

Detail from the murals at Abbey of Monte Oliveto Maggiore

Library books, Abbey of Monte Oliveto Maggiore

Friday, December 4, 2015

Tuscan Landscapes

Even though I was on vacation, during the week I recently spent in the Tuscany region of Italy, I got up most mornings before dawn, tossed my camera gear in the rental car and explored the area for decent landscapes. This wasn't always the easiest thing to do from a logistical standpoint—the roads were narrow and rarely had anything approaching a shoulder on which to park. Every morning, I came back for breakfast grateful I hadn't caused an accident. After all that effort, here's what I came up with.