A Little Drive In The Country

  It started out so nice.

  We wanted to drive way up to the top of a nearby mountain (not giant, but impressive to us…), just to see the views and find out what was there.
  Over the years, many of our pals here have recommended that we do this, and we figured it was about time. We wanted to just go for a drive. No big deal..

  Going up the road, higher and higher, the views just kept getting better. The day could have been clearer, but we had no problem with the drive. It's all paved road, and very well maintained.

  Once there, you can park and hike around, maybe picnic or camp…this day it was just the two of us and a couple of guys who had ridden up on motorcycles.

  The views over the valley, with Panicale and Lago Trasimeno way out there…. really spectacular.

Must go back on a super clear day! 

An area to bring the family and hang out for the day.

 It is a lovely forested area, with drifts of wildflowers under the pine trees.

Violets gone wild!
The scent is just so nice..

  I loved coming across this big area covered in anemone flowers! I had forgotten that they grow wild here, in softest colors of cream and lavender.

  We see them sometimes on our morning walks, but not yet this year, so this was a real treat.

Spring perfection!

  We spent a good bit of time walking around, enjoying the views and such, then headed back to the car to venture on to our next destination, which we hand't really decided on.
  It was that kind of day…just go with the flow, and see where we end up.

  Jeez. It seemed like a good idea…

  Sure, it was kind of fun at first, and we've been down many "strada bianca", or white roads, over the years….

 


   But after an hour or so, with no end in sight, and the road getting worse and worse, what seemed fun started to get a little frightening. I felt so bad for Johnny, as he drove along, gritting his teeth and swearing under his breath…

 


  We stopped for a while to enjoy this beautiful scene, and to catch our breath. The sounds of the bells on this herd of sheep helped us to calm down, at least for a few minutes...

 

 

 
 


  We both needed to get serious and figure out what the hell we were going to do if it got dark, or started raining, which was a definite possibility. The clouds had started coming in fast.

  Thing was, we could see where we needed to go, which was way down there…It's just that the further we drove, the harder it became to turn back, you know? And then the road got steeper and more rocky, and soooo scary!

  I'll admit, I was the one who decided to go this way instead of that way, so Mr. J had every right to be a little peeved at me.
  Which didn't help the situation, I must say. Why, oh why did he hand me the map? He should know better by now that I don't do well in stressful situations!
  Sigh.

  How did it all end?
  Well, I'm here in bed, writing this post, so of course we made it back home.
  What happened was sort of perfect.
  We were at our wit's end, really not having a good time, but trying to be brave and not freak each other out even more…and low and behold! We came across a lovely place we recognized! A farmhouse with a beautiful garden, owned by a lovely woman we met and spent time with last year. We had a nice afternoon here, enjoying the country life!
  And..She was home! And...She remembered us!
  Oh, she got a big old kick out of our sad situation…silly tourists, taking the strada bianca…what were we thinking!?!

  Long story now short.
  We got our directions, and were on Terra Firma within about thirty minutes.
  Done. Home. Wine.
 
  Just don't hand me a map again, ok?