Day 14. Travelling from Porto Ercole to Rome.

This morning we drove across the island to explore the next bay, Porto Ercole, on the  Monte Argentario peninsula.  This little bay is inhabited by mostly Italian tourists who seemed to be relatively wealthy.  The harbour is full of yachts, cruisers and speedboats, the shops are full of lovely clothes and gifts, the cafes are full of people relaxing and chatting amiably.  So nice not to be near busloads of tourists taking selfies and following a flag waving, ranting guide.

We climbed upwards through the narrow streets of the old town vaguely following the Carvaggio trail (Carvaggio died in this town in 1610 of a fever).  This climb not only encouraged fitness, but also gave us the opportunity to obtain some glimpses of the lives of these ordinary inhabitants.

It also gave us great views of the neighbouring hills with Forte Santa Caterina and Forte Filippo

 

We climbed right up to the ruins of the Rocca Spagnola which is closed to the public.

And then, on the way down, we took in views of several churches

Later on, we took a drive around the island shores to view other towns, buildings and views, like Forte Stella

Then, we took off for Rome, stopping for a break at Santa Marinella, which, in spite of its rather uninviting beaches, proved to be popular as a holiday spot for less elevated Italians and their families.

We had the dubious pleasure of experiencing several traffic jams together with many families who were returning to Rome from a weekend in the country.  After long delays, we finally arrived in Rome and encountered the extraordinary strain of trying to find our apartment and deposit our bags, then trying to find some parking.  Once we finally parked the car, and sweating and trembling, emerged into the evening to walk back to our apartment we came across the Palazzo Cavour

the river Tiber

and the Chiesa di San Giacomo in Augusta.  Tomorrow proves to be very interesting.