Lots of Home & School Drama these last two days, so it was a pleasure to look at some pictures and relive our first excursion from Cretaiole . Bagno Vignoni was only a 10 minute drive and there was a Medieval Festival in progress. We arrived about 5:00 p,m. There was plenty of free parking in a large lot at the edge of town (by 6:00 p.m. the lot was quite full as many families arrived from the surrounding areas to enjoy the festivities). As you entered the town, you were facing the main Piazza with a large Thermal Bath which is no longer in use.
There were many games of chance (Prizes were large pieces of cured meats), puppet shows and stilt walkers.
We were fascinated watching this woman spin yarn
There were plenty of stalls with grilled meats,drinks,and desserts and plenty of picnic benches available. Saturday had been a travel day from Rome and we both wanted a restaurant meal. Of course I can't remember the name, but there was a lovely outdoor restaurant at the very end of the main drag (only a 5 minute walk from one end of town to the the other), on the right. I had pasta with a wild boar ragu for the first time and it was delicious. It was a beautiful setting, overlooking some thermal baths (it was in the high 80's all week & we couldn't bring ourselves to try the warm baths, though we did sit on a ledge and soaked our tired feet one day!).
The festival was one of the highlights of our trip and it was a great way to start the week in Val D'Orcia.
Comments (8)
Sigh. I'm really enjoying your photos and the account of your trip!
Posted by Amy | March 19, 2009 4:28 PM
Posted on March 19, 2009 16:28
Your photos look so beautiful, Sheri.
Posted by candi | March 19, 2009 4:33 PM
Posted on March 19, 2009 16:33
Love this post! I'd love to attend a festival like that.
Posted by Annie | March 20, 2009 9:31 AM
Posted on March 20, 2009 09:31
Hi Nancy, this festival sounds like so much fun and something I would also enjoy experiencing. I love your photos. I think I would've also been fascinated by the woman spinning her yarn. How cool that they had those people walking on stilts and they had all these games to play. Interesting that the prizes weren't big stuffed animals like we have here but big hunks of cured meats.
I enjoyed reading about your time in Bagno Vignoni. Thank you so much for sharing your experiences and photos.
Posted by Kathy (Trekcapri) | March 20, 2009 9:54 AM
Posted on March 20, 2009 09:54
Hi Sheri, my apologies but I think I may have called you Nancy. Both your wonderful blogs are next to each other on my blog roll. Thank you again for your great entry about your trip to Bagno Vignoni.
Posted by Kathy (Trekcapri) | March 20, 2009 9:59 AM
Posted on March 20, 2009 09:59
I love attending medieval festivals in Italy. Those stilt walkers are funny!
Posted by María I. | March 20, 2009 2:20 PM
Posted on March 20, 2009 14:20
Again, when we get to take that Val d'Orcia trip someday, I know where I'm coming for travel advice - lovely pictures.
Posted by Marcia | March 20, 2009 2:58 PM
Posted on March 20, 2009 14:58
Great photos. It looks like it was a fun festival to attend. Love the costumes. Glad you were able to find a good place to eat. I wish I was brave enough to rent a car to venture out into these little towns.
Posted by girasoli | March 23, 2009 1:41 AM
Posted on March 23, 2009 01:41