Hill towns of Tuscany and Umbria

A trailer packed high with winter firewood, towed by a blue tractor, swayed as it stopped opposite Andry's Bar. We squeezed by, narrowly avoiding an oncoming Alfa, and headed down strada secondaria 442 to Terontola. Ah Terontola!, home of the nearest stazzione and the most inquisitive Italian males. Paulette and Rowanne had attracted their full attention as they waited unaccompanied for the train to Firenze.

Chris piloted the Peugeot past the factory prominently displaying a range of outdoor pizza ovens. Two stories, tiled roofs with chimneys, storage spaces for fuel, an annex for your doggy. You want it, we got it! An adjacent field ploughed for next season's crop was chocolate brown with clods of clay the size of footballs. Despite these fascinating facts, there is not a lot you can say about Terontola, but it is the gateway to many of the hill towns of Central Italy.

Lago Trasimeno, Italy's largest lake, could be glimpsed through larch trees as we bounced along a bridge on our autostrada to Perugia. In Corcinavo, Hotel El Patio had uninterrupted views over an industrial zone. Nearing Perugia, we noted that Assisi was only 25km further on as we exited the motorway to Perugia via Madonna Alma. OK, GPS Jane, do your thing! Now Chris is not a person I normally associate with profanity, but a series of steep hillside diversions and requests to make authorised u-turns when possible, had him riled. Finally "Eureka, it's Europa! (car park)" cooled things down. A series of underground escalators buried in the medieval city of Augusta Perusia delivered us to Piazza Italia.

Perugia has an "interesting" history that is rife with internicine nastiness and incest. The Baglioni and Oddi families waged secret vendettas with each other and had an uncanny knack of backing the loser in wars with the Emperor Augustus and Pope Paul III. Following an unsuccessful assassination attempt on a papal legate, in revenge for his uncle's murder at the hands of the pontiff, Pope Paul came down hard on the last surviving Baglioni. In addition to the imposition of taxes, the Pope had all Perugia's nuns line up to kiss his feet, an experience he reported left him "very greatly edified".

A slow trawl through Galleria Nazionale's extensive collection of Umbrian portraits of Madonna and child is hard work, as the subject matter dictated by Papal edict was limited. You can have Madonna and child alone, Madonna and child with angels, Madonna and child with saints, and Madonna and child with acolytes. We had to wait until Gallery 35 before the first bare breast appeared! A swift visit to Perugia's duomo, described by Frommers as "pretty disappointing", and a circuit of Fontana Maggiore completed our visit. Twice more round the block before we shut Jane down and resorted to the road signs indicating Firenze and home.

Or so we thought! Nearing Il Lago we switched Jane back on for directions for the shortest trip home. Bad move! We now know where the road round the mountain goes. Following a circuitous route over the range, we spotted a partially obscured sign indicating Cortona. Familiar roadside warnings indicating Winter snow levels confirmed we were near home.

Another day, another hill village. Utilising yesterday's magical mystery tour route, we set off for Castilione del Lago, momentarily stopping at Lisciano Niccone for some happy-snaps of Il lago prior to commencing our descent. Circuiting the lake, we encountered an oncoming stream of vehicles transporting families home from Ferere Agosto celebrations. Located on the border of Tuscany and Umbria, Castiglione del Lago sits atop a hilltop that included formidable, if temporary, defence for the Duchy of Perugia in a 7th century siege by Lombardic Tuscany. The ruins of the nearly impregnable pentagon shaped Rocca del Leone were the site for tonight's Rassegna Internazionale Del Folklore, an event completing a festival of entertainment. Remnants of the previous night's performance featuring prog rock tribute bands were scattered about.

Enotecas offering salami and wine tastings were stuffed with the ingredients required in the preparation of Umbrian and Tuscan tipica cuisine. Salami di cinghiali, risotto romantico, dried porcini and Cojoni Di mulo were available in bulk. Enoteca Il Granio Del Lago specialised in truffles and offered cheese with truffles, salami with truffles, truffle flavoured salt and even grappa with truffles! Must try that, maybe next time. Departing, we passed by Chiesa Santa Maria Maddelena where the front portal featured classical Roman columns and the pastoral message board. Confession and Mass schedules competed for space with details of the next pelleginaggios to Lourdes and to Giovanni Paulo II's birthplace in Polonia. Occupying equal billing were details of next week's beach triathlon and this week's lottery results! It's a broad church in Umbria.