Easter Bunnies

Some things are perfectly obvious in hindsight. When we booked our flights to Rome, Sunday seemed like a good option for our arrival – quieter than midweek, and a surprisingly cheap ticket. Perfect. We were not, however, taking account of the little guy in the white skullcap and the osteoporosis. Well, not so much him as all his followers, who booked out every hotel in Rome for the religious festival.

So, here we are in Tuscany after two eleven hour flights, a one and a half hour high speed train trip and a taxi ride. Montepulciano is a most beautiful hilltop medieval town. Two weeks ago there was a 60cm dump of snow, which buried cars and lay in thick drifts around the town. Today the cobbled streets are in the cloud and the temperature is above zero, but not by much.

We have a small apartment with heavy wooden beams overhead and whitewashed walls. Funky paintings by the owner’s father hang on the walls and the shelves are lined with an eclectic collection of books, bottles and other curios. The only noise is the faint rumble of the very occasional car going up our street, Via Di Collazzi. The photo is from our window.

The contrast with Bangalore couldn’t be greater. We will be here for a full week before moving on, hopefully long enough to sample at least a few of the local wines, and maybe some gelato if it warms up...