A trip in the night
by iandsmith
Well, it could have been my favourite thing. The dark staircase ascending to, as it turned out, nowhere because the path eventually was blocked, was difficult to see and a trip always seemed imminent.
Still, the tower beckoned me on and its powerful floodlight made the hidden steps even more difficult to see. I had visions of wandering into the surrounds and having my choice of angles. I just so wanted to get a picture of the floodlit tower and I couldn't seem to get a good angle on it. Finally I settled for a silhouette of a tree which pleased me though I would have liked to have gotten closer by breaching the fence line. It was not to be.
La Belle Valle
by iandsmith
The beautiful Valle Di Chio ("Valle Di Dio" - exclaimed the Grand Duchess Ferdinando II de Medici whilst looking at the valley from the picturesque town of Castiglion Fiorentino). Surrounded by olive groves and the distinctive Tuscan countryside, it's what you have to drive through before you get on the slopes of Castiglioin. I have no trouble enjoying that sort of experience.
The ups and downs
by iandsmith
Castiglion doesn't have a plateau, the result is that everything is either up or down. The peak is more like a pimple head and everything else is on the side. It is on a spot partially made flat by man where the St. Giuliano College and Church of the Jesuits is situated.