Day 1 Pontassieve: Strong start, weak landing

The day began promisingly: first a few kilometers along the Belvedere (which lives up to its name). Here the route goes above Florence between old avenue trees and imposing villas, with a constant view of the cathedral. After a long stage along the Arno, we headed into the mountains, with olive groves, monasteries and cultural monuments. Just when things seemed to be getting the most beautiful, things also got complicated.

The thing about orientation

The hiking guide (which had been fairly reliable up until this point) no longer matched the local conditions. Signposts? Niente! When I asked where I was going, an older man turned around twice while he thought for a long time and then finally pointed in one direction, accompanied by somewhat vague hand movements. A couple pointed knowingly in another direction with their fingers. And they said "very far and very steep." I admit, that didn't calm me down either. Google and GPS couldn't agree either. Which is probably because there are two ways. My phone had used up a lot of its battery reserves searching. So with a heavy heart I set off back again (without having seen the lonely rocky mountains and the Covento dell Incontro) to find my destination in the valley without a satnav. Unfortunately, that was perhaps sensible, but not pleasant, because the rest of the route was not only longer, but also unpleasant. It was 11 (!) kilometers along a busy road with no pedestrian or cycle path. And all this in the extreme midday heat. In short: a torture tour that robbed me of my very last strength. It would have been better not to book in advance. A few kilometers from my destination I was finally able to escape to a trattoria to recharge my batteries. Tomorrow I'll do things differently. I won't make a reservation in advance, so I'll be more flexible.

The culinary aftertaste

For the second time, I ended up eating at a young people's place who only had two typical regional dishes on their menu (one of which was already gone), mainly for street sale. Yesterday it was tongue salad (I admit, it took a bit of getting used to, but it wasn't bad), today it was Pappa al Pomodore.