Monteriggioni
ITALY, GREECE & MONTENEGRO Diary : Day 4 - 05th May 2018
Standing atop a hilly mound in the Chianti land, at about an hour's driving distance southward of Florence city, is the fortified commune of Monteriggioni. It is currently referred to as a town. This 13th century medieval village was secured by a fortress wall running 570 metres in total length. It was built for military purposes , serving as a defence mechanism by the Sienese, from its neighbouring enemy - Florence. Both cities were on constant war with each other. The wall, decorated by 14 square based view towers, runs in rectangular shape on one side with bulging edges on the other, giving it an almost circular look. Though the walls stand strong, the roof portion of all the towers and the top portion of a couple of them are in a dilapidated condition presently. The fort town has only two gates, both facilitating entrance and exit. The ROMEA gate faces Rome and the FLORENTINE gate faces Florence. Covered with deep history of glory & betrayal, the town we currently see, is a little world in itself. As few as 8 families co-exist within its walls today. Filled with a few souvenir shops, other shops, hotels, restaurants & bars, the town promises a unique experience to its visitors, throughout the year. Of course, we do find few settlements in the surrounding area as well. The vast expanse of surrounding lands are ideal for long walks, treks, cycling & horseback excursions.
Monteriggioni came as a second stop for the day, with MYTOURS. Our experience in SAN GIMIGNANO ( read SAN GIMIGNANO ) that morning clearly proved that Monteriggioni was way smaller in area. Our bus parked itself at the foothill of the entrance. We spotted the fortress right in front of us, standing on a higher platform , covering a natural hillock.
The cute little fort town welcomed us with lush greenery surrounding the area. The artistic structure of a particular fencing of the adjacent green land, made of unprocessed wooden tree trunks, impressed us thoroughly. There was also another entrance gate belonging to a different property, that seemed ancient but strong. We had to walk up a mildly winding slope to get to the entrance. At every level of our ascend, views got clearer. Our camera had loads of work to do. We were under no pressure to move along with the tour group. We were given a time limit of one hour and were free to explore on our own. Alongside the slopes were abundant, budding olive trees.
As we reached closer, we noticed that the tall fortress walls seemed new & sturdy as ever. Moving at a slower pace than the others, getting enough pictures, we walked in through the ROMEA GATE. One look inside gave us the feeling of having walked back in time, yet again. The entrance led us to an open space, unlike that in SAN GIMIGNANO.
It was like a huge living room of a house. This was the Piazza Roma. The ancient stories narrated by the guide standing on the square, kept us in awe. The fortress walls and towers had hidden secret treasures for centuries, before being discovered. The history goes beyond one's imagination. The place had indeed withstood many many wars. The world inside was more developed than anywhere else. I suggest you read more on https://assassinscreed.fandom.com/wiki/Monteriggioni. I am sure it will leave you amazed.
The current fortified settlement looked nothing like its past. It was a modern, peaceful world with an antiquated look. On one side of the Piazza Roma stands the CHURCH OF SANTA MARIA ASSUNTA. The facade of this church is a simple stone wall with a roundish window placed right above the entrance. Its sloping red tiled roof hosts a square bell tower from its mid point. The church interiors follow more of a Romanesque style. The surface of the town took shape of the hilly mound it stood on, sloping downward towards the FLORENTINE entrance. A corner of the square was occupied by an open sky restaurant, displaying their beautiful, sturdy furniture. The MUSEO DELLE ARMATURE ( Museum of Arms ) is an experience in itself.
A tall, complexly structured metal blend of human form & armour, decorated the museum entrance, inviting us to a few photographs. The museum is said to hold information about all the wars experienced in the area, apart from a fantastic display of armours. Interested visitors are free to try on armours and learn few war techniques, from the available samples. We didn't have enough time to cover this. Huge flower pots and varied flower arrangements ornamented the town walls and floor.
The small streets were laden with shops & restaurants on both sides. The buildings were not tall risen. All of them were definitely below the height of the fortress walls. Each restaurant was tastefully decorated with a touch of unique designing sense. We found the walls of a particular restaurant, decorated with plates, mugs, bags and other items very interesting. The red bricks peeping out of certain chipped walls maintained that ancient feel. A certain HAND CRAFTED jewellery shop attracted quite a few tourists. We chose to enter a leather shop. The shoes were great looking & also affordable. However, we were happy with window shopping as carrying purchases would hinder our freedom for the rest of the day.
We covered the entire town in a span of 40 minutes without visiting any restaurant. We spotted walkways adorning the walls of the fortress at a height. Tourists are free to climb up the watch towers for a small price while also taking a stroll on the walk ways to relish unhindered views of the surrounding Chianti region. A slightly bulging downward slope led us to the rear entrance - the FLORENTINE gate. The area outside, seemed more private and vacant. Though we gave the aerial views a miss, we didn't regret our choice as the rear entrance provided views just as soothing. After a few pictures in isolation, we were back on our feet to get to the ROMEA gate. It was time to join our tour group and get going.
The MYTOURS guide ensured return of all passengers before our bus scooted towards our next destination. For further story read CHIANTI.