Five Destinations I’d Return To In A Heartbeat

If I had to pick five places to return to, where would I go? It’s not something I’ve thought about much in the past. I always try to travel to new destinations whenever I have the chance. But there are a few places that really captured my heart and left me wanting more.

Kan over at Kan Walk Will Travel kindly nominated me to enter a competition currently being run by Booked.net, who are challenging us bloggers to name five places we’d go back to in the future. So where would I travel back to in a heartbeat?

1. Cinque Terre

Situated on the Ligurian coast of Italy, the Cinque Terre must be one of the most stunning places on earth. Incredible, impossibly placed towns nestled amongst the romance of local vineyards is a combination that’s hard to beat.

My previous visit was too fleeting and I didn’t have the opportunity to walk the famous cliffside paths between the five towns. I’d love to return and take a few days slowly hiking the route, making the most of every opportunity for a good photograph along the way.

Across The Fields Of Tuscany

We were blessed with some beautiful clouds on this evening in Tuscany. Just before we settled down for dinner I scurried up the road from our villa to take a few shots across the fields. Unfortunately the sun was largely hidden, but every now and then it would peek out and light up parts of the countryside. Back at the villa we witnessed a beautiful sunset whilst enjoying some fantastic red wine. Looking back at images like this I really can’t wait for the summer!

Looking Out From Montepulciano

There are stunning vistas aplenty throughout the Val d’Orcia region of Tuscany. Montepulciano was the second stop on our drive from Rome to Siena, and the view from this lookout was among the best we saw during our week in Italy. It was certainly worth the long uphill climb from the car park. So many of the quaint hilltop towns have car-free centres, and due to their geography there simply isn’t any other way to reach the sights other than on foot. But generally the tougher the climb, the greater the reward.

As we continued on our journey through the rolling hills there seemed to be a new town on the horizon at every turn. If I had the time I would endeavour to visit every last one of them. This region of Italy really has absolutely everything. Incredible beauty in its landscapes, buckets of charm in its towns alongside food and wine to die for. It’s undoubtedly my favourite non-mountainous region in Europe. I would return in a heartbeat!

Have you visited Montepulciano? Or any other Tuscan hilltop town? Which is your favourite? Have you driven through the Val d’Orcia? I’d love to hear from you!

You might also like:

• Looking Out From Montepulciano
• Perched On The Edge Of The World
• Weekly Photo Challenge: Horizon
• Travel theme: Multicoloured

Weekly Photo Challenge: Horizon

My shot for this week’s photo challenge was taken in the Tuscan countryside, just outside of Siena in Italy. Since it was only a 10 minute walk from our villa I had been up in this area for a while waiting for the sun to appear so I could get some good shots. I got lucky as the sun just peeked out between the clouds for a few moments and lit up the yellows and greens of the landscape beautifully. I’m sure that Tuscany must have some of the best horizons on earth, with its distinctive cypress trees and historic hilltop towns. I can’t wait to go back some day!

You might also like:

• Weekly Photo Challenge: Juxtaposition
• Weekly Photo Challenge: Beginning
• Weekly Photo Challenge: One
• Weekly Photo Challenge: Unexpected

Weekly Photo Challenge: Carefree

When thinking about this week’s photo challenge my mind immediately leapt to road trips. Without a doubt my favourite way of travelling, road trips inspire a sense of adventure and independence that is often lost with the ease and convenience of plane travel. And I think it’s the feeling of isolation and complete control over your journey which strangely makes road trips such a carefree experience for me. It’s just you, your car and the open road, with hundreds of miles to travel at your leisure. This photo was taken on the backroads of Tuscany just outside Siena and it represents when I feel the most carefree, free from responsibilities and lost in an unknown land. As they say, it’s all about the journey not the destination.

When do you feel the most carefree? Do you enjoy a good road trip? Or think I’m crazy?! Feel free to comment below.

You might also like:

• Weekly Photo Challenge: Juxtaposition
• Weekly Photo Challenge: Beginning
• Weekly Photo Challenge: One
• Weekly Photo Challenge: Unexpected

Torre del Mangia, Siena

Siena – Torre del Mangia, a photo by Flights. Camera. Satisfaction. on Flickr.

Since my recent foray into black and white photography I’ve come to realise that I actually quite like it, especially for architecture shots. In most buildings there is not a great deal of colour, so even if they are architecturally interesting a photo can still end up looking bland. I’ve been experimenting quite a lot so here is my favourite so far. I was really pleased with the composition of this shot, it gives the impression of looking through a window up at the world. It was taken in Siena, Tuscany just before buying a ticket to go to the top of the Torre del Mangia.

Tuscany – What A Difference The Light Makes

Oh how I wish to be back in Tuscany driving through those rolling hills. What an impossibly beautiful landscape! I’ve picked a couple of photos below to demonstrate the difference a bit of extra light can make to a photograph (and also because I couldn’t decide which one was my favourite of the two!). Both were taken from a very similar position in some fields just to the north of Siena. You can see in the second photo the sun is shining through the clouds a little bit more improving the definition of the hills and adding some brightness in the foreground. Just a little bit of light makes a big difference. It’s a shame my camera can’t cope with the glare very well, or maybe I just don’t know how to handle it properly!