Tuscany in June Volterra

The last destination for our short trip to Tuscany in June 2020 is Volterra. We've left it until Saturday imagining there will be fewer people than in either Siena or San Gimignano and it's another pleasant drive through the countryside. We park in a shady little car park towards the hospital just below the walls. Volterra is a beautiful town too but perhaps not quite with the same charm as San Gimignano, or perhaps it should be visited before and not after. 

The main street is quite busy with Saturday morning shoppers but Piazza dei Priori is calm, empty and sleepy in the morning light. 

We have a look inside the Duomo which is free to access 

and where there's a nice pulpit, 

and also the baptistery 

and wander up and down the narrow streets, there are some fine corners and views here as well. 

Another interesting church is the Chiesa di San Francesco, both outside and especially the frescoes of the chapel on the right near the altar, an unexpected bonus. 

It's getting on for lunchtime so we head for the park near Fortezza Medicea in search of the perfect bench for yet another picnic.

But today is Saturday and competition is strong, we find one slightly less than perfect, but quite a few people are sitting on the grass.

After another look at the centre we go in search of the famous Balze or cliffs of Volterra. Following Google maps takes us to the car park of the village and campsite right on top of the Balze, but from where one can't actually see the rock formation. We deviate around the village and take a look at the formidable red brick church with its crumbling red statues and eventually head down on foot along a narrow road from the car park which threatens landslides, not today because the sun is shining. The lane twists downhill and there's a cooling breeze so it's no effort walking through the quiet countryside with views over the hills 

until we eventually get to a viewpoint for the crumbling Balze with the deserted abbey on top. 

Coming uphill is a little more strenuous but several interruptions to photograph poppies suffice. It's time to be getting back to Colle di Val d'Elsa. The next morning we need to make an early start to be back at the lake to welcome our own first guests. On the way back we make one last stop at an ancient church in the countryside, 

it could be a special moment but in the end there's nowhere comfortable to sit for a while and we're a little tired from such busy days so we call it a day and go back to the apartment to clean and pack.