Today was a lovely sunny day and we took advantage by going to the town of Orbetello.
Orbetello is located about 35 kilometres (22 mi) south of Grosseto, on an enormous lagoon, which is home to an important Natural Reserve. Orbetello was an ancient Etruscan settlement, which in 280 BC passed under the control of the Romans. The town was besieged by the French during the 1600 Franco-Spanish War. (All this was from Bob’s research on Wikipedia!)
We saw pink flamingos as we drove into town. I believe we were the only tourists in the town as it is very much off the beaten path. We did a bit of shopping, returning to the hotel via a scenic route. We took a route via the north end of the island through several very narrow roads, reminding us of St. John.
It was a beautiful blue sky day, with the bright sun, and little breeze as we ate lunch on the bluff overlooking the ocean. We even ventured to lay by the pool for a short time. Our better judgment was not to get in the water that was ice cold. It’s October with cold nights, after all!
The hotel has a small “sensory park” where they have plants, trees, benches, all through the hillside, encouraging you to experience nature and all its sensory beauty!! We walked the scenic route at the hotel taking us down through trees and natural vegetations. This was very relaxing and exciting to our senses, as expected, although short.
After returning back to the bluff for a few late afternoon cocktails and to watch the sunset, we had dinner at the hotel restaurant.
While it was a slow day, the beauty of the area and the relacsation the hotel brings, made for a final Italian day. Tomorrow we drive to the Roma airport and will fly out on Monday morning.
