Visit Date: May 1, 2019, at approximately 5:00 p.m.
The next place we went after San Leo and San Marino was a village called « Anghiari » in Tuscany. It has been chosen as one of the most beautiful villages in Italy. Its affiliation is Tuscany, which was placed under the rule of the Florentine Republic around the 15th century, but it is almost like Umbria, partly because it is east of the Apennines in central Italy.
The road to Anghiari is very impressive! A very long single track road leads up to the village. It is a magnificent view. This photo was taken from the village, but I hope it gives you an idea of what it’s like.
This is the town of Anghiari taken from a supermarket on the way.
Even though it is a small village in a rural area, we were honestly surprised by the huge number of cars when we visited. This made it very difficult to park. At first I thought it was impossible, but I could barely park on the street in a residential area (where it is allowed to park) a little far from the town, but still about 5 minutes walk.
We then made our way to the village and quickly found out why it was so crowded.
Apparently, it was because there was a Mercat (flea market) in the whole village that day.
Sure enough, there were people everywhere in the village! It was a very quaint and beautiful town, but it was a bit crowded and uncomfortable…
One of the most famous paintings of the city is « The Battle of Anghiari » by Leonardo da Vinci. The Battle of Anghiari was fought in 1440 between the forces of the Republic of Florence and the Duchy of Milan, and ended in victory for the Republic of Florence. Considering the geography of the area, it’s a wonder why they fought against the Duchy of Milan…
This painting by da Vinci was a mural painting in Palazzo Vecchio in Florence, but it is said to exist but is lost now. However, the work which Rubens copied later is still existing, and it seems to be exhibited in the Louvre Museum in Paris. I didn’t know that.
（出所：Wikipedia）
I will definitely revisit this village (as I will show you in the future) because of its proximity to Umbria and the fact that I was not able to visit it on this trip in the vicinity. Hopefully it will be a bit quieter then.
This is the end of the first sightseeing tour in Rome. On this day, we will stay one night in a village about 30 minutes further south, which is also chosen as one of the most beautiful villages in Italy.
