Walking and Eating in Tuscany and Umbria: Revised Edition

Paperback - 28 September, 2004 - Penguin (Non-Classics)
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By: James Lasdun and Pia Davis
ISBN: 0141009004

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About this book

Tuscany and Umbria are famous for both their glorious scenery and their superlative cuisines--could there be a more perfect vacation than walking through the countryside, stopping to dine along the way? In Walking and Eating in Tuscany and Umbria authors James Lasdun and Pia Davis offer readers 40 itineraries ranging from half-day walks to routes stretching over several days. There are written directions for each walk as well as a map. There is also a chart for each itinerary outlining travel alternatives such as buses, trains, or private automobiles and a list of restaurants along the way. Each itinerary describes the sights and terrain in charming detail, and though you might want to supplement this book with other guides specific to each area, this one does a nice job of balancing the demands of cuisine and countryside in a single volume.

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Reviews by readers

Finally a new edition of this classic!

I first discovered this book on a trip to Italy in 1999, and after my first walk I was hooked. The walk (Lamole Ring walk) took me to a place I never would have found on my own, and the experience of visiting this lovely off-the-beaten-track hamlet and its beautiful surrounding countryside on foot turned out to be the highlight of my vacation. The restaurant recommended (the only one in Lamole) was also one of the best I've ever eaten in, and was at the same time friendly and not terribly expensive.
I used the book extensively when I returned in 2003, doing seven more of the walks (mostly in the "Southern Tuscany" section) and they have all been splendid. However, I encountered several changes (more on the restaurant side than the actual walking side, though there were also some of those), and was hoping the authors would do a new edition by the time I was next lucky enough to be going to Italy. I think I was probably one of the first people to use the new edition when I went this September (2004) and I am happy to report it was excellent! I drove first to Lamole (where - in spite of another reviewer here who must have been looking for an American-style parking garage - there is no problem whatsoever in parking your car: it's just a tiny hamlet and you can park anywhere you like) and found the restaurant to be still at the top of its form, still friendly and unpretentious. The walk has been improved in that formerly there was a stretch on the road (admittedly untrafficked, but road nonetheless) which has now been replaced with a shortcut through the woods. After my walk I drove up to hotel/hostel/restaurant on top of San Michele, and spent the night there, amidst the sighing evergreens there at the top of the mountain. Sublime!
One further observation: Don't buy the old edition! Amazon only shows the old edition unless you type "2005 edition" into your search!!!

Don't forget Umbria!

We used this book for a trip to Umbria with our children ages 9 and 12 this September and thought it was great, both for the walking and the eating. We have been to Tuscany several times and wanted to branch out to Umbria on this last trip, and can only say we wish we had done so sooner. We stayed in the lovely town of Norcia, and did the "san Eutizio" walk: an amazing adventure with children! Norcia was an easy place to be with kids, the hotel recommended in the book was extremely friendly, the town had such a safe feeling and enough of interest (particularly the gelato bar) to the kids to keep them busy. The walk - one of the longer ones in the book - was an ambitious one for kids, but gave them an exceptional feeling of accomplishment at the end, and they loved the beautiful abbey at San Eutizio, especially enjoyable on our visit because as we ate dinner at the tiny restaurant next door (the only building in the immediate environs) there was a wedding going on, which spilled into the outdoors. While my husband and I lingered over our "vino," the kids went inside the abbey and mingled with the wedding party stragglers, a few of whom - along with our kids of course - crawled through an ancient tunnel behind the altar, an action that is supposed to cure all ills.
We also went up to Castelluccio, the mountain village about 15 miles from Norcia, which was stunningly beautiful, remote, and virtually deserted. There is a small restaurant there which was fabulous, and the sunset behind the austere Sibillini mountains was a stunning backdrop to our outdoor meal. Next time we would plan to stay in this tiny village overnight.
Note: we had the 2005 edition, and the friend who recommended this book says the san eutizio walk wasn't in the original.

New Updated Edition Available Now

The original edition of this book, written nearly ten years ago, needed
updating, so we went back to Italy, this time with two young children.
We've updated the original walks and restaurant reviews and added some new
walks and locations. If you are thinking of buying the book, make sure you
have the newer edition (both editions are available on Amazon, and the newer
one is also cheaper). To order the new edition type "walking and eating
2005" (without the quotation marks) into Amazon's search box.

If you have any questions about the book, please feel free to email me at:
walkingandeating@aol.com. Over the years we have had so many letters from
people about the book, saying what a difference it made to their holiday. We
hope you enjoy it.

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