DAY 25 - AREZZO (Rest Day) - 15 May 2026

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Our first rest day task was to find a laundromat.  We found one quite close, just outside the old city walls. We washed just about everything we weren't wearing, following the instructions set out clearly in Italian and English.

While our clothes were washing we took a walk, hoping to see the ruins of some old Roman baths. There wasn't anything left to see, but we did discover the beautiful Prato park with its old trees and monument to the  writer Petrarch.

On returning to the laundromat,  we used the dryer - what a luxury - before dumping our clean clothes back at our accommodation.

Next stop was up to Piazza Grande for a hot chocolate under the Vasari loggia, before walking up to the Medici Fortress.  We didn't quite make it before the rain started,  but had great views over the surroundings anyway.

From there we headed down to the former house of the Italian writer, painter and architect, Giorgio Vasari. We admired the frescoes he painted and also his garden, but only from a window, as the rain had set in.

Lunch was warming bowls of pasta and soup, before our final visit of the day,  to the amphitheatre and the archaeological museum. A monastery was built using the foundations of part of the amphitheatre in the 16th century, resulting in a curved building.  It now houses the museum, which has a great collection of Aretine ware, amongst other treasures.

After this we headed back to our warm dry apartment for a rest,  ready to begin our walk again tomorrow. 

Strolling by the Medici Fortress
Admiring the Petrarch statue
Strolling in the Prato Park
There's always something interesting to photograph
Through the arch into the Piazza Grande
Piazza Grande 
There's always something interesting to photograph
Figuring out the intricacies of an Italian laundromat
A welcome hot chocolate at the Vasari Caffe 
Back into the Piazza Grande
The iconic sloping staircase in Arezzo's Piazza Grande 
A doorway in the Medici Fortress
Out into the rain to explore the Medici Fortress 
Walking along the walls of the Medici Fortress 
Medici Fortress in the rain
Helpful signboards explained the history of the fortifications
It was a day for umbrellas
Some of the features in the Vasari House
Roman amphitheatre and 16th century monastery
Some of the exhibits in the wonderful National Archaeological Museum in Arezzo
Arezzo in the rain
Today's bits and pieces
Birds
Day 25 - Map

Day:                               25
Distance:                      0 km
Walking time:               0 hrs 0 mins
Elevation gain:             0 metres
Cumulative distance:  474.51 km

Comments

  1. Anonymous16 May 2026 at 00:07

    Today’s birds: common Blackbird, common wood pigeon

    Well done on organising your rest day on a day when it rained!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Barkers16 May 2026 at 05:55

    It was cold as well! We were so happy to be largely out of it on this occasion!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anonymous16 May 2026 at 06:11

    Eric wants to know did you have marshmallows in your chocolate 😁

    ReplyDelete
  4. Barkers16 May 2026 at 08:15

    No, and we didn't have it with cream either. But there was cream on the accompanying croissant...

    ReplyDelete

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