19 th September

THE DREADFUL DAY ?.. so I won?t insist on it too much, but it obviously had to happen when Ekkehard was here ?.Murphy?s law.
I had not been able to check bus arrangements to PITIGLIANO the night before, information being closed when I made it there, which resulted in us missing the first bus to GROSSETTO by 10 minutes. No leave before midday.
Made GROSSETO. Next bus up to PITIGLIANO/SOVANA in 2 hours.
We had a very nice and light lunch with fish and couple of very nice glasses of wine on the central square and also decided that the cathedral, with it?s white and dark rose marble outside was very beautiful.
In good spirit, caught the bus to discover that the it took nearly 3 hours to reach SOVANA. E. was rather queasy now. Understandable: he doesn?t like buses, was starting to ask himself why he ever embarked on this day trip to make it to some god forsaken place in the Maremma hills just to take another bus the other way next day again.
This was bad enough, but it got worse.
Bus stops over at MANCIANO for a break of 40 minutes to await connection of another bus that had been delayed because of an accident on the road.
Nearly 6 p.m. now.
I manage to locate a taxi company to take us to the hotel owned by some friends of Walther, a very good old friend of mine, to who?s daughters 18th birthday E. and me went. And where we met Antonio Merli, the owner of the hotel.
Taxi promises to be there at 6.30 p.m., phones at 6.33 p.m. to tell it will be another hour ??
THE DREADFUL DAY, I told you ?.

He does eventually arrive and when we reach SOVANA it is very apparent that ithas changed from a somnolent little village to some sort of St. Tropez-upon-Tuscan-Hills.
Ekkehard DOES NOT LIKE that sort of place.

We managed to have a meal together, sank a bottle or two (actually) of wine, had some stupid alcoholised arguments and he left, very early in the morning.
I don?t think he said goodbye ?.
He night never want to speak to me gain, but then on the other hand, I say to myself, we shouldn?t really be travelling together. Similar stuff happened on our only other trip together, 26 years ago, in Burgundy?





And so to snore