Swanning around Pieve di Compito and its very special camellias yesterday.

Pieve di Compito is a lovely place for a visit with its gentle hills and mild micro climate. As I’ve mentioned in previous posts (e.g. at https://longoio.wordpress.com/2013/04/01/thankyou-camellia/ ) camellias arrived here in the early nineteenth century, largely thanks to English ex-pats who chose to stay among these hills during the torrid Tuscan summer in the plains. The camellietum can be visited any time (see my post at https://longoio.wordpress.com/2013/04/24/one-hundred-roman-farms-and-one-thousand-camellias/ ) but it’s when the festival takes place during the March week-ends that it’s possible to visit the gardens of the historic villas and truly take in the wonderful ambience of this extraordinary plant without which no-one would have been able to drink their favourite cuppa in this world.

Yesterday was a true-blue almost paradisiac day for the last week-end for the Camellia festival of Compito. One leaves the car at a parking and catches the local shuttle bus service to this absolutely delightful valley, for the roads are narrow and only locals are allowed to use their vehicles. Alternatively, of course, one could bike there.