Oddly enough, I’ve never rented a car while traveling. Of course, I’ve had to rent a car when visiting San Francisco or other places like that, but I wouldn’t consider that traveling. Not only am I just visiting a place I’ve already been, it is still in the country.
A little over a year ago I went to Santiago de Compostela, and what I really wanted to do was get in the Atlantic Ocean. However, there was no way I could visit using public transportation and still make it back in time for my evening flight. The hotel suggested that I rent a car, but for some reason I felt it was out of the question. For my own unknown motives, I didn’t get to do something I wanted to do. I vowed next time I was going to rent a car.
For all that I’ve travelled in Italy, I was nervous to rent a car. I’ve driven in Spain, which isn’t all that different, and I’ve always been excited to try my hand at driving with the crazy Italians. What was there to stop me? It sounded like fun. So, I did it. (Read about the car here).
It took me way longer than it should have to get to the hotel. Neither the GPS nor my cell phone was working properly, and I couldn’t figure out exactly where the hotel was. Eventually, I got the electronics working, and, as it turns out, if I had gone 50m more from where I originally turned around, I would have found the hotel. Ah well.
The hotel’s name is Tenuta Il Burchio. It spreads across a one-lane-but-made-for-two-cars street. On one side is the hotel, a white-washed building with wooden window frames and an old tile roof. The other side has an extra building (one room, sided on three sides by glass windows) surrounded by a brick patio and tables. This is where breakfast is held. Behind it, reached by walking along some pine trees, is the 15m pool. Behind the hedges bordering the pool is the stable. That, however, is a separate property from the hotel.
Treading in the Deep End 