talk to me about driving, please once more

From where you are in Montepulciano, it would be just a short hop to the A1 and then all autostrade up to Verona.

Sorry if there was confusion. Here's my last post to the former topic:

We are currently in Montepulciano for the week and as you can see, have survived! I am reviewing your advice, which has been excellent. You are correct in that the autostrada has been our "friend" - truly the most stress-free driving. The most horrendous driving was north of Lucca in the mountains. Oh my gosh! I would avoid that again at all costs. Talk about ulcers. We wanted to see the caves of Grotta del Vento, up by Barga. Not only do you have the typical countryside Italian roads, but they are even narrower, no white stripe down the middle (not that it matters), you can't see around any corners since you are on a mountain, and there's truly only room for one car most of the way. We had to back up on a cliff (no guard rail) when we met a tour bus (off all things) head on.

The only benefit was that now we feel like all the other country roads are as wide as can be in comparison. I'm assuming we won't encounter that again if we are just touring around Tuscany (hopefully to Volterra and Assisi). Is that correct?

Also, what is it like to go to Verona? We don't need to stop, but I was just curious. Thanks again!!!

The drive to Verona is easy. You can get there by autostrada. Driving in Verona is typical Italian but easier than Florence or Rome.

Do you have a GPS? It really makes a lot of difference in getting around town once you're off the autostrada.

Yes, we bought a Garmin Nuvi, which I'm really happy with, but I find it difficult to find something like a parking lot. I can only figure out how to navigate to a particular address. Is there a trick to finding a parking lot like the ones inside or outside of specific towns?

I'm the driver, not the navigator, but I think what my husband does is to input "centro" on the GPS, assuming that on the way to the center of town, we'll pass a parking lot.

We drove into Verona, several years ago, prior to owning a GPS. As I recall, there are parking lots just outside the city walls. You park there, then walk in.

Cindy,
We just got back from the weekend in Montepulciano. I think I tasted enough wine to last a lifetime! Anyway, to find parking with your Garmin, go to points of interest, and from there, there should be an option for parking. Like someone else suggested, we usually follow signs for "centro" (a black and white bullseye on the signs). Once we get close to the center, we start looking for the big blue "P" signs. That almost always works. If not, we'll search on the Garmin for the closest parking to where we are.

Have fun!
Meredith

Cindy,

We just got back from two months in Italy,and we took the local bus to Barga!!! I felt sorry for anyone driving that road. We thought the ride from Sorrento to Positano was scary but Barga was one to remember.

Jerry and Stelly

Go to Verona it is just off the autostrada and you park outside the centro and walk in.On your way I would DEFINITELY visit Bergamo which is fabulous!Visit both parts of the city it is worth it and take your stuff with you you never know...