31 August - Arrival at the villa and family

Up before 7am, we were on the road by 8:30am. It was a 20-minute walk to the car, parked up in a paid carpark, and a brief stop at a patisserie to collect two cakes we had arranged the day before. We had always planned to pick up one or two birthday cakes before arriving in Cortona. It seemed the easiest way.

On the motorway it was a pretty straightforward drive to Cortona, arriving at 11am to a welcome by Suzy and Tim. The villa was just perfect. A choice of 4 tables depending on the time of day and the sun and weather. The house is clearly very old and in a lovely quiet secluded situation.

Everyone else was in the town of Cortona where Iris's parents were showing them around. They soon arrived, and it was lovely to meet them. They stayed for lunch before starting the drive back to Luxembourg. They break the trip in half but it is still about 12 hours drive all up.  

Lunch with the family and our hosts

All the cousins, apparently black is in

It was a real surprise when our daughter and family arrived before lunch. We had expected them later in the afternoon. They'd seen so much of Rome in the preceding three days that they opted to skip the morning and drove straight to Cortona after breakfast. What a wonderful catch-up with everyone. Just superb.

With the temperatures continuing in the mid 30s everyone hit the pool and the rest of the day was given over to eating, drinking, talking and dipping in the water.

Evening meal