From Gargana, we decided to drive across Italy and then up the Mediterranean side of the peninsula toward the hill towns of Tuscany and Umbria. Along the way, we ended up spending the night in the shadow of Monte Cassino, home of a famous 6th century Abbey, as well as the scene of a ferocious and hard-fought battle in the Second World War. Unfortunately, the Abby was destroyed by allied bombs during the war, under the mistaken belief that the Germans were using it for artillery spotting. It was rebuilt after the war. We hadn’t planned to stay in Cassino, but I’m glad we were able to pass through. Although we didn’t visit the Abbey itself, we had a good night in the camper van with some pasta dinner and a documentary about the WWII battle that we streamed over the campground‘s wifi. In the morning, we visited the Commonwealth War…Continue Reading