On 2nd September 2019 we left Elba behind and headed for the mainland of Italy. Our first anchorage was Talamone along the Tuscan coast, a pretty walled village with a prominent tower on the headland. Talamone was one of the settings used for the 2008 film Quantum of Solace (James Bond). We spent the afternoon walking around the village and headland before returning to Money Penny where we spent a calm night at anchor and moved on after breakfast.
Talamone Anchorage 
Walking around Talamone
Talamone by night.
Poggio Pertuso further along the coast was our next anchorage. We anchored off the beach and moved on early the following morning to Civitavecchia just North of Rome.
We had been in touch with our friends Amanda & Jonnie (Infinite Blue), who had been back in the UK for the month of August. Infinite Blue had been tucked up in Marina Riva Di Traiano, just south of the Cruise ship harbour of Civitavecchia whilst they were in the UK. They had just arrived back so we arranged to meet them in Riva Di Traiano. We booked Money Penny into the Marina for two nights and enjoyed catching up yet again! Over dinner at a local restaurant we discussed our plans and realised we were both considering the same Marina in Sicily for our winter berth. We headed of to Rome to explore and then fly home for grandparent duties with the knowledge that Infinite Blue and Money Penny would be meeting up again in Sicily in a few weeks time!
When deciding where to leave Money Penny on our return trips to the UK, we seek advice from those we meet along the way and also from various online sites or groups. A number of friends had recommended Constellation Nautica on the canal at Fiumicino just outside of Rome and within a short distance of Rome Fiumicino Airport. What a find! We had been in touch with Ericco, the owner of the Yard via email and were aware that we had to make our way through two lifting bridges to get to our mooring. The bridges only open twice a day and not every day. We arrived on 7 September at 3pm but the bridges were not due to open until 8pm so we pulled alongside the quay and watched the sunset before making our way down the canal towards the bridges. Ericco and a number of others were alongside with a fantastic welcome and to help us moor up.
Sunset as we waited for the Bridges to open 
Money Penny safely moored in Fiumincino
Over the next ten days we caught up on ‘boat jobs’ and caught the bus into the city of Rome to visit the sights. The bus stop was directly opposite the boatyard - extremely convenient. Judith’s cousin and family, Sam, Matt & Sienna, who live in Australia, were touring Europe and were in Rome at the same time as us. We met for lunch and a catch up.
We also enjoyed the hospitality of our ‘host’ Ericco and his family, joining them for a couple of meals under the gazebo in the boatyard.
Meeting up with Sam, Matt & Sienna
The Map Room in the Vatican.
On the 17th of September Ericco kindly drove us to the airport where we caught a flight to Marseille, returning to Port Napoleon to collect our car. We met up with our friends Jo & Ian for an evening meal and stayed in the hotel rooms onsite before leaving the following morning to make the journey back to Le Harve and the ferry to the UK where we were to take up grandparent duties for the next two weeks!