Well, it's been a few days since we have written anything, so I'll sum up our 5 days in Toscana in a single post... here goes.
For starters, we are staying at this great agriturismo, called Savernano. It's a mixed farm with grapes, olives, some animals (mostly poultry from what we saw). The farm itself is perched atop a beautiful hilltop overlooking the valley and out over the Tuscan hills. When you walk out of your room, you are instantly surrounded by vines and olive trees and a postcard view in all directions. The drive up to the farm is an adventure itself, with several steep and Sharp switchbacks, which our sweet vw suv handled without any thought. Aside from a great breakfast, with delicious cappuccino, they also offer a delicious dinner for much less than most restaurants. They are the perfect hosts, friendly, helpful, all around great.
So we spent two days in Florence at the start. It was a great city. Getting in was a breeze, thanks to a convenient train from near the farm. Except, on the first day, the trains weren't running due to a strike. We would have stayed away, but we had reservations at the Uffizi gallery, so we drove in. What a mess. Don't drive in Florence if you can avoid it. We made it, thanks to our gps, but it wasn't easy. see the picture of the truck below to get an idea of the sort of thing you deal with. This truck is actually parked. Note that it is mostly on the sidewalk, and the rest is in the crosswalk. In general, it seems that the rule of driving in Italy is that you probably should get out of the way, and remember that lines on the road are only a suggestion of one possible trajectory you might choose to take.
Unfortunately, due to the strike, the Uffizi was closed. So we couldn't go anyway. But in the end, it was all good. We had lovely day seeing other art, like sculptures by Michelangelo and Raphaello, and pre renaissance sacred art, plus a climb up a tower to catch a view of the city. The next day we went down to Florence again, saw the uffizi, which is home to the Birth of Venus, as well as a number of great renaissance and pre renaissance works, and the Medici chapels, which were partly designed by Michelangelo, and quite impressive. In all, Florence was a beautiful city with great history and amazing art. The sheer numbers of priceless works was mind boggling. While there, we had lunch at a couple of great non-tourist restaurants. One, called trattoria Mario was this tiny place with a few tables, which you share with strangers to leave no spot empty. We got there at noon and went right in, but by the time we left, there was a crowd waiting to get in. The pasta was great, and affordable. In the pictures below, you'll see Emily eating ribbolita, a soup thickened with bread, and a plate of pappardelle from Mario's. I also snapped a shot of the packed restaurant. You'll also notice a nice Florence pizza and some gratuitous gelato pics. For the record, it is perfectly acceptable to eat gelato twice a day.
The other part of Tuscany is the countryside. We enjoyed this part a great deal as well. There are small towns dotting the countryside, most on top of hills, and surrounded by ancient walls. We stopped at a few of these to take in the culture and drink the local wine. Each town has their specialty, and all were great. We especially enjoyed the small town of Montepulciano. There was a small door in the side of a building that led to a vast system of wine caves. Thousands of gallons of vino nobile sat in barrels aging to just the right balance of flavor and smoothness. The man in the tasting room was very cute. His name is Adamo, and he was featured in Rick Steeves guide and tv show. Adamo fancies himself a celebrity, and even autographed a postcard for us. He spoke very little English, but was so passionate about his wine, you hardly noticed. The wine was incredible, so we did take home a bottle.
Overall, it was a great time in Tuscany. Great food, great wine, and beautiful scenery.
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