This Fall has been a special one with a 12-day tour of Tuscany. Jeff & I arrived in Florence, Italy on September 22, 2010 and spent the day touring one of the most exciting cities on the planet. Florence refuses to rely on her beauty alone. The city is a treasure chest of wonders: magnificent Renaissance art, sculpture, architecture (churches, piazzas, duomos, doors), bridges, market stalls, sunshine, cafes, gelato, and focaccia everywhere you turn. Wine is cheaper than water. The people are lively, polished, and kindly insert their excellent English to ease the pain of our grossly mangled stabs at Italian. To balance out all the eating we climbed the nearly 500 steps to the top of the Duomo and enjoyed a 360-degree view of the city.
We traveled north to hike the Cinque Terre, a string of 5 medieval towns along the seacoast. This was an astonishing scene: sparkling water, brilliant sunshine and a rugged hike among bustling villages. We arrived by car, but the Italian Parks access to trains and buses is so easy, everyone visits this gorgeous area. I hiked in my new Vibram 5-finger shoes, and they were the perfect travel gear for this outing. We started in Monterosso and hiked south towards Riomaggiore, eventually spending the night in a picture-perfect harbor in Portovenere. Monterosso is famous for anchovies, and we enjoyed a lovely lunch before embarking on our hike. In each town we took a break for a tour of the village, drinks, or a gelato, and lots of photo ops!
Moving south to Siena, we toured within the ancient walls, entering the Piazza del Campo at dusk in a light rain. The Piazza was subdued in the mist and the effect of such a grand space hit us powerfully and good. We loved ducking in and out of the dark maze of streets dotted with comforting pinpoints of light from the trattorias and shops. We dined on the Campo with a delicious bottle of Chianti –possibly the most maligned wine in history–and now, one of our favorites. The next day we journeyed to the Super Tuscan wine towns of Montalcino and Montepulciano where we tasted the Brunellos and Vin Nobles. The 2004 Solderia was dear at 20 euros for a small tasting!
We biked all through the Tuscan region, self-supported, and fell head-over-heels in love with the Chanti area- the wineries, the scenery, and the magnificent La Petraia Inn. For more about Tuscan cooking read Secrets of the Tuscan Kitchen in my bi-monthly food column, The Everyday Gourmet.
Gelato Heaven!
