Part Four- Toscana/ Tuscany

After leaving the monastery early ( 10ish :)),
we headed down the street on foot -with our luggage in tow-
to the car rental place. 

We purposely had used the train so far- as it is reliable, cheap and modern,
but for Tuscany we  
had to have a car.
The only way to go to explore the countryside!

After we did the usual ' walk-around- the car-thing' at the dealership,
we noted the major dents and stone chips..on this fairly new car.
The guy at the car rental just shrugged his shoulders and told us that we were responsible, as usual, for all damage...

We off we went and got to experience Florence drivers first hand...

Everything is possible:
Speed limits don't count,
neither are marked one-way-streets necessarily used one-way.
Go figure!

Pedestrians and Scooters darting out of nowhere...

Needless to say we made it out the city loosing each a pound in sweat, 

soon finding ourselves safely on the windy Route 222 towards Radda/ Chianti Region
in the Tuscan countryside,
only one hour south of Florence.

We had reserved a room at the La Bottega di Giovanni 

and were pleasantly surprised.
The room was clean and very comfortable;
simple, but had everything we needed

and this was the view from
our window:

Fresh Tuscan air- what more could a girl want?? ;)

We decided to go for a drive and ended up in the tiny village of Volpaia:

We found this restaurant Osteria La Panzanelle which was recommeded in our travel guide and decided to have supper there.

Seated outside among gardens and groves overlooking the fields,
we enjoyed such an amazing meal,
that we decided to make reservations for our last day/ evening as well.

We started off with a simple insalata mista served with warm, freshly baked bread.

Next we shared a flavorful, tender beef stew simmered in green peppercorns
and red wine sauce
and a serving of homemade Pici noodles paired with melted Pecorino cheese.

Yum! Can you taste it?
The sweet finish was a Tiramisu that melts in your mouth accompanied with a strong cappuccino...hmmm....

We highly recommend this place!

We ended the day sipping Chianti listening to the crickets and overlooking the Tuscan hillside.

LOVE Tuscany!!

Off the next day taking a road trip....

 

  

  

 

The town of San Gimignano- or Chimichanga, how we called it :)

This walled medieval town located near Sienna is famous for its towers. 

San Gimignano was founded as a small village in the 3rd century BC by the Etruscan's. Historical records begin in the 10th century, 

when it adopted the name of the bishop Saint Geminianus, 

who had defended it from Attila's Huns.

How's that for a piece of history? 

     

San Gimignano's historic center is a UNESCO world heritage site for its architecture. 

                           

One of the 14 remaining towers:

Originally there were 72, some as tall as 50 meters, built by patrician families probably to demonstrate their wealth and power.

During the middle ages, the town was an important center for trade and for pilgrims traveling to or from Rome on the Via Francigena.

          

      

 

...and then there are the boar salami shops...take a closer look:

 

As we were both feeling a bit under the weather and too tired to do much walking, we opted to continue our drive towards the coast

      

     

A perfect evening at the beach at Cecina at the Ligurian Sea

     

Skipping stones

   

Our third and last day we stuck close to home and explored Radda

The finale was a fine dinner at, you guessed it, Osteria La Panzanelle. 

This time opted to try something new: 

Roasted Boar, 

Rabbit in red wine sauce 

(Yes, we swore never to eat rabbit, but know "When in Rome..."), 

Pici noodles con pecorino, 

and leek-filled Gnocchi. 

Not to mention the dessert....

Tiramesu...again...heavenly!

Next stop: Amalfi Coast; 

the big brother of the Cinque Terre