Tuscany Day 4

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We had scheduled with Niccoletta, the owner of Stomennano, to give us a tour of the property in the morning. She spent about two hours describing the history of each room and walked us around the property. Amazing their history that dates back to the Etruscan days. Stomennano started out as a small church, the current building was added to the original church structure. Queen Margherita occasionally stayed at the property when traveling. Additionally Dante’s Divine Comedy references Monterrigioni from the view of Stomennano. Lots of history. I haven’t mentioned our hosts. Niccoletta, our hostess and her husband NiccoIo and their daughter Luisa, they were wonderful to work and interact with. And I can’t forget Mia, the watch dog, and Osavidio, the puppy.

After the tour everyone headed off to see San Gimignano, Vikki and I decided to stay behind and chill by the pool. Instead we hiked through the Stomennano property, through their vineyard, their olive trees and vegetable gardens to Monterrigioni. It was about a mile hike. We had lunch at Antico Travaglio Wine Bar Gelateria, the same place we ate before. This time I had fettuccini with a pistachio and cream sauce with arugula and Vikki pesto spaghetti, they were awesome. And two of the best beers we’ve had all trip, because we were hot and they were cold. After lunch we walked on top of the walls surrounding Monterrigioni, great view.

We walked back to Stomennano and spent the rest of the day by the pool with a bottle of wine. When the gang got back we cooked up what was left of our food and enjoyed an evening at the villa.

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Photos

Niccoletta (Host)
Vikki with copy of Dante

Osavidio - The Puppy
6 months old