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Published: September 1st 2006
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I wanna stay here!
Another little street in Pienza Admittedly when I watched Italy beat France in the football world cup in France I was guttered the Italians won. Not only was I in love with Zidane but also completely smitten by this majestic country and the cuisine.
However, it only took six days of Tuscan extravagance for me to forgive the Italians. Little did I know that in the country where the beaches are full of German tourists, you can find an unspoilt haven like Toscana where nothing seems to have changed for nearly a thousand years.
So from the extremes of my French adventure - camping on soccer fields and climbing the highest mountains, I went on another extreme adventure although this adventure I would almost label a fairy tale. This was a week of pure indulgence - staying in four star bed and breakfasts, visiting some of the best wineries in the world, enjoying the fine cuisine, lounging by the pool and wandering through little medieval villages.
Tourist books label Tuscany as nothing less than a miracle. There are not enough adjectives to describe the beauty of this place. Although mostly famous for the arts and culture in particular the renaissance which started in
Tuscan Romance
our Hotel by Siena Tuscany in 1300-1400 and brought the world geniuses like Leonardo de Vinci and Michaelangelo, today, Tuscany is probably even more famous for its beautiful red wines in particular the Brunello and Chianti. The Tuscan sun and the rolling hills provide a perfect climate for the more than 7000 wineries that are registered in this region.
Naturally, Michaela and I had to try a couple of these places to see what the fuss was all about. And funny, once you have tried four or five different wines, they actually become better and better. It must be because they give you the more expensive wines at the end of the tasting. Right?
But back to the beginning. Michaela and I touched down in Florence so excited about being in Italy that we jumped straight into our rental car and headed for Florence down town looking for the world’s best pizza. Little did we know that this was going to cost us dearly. As we munched on our first genuine Italian pizza, bad little germs from the not so flash tourist trap restaurant were eating up our insides resulting in us spending a few hours in a public toilet in Florence.
A perfect moment
pure indulgence in the hills of Tuscany. Dont think you get a better view from a pool. No wonder I am smiling! Welcome to Florence!
But it takes a lot more than bad pizza to spoil our well deserved holiday, so we headed straight for Lucca where our Bed & Breakfast was situated apparently only 48min from Florence according to my Michelin route planner. Two hours later Michaela and I were puzzled that the town we got to didn’t quite look anything like we had imagined. And the funniest thing was that this town had this really funny leaning tower in the middle of it. Will you know, we had ended up in Pisa! That’s what happens when you put two best friends in a car together who haven’t spent much time together the last six years. We talked and talked and talked and never really paid any attention to the road.
So after taking the scenic route to Lucca we found our stunning B&B situated in the hills outside Lucca. Villa Cheli was just like a picture postcard with olive trees, a terra cotta roof and beautiful big rooms (see pic). A long way from the hostels and tents I have been accustomed to. While we were there, Dutch TV was filming a documentary called the Wedding Planner. A
young couple and all their friends had been flown to Tuscany for a dream wedding. And the most touching part about the story was that both had heart problems and the bride had scheduled a major surgery two months from the wedding. Apparently the operation was quite complex and she may not survive, so they decided to get married beforehand.
I think I have mentioned my love for food a few times on my blog by now but little did I know what a fantastic culinary journey this trip has brought me so far. The top two dishes so far has been a beautiful salmon I had in Alaska closely followed by the duck I had in France. However, after Tuscany, I must admit that potentially the best ever gourmet cuisine to stroke my belly I had in Castel Nuovo. One was an entre called La Caprese which most people know as a tomato and mozzarella salad but this one was different let me tell you. Imagine the “redest”, juiciest and ripest tomatoes you can think of, then add the creamiest and freshest mozzarella cheese and the most divine olive oil and fresh basil. Sprinkle some fresh pepper to add
The Devil's Bridge
Apparently the architect made a pact with the devil that if he helped him finish the bridge, the devil could have the first soul to walk across. When the bridge was finished the architect sent a dog across first! a bit of bite and you have got the juiciest and creamiest combination which when eaten makes you almost able to hear the angels sing. Oh divine.
They say chocolate can release endorphins like those released when you have an orgasm. Well let me tell you the tiramisu we had that night almost made me re-enact the famous Meg Ryan scene in When Harry Met Sally. It was so divine that I would recommend that everyone adds to their list of things to do before you die: “Eat tiramisu in Italy”. Whoever invited the creamy, chocolaty heaven that is tiramisu should be knighted or become president of the States. I am sure if the world ate more tiramisu it would become a better place. Imagine all the soldiers handing out tiramisu in Iraq, Israel and Afghanistan instead of bullets and torture? I think I would be willing to confess a lot more secrets at the promise of tiramisu than when having my nails removed. If only the world was so simple.
Where was I? All this talk about tiramisu makes me lose track…
So when we were not eating, we drove around in the beautiful countryside in
The narrow streets of Pienza
by far the most beautiful village I have ever visited! our little Fiat Panda (you gotta drive Fiat when you are in Italy) discovering all the little medieval villages. Our favourite village by far was a small town in South Tuscany called Pienza. This little village has been named a world heritage site by UNESCO due to its many stunning renaissance buildings which Pope Pius II had made. This village is situated on a hill top surrounded by the old town wall and has many beautiful little narrow streets as well as an interesting smell of sheep cheese. The local area is quite famous for its Pecorino sheep cheese which unfortunately we did not try :-) You will note that most of my pictures are from Pienza as it was just heaven on earth.
The funniest of all stories happened on the last day of our trip. We spent the last three days at a four star beautiful farm hotel and spa just south of Siena in the heart of the Tuscan wine country. Here the owner of the hotel took a fancy to Michaela which was great as we got excellent service including adding tiramisu to the menu every night and getting lunch outside normal hours. On the
Dont you just wanna bite in?
Probably not if you could smell what I smelt! Sheep's cheese yum! last night we had a fantastic three course dinner: For starters: La Caprese, Main: Sirloin steak with mushroom sauce and for dessert need I say? Tiramisu of course. Shortly after the dessert I went to the bathroom and returned shortly after to a Michaela looking absolutely shocked. The minute I left, the hotel owner had come out and declared his love for her. Up until now his crush had been rather innocent but when he asked her to come back to the hotel “alone” later on and then blew her a kiss, she was rather shocked and embarrassed. Afraid that he might kick us out of the hotel if she was too rude, she just brushed him off with a kind “thank you but no thank you”.
And so the next morning we had to wave goodbye to the Tuscan sun and more importantly Tiramisu heaven. It is no wonder Tuscany has been named one of the most romantic places on earth. The quietness of the countryside, the romantic little wineries, the beauty of the medieval villages and the sensuality of the cuisine all make Tuscany another little paradise on earth to remind us all how good it is
Terracotta Splendour
The roofs of Barca - a small village in Northern Tuscany to be alive in this wondrous place called Earth.
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Big Al
non-member comment
I dunno Danish girl - all that eating and drinking - better make sure that wide-angle lense on yer camera's working.... ha... big al...