Tuscany and Provence. Who could ask for anything more?

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So it's been a while between updates, unfortunately I was sick for a few days in Barcelona which was where I planned to do my last update (I plan it based on free internet opportunities!) but I was feeling yucky and generally not in the mood to write happy thoughts, but I'm all better now and as I sit in a cafe waiting for my churros and hot chocolate there seems like not better time to start writing! When I last wrote I wasn´t that impressed with Italy, but then I hit Tuscany...

Palio aftermath - Sienna
As it turns out Italy has it's gems, and the old medieval town of Sienna was one of them. Matt (my brother who I travelled around Italy with) and I had a lovely stay here, we stayed in a hotel which made for a nice change from the hostels I´ve been staying in - with towels and a TV in our room it was a taste of luxury! The streets of Sienna were lovely to walk around, tall buildings either side of narrow laneways created shade - great for avoiding scorching heat until mid afternoon when all the stones in the street and walls had heated up so you couldn't escape it. The best part of our Sienna visit was on a Sunday just after Matt and I had climbed the bell tower that overlooks Il Campo, the main piazza in town. We'd come back down to the piazza and were just sitting down to contemplate our next steps when we heard the sound of drumming. Shortly after that a single drummer with three flag bearers walked into the square and out again. We figured it must have been one of the winners of Palio, a festival that runs twice a year on July 2 and August 16 which culminates in a bareback horserace - three laps around Il Campo. The 17 districts or 'Contrade' in Sienna have been battling it out since medieval times, each year 10 of the 17 Contrade compete, and on August 16 this year 'Contrade della Salva', with an emblem that looks like a rhino with a tree sitting on it's back, won, which was why they must have been waving their flag around the following Sunday. So that was all well and good, but then we heard a rather larger ensemble of drummers, and the team that had won on July 2, 'Contrada Sovrana dell'Istrice' with a logo of a hedgehog, took over Il Campo with at least 20 drummers and many more flag bearers - there was flag trowing and all! Then Contrada della Salva returned with reinforcements and they did something similar with their flags - it certainly livened up the otherwise sleepy Sunday morning! We followed Contrada della Salva back to their headquarters and overheard their team song - it reaminded me a lot of AFL in Melbourne, with chants and team scarves and all!

Take me back to Tuscany - Florence/Chianti
After Sienna I thought Florence may not be all that great, but it turns out that all of Tuscany is lovely, even it's biggest city. There were a few fun adventures had here, I saw David, who's looking good, he actually looked better than any other scupture I've ever seen! Slightly cooler than David for me though was the music exhibit at the Galleria Dell'Academia, which featured the Medici Stradivarious cello and viola - I´ve never seen a strad. cello before, it was a beautiful thing and for the first time in a while I missed my 'cello, even though the best sound I could get out of it these days is probably a lot closer to a dying swan than Saint Saens ever intended! I'm sure if I could get my hands on the Medici Stradivarious it would all come back to me in an instant though 😊
Another great find in Florence was the Trattoria Pane e Vino, which was outstanding value, for 6.50 euros I got lasagne, red wine and the best tiramisu I've ever tasted. I went there three days in a row, it was that good, and by the third day the waiter recognised Matt and I and gave us chocolates with the bill.
My last Tuscan adventure was a trip into the Chianti wine region, to a winery that makes Chianti classico, which must contain at least 80% San Giovese and is denoted by a black rooster on the bottle, also the pink lable which appears on all Italian wines that conform to the specific requirements of each region, at least I think that's right! The winery - Castello Vicchiomagio - was very picturesque and we got nibblies with our wine tasting which finished with a shot of grappa, if you haven't tried grappa it tastes more like rocket fuel than any other alchohol I know and burns all the way down, worse than Tequila. I can't really recommend it but the rest of the wines were fantastic!

Pot luck adventure
It's always fun when you jump on board a vessel without knowing exactly where it's going, and that's exactly what Matt and I did when we got to La Spezia pier, our first stop on the mediterranean sea, and noticed a ferry about to depart. Armed with the hope it may take us to one of the picturesque Cinque Terre towns we'd come to this area to visit, and the knowledge that according to the nice Italian fellow that sold us the ticket that it was going to the 'beach', we paid our 6.50 return and jumped aboard. Within 30 mins we'd been taken to an island, which consisted of a camping ground, a beach side restaurant, a pebble beach and a quarry. Welcome to the mediterranean! Matt and I had a bit of a laugh and wandered around, catching the next ferry home which left an hour later. A bit random but certainly a fun spontaneous way to spend an afternoon!

Five towns, 9 k's of rugged walking track = Beauty and the Beast in Cinque Terre
There are some days that you know are going to be a highlight before you even start them, and the hike between the five towns of Cinque Terre was one of them. Matt and I caught the 7.58am train to Monterosso (the town furthest from where we were staying), which, true to form for Italian public transport, ran 10 minutes late. Arriving in Monterosso so early was lovely, as we got to see the beach without the crowds of people on it. It was already warm however, so the climb to the top of the first hill was gruelling and we were both drenched in sweat by the time we got to the top! Gross sweatyness aside, the journey up was marvelous, we went through a terraced farm (the first of many as it turned out), which had everything from vines to tomatoes, wheat and olive groves! Amazing!

The first leg through to Vernazza was definately the hardest, both in time as it was the longest, but it was also the most rugged trail, at times it was less than half a metre wide with a drop off one side - not all that far, but straight into blackberry bushes - yeowch! But we remained on track and were rewarded when upon arrival into Vernazza, my favourite of the five towns. Although it had the same cute little alleyways the other towns had, it's beachside was nice and the whole town had a good vibe. So after a gelati and a chillax by the water, we headed back on the trail and went to Corniglia. Perched on a clifftop, it was an excellent lunch stop, I had a pasta salad and it was beutiful, with pesto, fresh tomato and sausage of some sort. We walked halfway down to the water before giving up, the staircase was so rustic it was photoworthy, but had far too many steps to make the beach worthwhile!

On then to Manarola, all the while admiring the sparkling mediterranean sea and wishing I'd hired a kayak for the day as it would have been easier than the hike! We didn't stay long in Manarola, again it was pretty, with the same characteristics as the other towns - small windy laneways, bright pastel coloured houses and that beautiful sea lapping at its feet. So it was on to our last, much less strenous twenty minute walk down 'Via dell'Amore' (Lovers Lane). I'm sure there's a story behind it I just don't know it! It's a well made path that links Manarola to Riomaggiore. We stoped halfway for a cool drink at a cliff top bar. I had my favourite new found Italian beverage, 'cafe freddo', a shot of espresso shaken over ice with sugar syrup. Best summer coffee invention ever. I discovered it in Rome and haven't looked back. Eventually we got to Riomaggiore, the biggest of the five towns, where we ran into some travel buddies, Nathan and Jane. We jumped on a train and headed back to Monterosso for a dinner of pizza and beer, a fitting last meal in Italy, as we headed to Nice in France the next day. The train ride home was typically Italian, the first train was cancelled and the second one ran late, so the third one left first, over an hour after we arrived at the station! But, by 9.30 we were back in our dorm room in La Spezia, exhausted but full of great memories of our days adventure.

(I wish I could spend) A Year in Provence
But I only had four days in the pretty walled town of Avignon, once home to the Pope, I didn't get around to visiting the old Popes palace but I did have a couple of good gastronomic experiences:
1. Crepes: The three Aussies I met in Avignon had never been to a creperie, so to remedy this we found a good creperie just off the main square in town. Main course was a combination of cheese, ham, mushroom, ratatouille, egg etc., however, dessert was an absolute winner, I had a whole steamed apple with a toffee sauce and cream, the crepe was wrapped around the apple. It tasted so good, it can't have been good for me.
2. Sheeps milk cheese: Les Halles market was a lovely one to walk around, and I was extremely happy with myself when I managed to ask for a sheeps milk cheese in French as the shop keeper didn't speak any English! I had that with some olive tapenade on baguette for dinner - the best cheese I've ever had (big call I know!). It was creamy with a white rind like a brie but the centre was more solid, like a goats cheese, the flavour was strong and subtle at the same time - I could have eaten lots more so it was lucky for my waisline that the market was closed the next day!

And that's all from me for now, I've been in Spain for a few weeks now and have many (mainly food related) stories to tell, but at risk of boring you all I'll save that update for a few days time! I hope you're all well!

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Photos

Il Campo
The view from Il Campo from up the bell tower, just before the drummer and flag bearers turned up!

Flag bearer
One of many that walked around the piazza

Pane e Vino
The Trattoria with the mostest!

Pretty Tuscany
The view from Castello Vicchiomagio

The beach
What a great first impression of the Mediterranean!

Vernazza - does it get any nicer that this?
This was the first view of Vernazza I had, pretty as a picture!

Cornelia's beach stairs
Rustic and photoworthy, not worth the hike down to the beach below though!

Hiking hiking hiking
Rear view of Matt ahead of me on an easy section of the path.

Apple crepe
There's a whole apple in there! Mmmmmm...

Dinner
The best sheeps milk cheese ever and tasty olive tapenade.