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Arrivederci

11 Jul

With deference to Goodnight Moon, my farewell ode to Italia 2012:

Arrivederci salumi, cheese and wine

Arrivederci going to dinner at nine

Arrivederci shopping at the markets in the street

Arrivederci greeting every stranger I meet

Arrivederci pastry and cappuccino in the early morn

Arrivederci basil from a plant freshly torn

Arrivederci best mozzarella I will ever taste

Arrivederci appreciation of life at a slower pace

Arrivederci  sunflowers growing strong and tall

Arrivederci lovely shops, not ever in a mall

Arrivederci gelato –  the source of smiles galore

Arrivederci  flowers adorning every window and door

Arrivederci graceful ladies walking arm in arm

Arrivederci vistas of the land people farm

Arrivederci homemade pasta in every size and shape

Arrivederci beans that only Italians know how to make

Arrivederci tomatoes, bruscetta and cheese

Arrivederci pizza prepared to please

Arrivederci piazza life where people sip vino and talk

Arrivederci evenings’ activities we find on our walk

Arrivederci shoes, scarves and fashion

Arrivederci simplicity filled with passion

Arrivederci antiquities that stretch the soul and mind

 

Arrivederci art and architecture, every imaginable kind

Arrivederci friends, old and new, from far and near

  

Arrivederci Cortona, Italia, till we see you next year.

Many thanks to all who made our trip so memorable.

While this marks the “physical” end of our 2012 Italian adventure, it is not the end of the blog… come back for much more!

Ciao!

Judy

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The Road Less Travelled

22 Jun

The views from Cortona are as wide and deep as the eye can see. From almost any point around the city walls, you need only to look out to see the scenes that painters and photographers try but fail to capture. Not that their art is poor; on the contrary. It is just that the manicured hills and valleys are so colorful and alive that static art never quite seems to do it justice.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

When you study the hills and valleys, you notice they are made up of tiny towns, lone houses, working farms, well-tended vineyards, olive groves, and miles and miles of winding roads. Who lives there? What kind of life do the people have? How connected are they with each other, the nearest city, or the country they live in?

Homes scattered throughout

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We decided to spend the day exploring. With no destination in mind, we drove to the top of Cortona and headed northeast.

 

SDL photo

The paved road unfolded before us like a loosely coiled snake. We followed it higher and higher into the blue sky, curling around the  hills that were painted with yellow and red flowers, always  marveling at the slide show nature was providing.

 

BNG photo

With cameras in hand, Benita and Sarah could ask us to stop whenever they wanted, and as long as I could pull over. Nature was their focus; the vistas were mine. Stopping for me was also great because as the driver, “eyes on the road” needed to be my constant mantra!

 

Occasionally we came across a few tiny towns, clusters of a dozen or so homes. Often, however, we would encounter a lone farmhouse, a few cows, but never any people.

SDL photo

SDL photo

After quite a long ride uphill, we began to descend. We assumed we would eventually be low enough to find a directional sign or city, but as soon as we reached the valley, the road carried us up the next hill.

Olive groves (SDL photo)

We were surprised by the quality of the roads and the stone bridges and guardrails, as we rarely encountered another vehicle. Besides farming, the only other visible business appears to be the agriturismos or farm houses that offer food and dwelling to tourists, none of whom were visible on our journey.

SDL Photo

BNG photo

 

After several ascents and descents, and several hours of exploring, we came to a crossroad. Right or left? Two cities listed, only one on the map that Len was now reading.  We headed toward Mercatale as it seemed the circuitous route to Cortona. After about three minutes, the road turned to gravel. Hmmm. Sure hope we don’t get a flat!

BNG photo

Fifteen minutes into the drive, with the road getting progressively rougher, we saw a lovely farm and two elderly people in the yard with their tiny dog. The lady was tending to her flowers and I stopped and asked for directions. Yes, we were going the right way, she confirmed in Italian as she smiled. Follow the road up  the next hill and back down through another valley and we would eventually get to Mercatale and the road that would take us home.

I realized as we pulled away that the kind lady did much more than give us directions. She unknowingly answered my questions about life in the hills. I could see in her warm smile and sparkling eyes that she was enjoying life to the fullest. Uncomplicated, unstressed.  She was surrounded by the gifts nature provides, not the noise of the city or the challenges of the economy. She worked with her hands and her heart, and she was happy. I only wish I had taken her picture.

When we returned to Cortona, and looked out at the hills through the setting sun, we saw them from a new perspective. The hills and valleys, the winding roads…they were more familiar now. Although we were only part of them for a day, we were no longer strangers or observers from afar. It’s not often that we take the time to follow the road less travelled, but for Len, Benita, Sarah and me, the day will be one we will always remember.

Ciao,

Judy

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The Dinner on the Hill.5

13 Aug

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There is a paradox about many of the hill towns in Tuscany. You can clearly see them from a distance, yet they disappear as you approach. Such is the case with Sant’Angelo in Colle. Marisa, Maria and Emanuela had all recommended that we drive to Il Leccio for dinner. Not far, they told us. Just turn left, then right, then keep driving.

So after a most enjoyable day, beginning with our tour, then the tasting and finally our chance meeting and subsequent two-hour conversation with the ladies, we headed for dinner at Il Leccio. The restaurant, we were told, offered the highest and most amazing views of Montalcino and we were hungry.

We set out for what we thought was a 5-10 minute drive. We drove through the winding hills, and with each turn, expected to see the restaurant yet all we saw was a town in the distance. About 20 minutes into the trip, with the sun setting and our stomachs unhappy, we needed to decide to continue or turn back. Oh, well, we had come this far…

Finally, up the highway, we saw a sign. We were in another town! The sign read Sant’Angelo in Colle. Surely they would have told us the restaurant was in another town, but to them, I guess it’s all Montalcino.  Onward we proceeded and eventually saw an arrow pointing to the left and the name Il Leccio. Finally! But not so fast, impatient ones, for ahead of us was a cobblestone street with a pebbled parking area on the left and no sign of a town. We parked and saw what appeared to be a few locals. “Il Leccio?” we asked, and in the typical Italian manner, they replied “Si, sempre diritto.” To Italians, everything is always straight ahead.

Ok, where is the town, where is the restaurant, where are we???? We started to climb some very steep streets…we were in the wall of a city but where was the city? At each intersection we randomly chose a direction.

After an amazingly steep climb,  we heard some voices. Yeah! We actually split and ascended the hill from separate directions. At the top was a piazza, a few restaurants, a church, and the magnificent view. This was the city we had seen from the distance.

“Do you have reservations?” they asked at Il Leccio. Stay calm, Judy, after all this, we are going to eat here. There were several large parties, but one small table outside that was surely meant for us.

We learned that Sant’Angelo in Colle is the highest growing area of Montalcino, 400+ meters above sea level. Although the sun had set, the moonlight and stars cast a glow on the hillside, the night was brilliant, and the view spectacular as promised. We shared pasta and salad by candlelight under the stars and simply ordered a bottle of sparkling water as we had ample wine waiting for us at the villa. A storybook ending to a most amazing day.

Ciao!

Judy

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The Villa.3

1 Aug

After the wine tasting, and since we had been given the keys to the house, I decided to explore. Our villa was actually a 19th century farmhouse that has been restored to serve the needs of the estate. Generally, the only guests that stay in the house are business partners, friends or relatives, and not so often individuals like us.

The first floor has several comfortable dining and sitting rooms with a lovely color scheme of  yellow and blue. Large windows fill the rooms with light and reveal the valley below.

Upstairs there are two apartments and our room. The ceiling in our room, like so many it Italy, features large beams in an interesting pattern. Looking at the beams, I was hoping they would not choose our stay to fall on the bed.

When I finished my inside tour, I left Len to stand guard over the bottles and ventured outside to take some pictures. Across from our villa was a small building that housed another apartment. We never saw the inside but it seemed so ancient yet inviting.

At the end of a long drive, but still on the estate, was another home that belonged to the family. We had been told that Mrs. Centolani was in town for a few days at her home. “She doesn’t speak English, so if you happen to see her,  just wave as she is very friendly.”

As I stood at the top of the drive taking pictures, two ladies emerged from behind the house, stopped at the gate, and asked loudly, “chi è, chi è?” Hmmm…I hope my Italian will be good enough to explain who I am and why I’m on their property!

Ciao,

Judy

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Italy at Last

20 Jun

“Italy is one big farm. That’s why everything is so fresh,” observed Len as we descended from the clouds 1000 feet above FCO. And he’s so right. For many, the mention of Italy conjures up the big three: Venezia, Firenze and Roma, or other famous cities, but truly, there are miles and miles of farms and vineyards dotting the landscape. We drove through many of them in the three hour drive from Rome to Cortona.

Speaking of driving, after all the GPS planning (never worked) , driving with one’s spouse is not for the faint of heart. The driving (in my opinion as I’m the driver) is ok, it’s just the front seat driver that I thought about dropping off at one of those farms! But make it we did, and found our Casa Celeste in Cortona to be clean and comfortable.

The streets in Cortona are all narrow and hilly and support pedestrians, dog walkers and all manner of moving vehicles, which, of course, have the right of way. One quickly learns to navigate! We found a gem of a place for dinner, Il Cacio Brillo, which loosely translates to drunken cheese. We shared a delicious cheese and salumi platter, all freshly cut, with a 2006 Brunello in a 1200 year old room…heavenly.

Much has been written about Cortona since Frances Mays’ Under the Tuscan Sun, and I must admit, it’s what brought us here as well. That said, this is our launch pad for exploring larger and smaller towns in Tuscany and Umbria, skipping restaurants where English is spoken, and just taking the road less travelled whenever we feel like it. Photos to begin tomorrow.

Ciao,

Judy

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