Day 1 in Tuscany
We are 6 friends (3 couples) traveling throughout France and Italy on a spur-of-the-moment trip from Canada. Our ages vary between 40 and 65.
We travelled from Rome to Arezzo by train.
Our villa was on the outskirt of town, in Pratantico. It was a little challenging to find but once we did, it was well worth it. The owners, Giovanni & Giorgio, were very welcoming and happy to meet us. Giovanni speaks French and Italian. Bonus, because now I can converse with him in French and my husband can speak Italian. Giovanni's brother, Giorgio, brought some biscotti and a couple bottles of sweet wine for us. Very nice touch!
The villa was a little remote and we needed food as we hadn't really had much of a breakfast before leaving Rome. We needed to find a restaurant. Giovanni drove us to the nearest gas station. He made two trips with his small vehicle. We weren't sure on the quality of food and neither was Giovanni, so he came in with us, talked to the lady working there, explained we were from Canada and asked what there was to eat. The staff waited on us as though we were the royal family and the food ended up being amazing. One of the best pizza's we've had and we were sitting in a gas station-restaurant!
We walked back, over the bridge and went to the small supermarket to buy groceries. It was closed for the afternoon, re-opening at 4:30 pm.
We headed back to the villa and Giovanni offers to take us to a winery. Corinne, Tino and I went with him and arrived at more like a wine factory. We were wine tasting out of wine pumps, like gas pumps! We found that very amusing! They offered us samples and we bought some bottles from them for 3,20 Euros. We love the price of wine in Italy!
Later, after 4:30 pm, we walk back to the grocery store to find out that on Wednesday afternoons they are closed! (we had not read that part of the sign earlier). We look back and the number 6 bus passes us, going into town and won't pass again for another hour!
We decide to walk and we have to head back over the bridge to get to the big supermarket in town. As it starts to get dark, we arrive at the gas station where we had lunch and the narrow sidewalk ends! Now what? We cannot walk on the highway in the dark! We are stuck here with no way to get around. The gas station attendant asks us what we need and offers to find us a ride into town. Less than two minutes later, two girls are cleaning out the back of the car, apologizing for the tight space that we'll have to sit in and get us to the supermarket (approx three km away). We explain that we attempted to shop in the small grocery store and they say in Italian, "no, it's Wednesday! They close at 1 pm." Yes, now we know that. Everyone seems to know that small shops are closed on Wednesdays. It was hilarious how they all reacted to our story...ah, it's Wednesday! Those girls saved the night.
We bought groceries, went to the bus stop to find out we have to wait another hour! Oh well, at this point, the weather is fine. We talk to a teacher who is also waiting for the bus and learn a little about the town. She tells us there is no crime there and everyone is friendly. We agreed! She tells us that we should go to Cortona if we have time.
Meanwhile back at the villa, the others are wondering where we are since we've been gone for about 3 hours. On foot, no cell phones. We were living like our ancestors or so it felt. We get back to the villa and walking up the driveway, it's pitch black and there are a million stars in the sky. We feel like we are in a movie, with the setting of the lights on in the villa and we are walking up the long driveway, seeing our friends through the windows....we're excited to tell them all about our "Wednesday" adventure!

Day 2 in Tuscany
We had a great sleep in the villa. Tino made some potatoes and eggs for breakfast. We were taking it easy today and decided to stay in Arezzo and visit the small city. We catch a bus to the center of town and start walking around. It's very crisp outside, our ears and hands are cold. As most stores close in Italy for the afternoon, the town becomes deserted and we are looking for a place to warm up. We find one bar that is open. We have our usual, pastries, chocolate and cappuccino. We ask the clerk if there are any wineries nearby and they recommend San Fabriano. Of course they go out of their way to explain to us how to get there and call the winery for us to let them know we are coming.
We catch the bus and get off a short distance later near the aqua ducks as the lady had explained to us. We see the sign for the fattoria San Fabriano and we're thrilled to have found it so quickly. We only have to walk 900 meters! Doesn't seem like a lot. So we walk for at least a half hour up the country roads and experience the most beautiful Tuscan scenery we have ever seen!
We find the winery. A lady named Claudia welcomes us and says she can show us around even on this short notice. How nice! So she explains how all is done in that region which is the Sangiovese region. The wine of the region is the Chianti.
We do some wine tasting and she says that we can't leave until both bottles are empty. Talk about wine tasting! For 10 euros each, we had a great time! Wine is cheaper than water here!
Our walk back was downhill so it went a little quicker. We shopped a little in the town center and caught a bus back to the villa.
Tino and I made dinner, pasta e fagioli, salad, bread and wine.

Day 3 in Tuscany, brought us to Cortona, which was recommended by the nice lady at the bus stop. It was a beautiful town on top of a mountain. The scenery was breathless!

Day 4 in Tuscany, brings us to our departure. We are sad to leave and Giovanni arranges for a few vehicles to get us to the train station. No charge! These people have gone over and above their duties to help make our stay in Tuscany the most memorable of our entire trip. To this day, we talk about the villa with our friends, and a warm feeling fills our hearts!

Autor

  Carole D.

Posición

  Arezzo

Categoría

  Costumbres locales

Fecha de Publicación

21 may 2014 - 12:17:08

Vote  4 Votos