Bella Tuscany

Ahhhhh! Bella! Bella!  I love Tuscany!  I mean I really really love Tuscany! It's the perfect combination of beauty and serenity.  Alas, we started the trip in the pouring rain thinking that it may been a mistake (as if a trip to Tuscany could be a mistake...) But as we continued to drive north the clouds cleared and it turned into a beautiful Italian fall day.  First we reached Sienna, the largest city in the Tuscan region - a medieval walled town on top of a large hill.  The city itself looked beautiful and there may have been sights to tour but we had scheduled a wine tour in the afternoon.  So we grabbed a quick bite, caught a glimpse of the Duomo,  and headed out to a vineyard called Dievole.

Dievloe (check out their website for more info: http://www.dievole.it/en/home/home.aspx) is a small resort on the edge of a rolling tuscan hill with villas, a winery, a restaurant, pools, gardens etc.  Up on arrival we were  handed a glass of wine and told to explore the area.  Like typical Americans we asked to check-in to our room first.  The lady looked at us like we were crazy, and insisted we enjoy a glass of wine (on the house) and relax on the terrace prior to checking in.  A lesson in the italian schedule: piano, piano.  They had such pretty little rose gardens and panoramic views; it was like something out of a movie.  We were trying to figure out the difference between Tuscany and Napa Valley.  It occurred to us that Napa was a bit more commercialized, and the vineyards were packed together.  Tuscany is just so much older, with more character, and a slower pace.  Next, we went on a wine tour through the cellars and vineyards.  Each stop we received a generous pour of a different wine, some cheese, and homemade prosciutto (dry cured ham).  On our tour was an ENGLISH SPEAKING 3 year old boy! Can you believe it?  So they ran around together and we, well, . . . enjoyed ourselves.  Dinner at the restaurant was delicious and entertaining.  Half way through the meal a cat jumped through the window that was beside our table.  Well that was no big deal until a dog that had been hiding under another table saw it and all heck broke lose!  Kind of funny, and well, would only happen in Italy :)  I think one of my favorite memories is opening up my shutters (so italian) the next morning and seeing the mist settled over the vineyards through the rolling hills.  Like nothing I had ever seen before.  

The next day we went to Lucca.  Of all the towns we've been to thus far in Italy, this was our favorite.  Lucca is medieval town completely walled.  The walls are so wide that on top there are trees, parks and paths that you can walk/ride bikes all the way around!  There are no cars allowed inside the city so we rented bikes and rode around all day.  Reid thought this was a blast and would squeal “go faster! go faster!”  For dinner we found a trattoria that served fabulous food.  Northern Italy is known for their risotto dishes. After dinner, we knew why. 

The last morning we woke up in Lucca and drove 20 miles south to Pisa.  Guess what we saw there?  Pisa looked like a typical medieval town. It was walled, had it's main cathedral and honestly if one of the towers didn't lean I am not sure it would be famous for anything else.  But of course we had to go, and of course we had to take the token picture of us "holding up" the tower.  We had lunch at a small trattoria and waited out a rain storm and then headed home.  

What a wonderful "taste" of Italy.  I have a feeling that this trip to Tuscany was the first of many.