I finally found time to write a lot of make up work for not being up to date on my blogs. I apologize for keeping ya’ll waiting.
I first will begin with Southern Tuscany. Of the first four weekend trips, this was my favorite. The rolling hills and lush countryside reminded me of home and the changing of all the leaves was amazing to see. Friday, we departed early and arrived at the Bagno Vignoni hot springs in the town of Bagno Vignoni. The group of sixty was split into two groups. One for hiking and the other for relaxing at the hot springs. I chose to relax and hung out in the pool for several hours. The weather was perfect for staying warm in the hot springs, a little overcast and an occasional mist of rain.
After the relaxing experience in the nearby park we had a picnic of pecorino cheese, bread, salami, olives, water and proscuitto. It was great!
After the picnic we departed for a Romanesque Churched named Sant’Antimo. This old church was nestled in a little valley where it was an important strategic point for war during the ancient times. We then went to the town of Montalcino, famous for its Brunello wine. Here it was overcast and not a single sign of other tourists. We split into small groups and explored the medieval town. Here is where I found a pair of new gloves, and tasted the famous Brunello wine. It was great, if only I had 100 Euro to bring home a couple of bottles for sharing…too bad. Instead, I bought a good dessert wine called Moscadello di Montelcino for a more modest price. After the wine experience we left for our hotel in Vescovado di Murlo. The hotel provided us with some fabulous food for dinner.
The next day we went hiking through the vineyards of the countryside and arrived at the medieval town of Murlo. Here in Murlo, an ancient town that once thrived, but only now housed 20 full time residents we dove into history of the Etruscan period by visiting the small but informative Etruscan Museum.
We all loaded back onto the buses and departed for the town of Pienza. Here, Pope Pius II was born and raised here. This was a great little town. It was a very cute little town that had three different roads leading to a nice panorama of the valley; such as Kissing street, Street of Love, Street of hugs, etc.
Here in this town I experienced great food. I ate at this tiny little family owned crepes restaurant where I had a crepes with cheese, salami, and spinach. It was fantastic!
The last day in Southern Tuscany we took our bus to an old abbey that had been abandoned a long time ago. The remains of San Galgano were still intact, but there was an absence of its roof. It was very interesting. About a 1 kilometer walk up a nearby hill we visited the chapel of Monte Siepi where the story of the legendary Sword in the Stone was “Created.” It was interesting, yet not that amazing to see since the actual sword was replaced with a replica. After this visit, we headed home and this concluded the Italian experience in Southern Tuscany.
I first will begin with Southern Tuscany. Of the first four weekend trips, this was my favorite. The rolling hills and lush countryside reminded me of home and the changing of all the leaves was amazing to see. Friday, we departed early and arrived at the Bagno Vignoni hot springs in the town of Bagno Vignoni. The group of sixty was split into two groups. One for hiking and the other for relaxing at the hot springs. I chose to relax and hung out in the pool for several hours. The weather was perfect for staying warm in the hot springs, a little overcast and an occasional mist of rain.
After the relaxing experience in the nearby park we had a picnic of pecorino cheese, bread, salami, olives, water and proscuitto. It was great!
After the picnic we departed for a Romanesque Churched named Sant’Antimo. This old church was nestled in a little valley where it was an important strategic point for war during the ancient times. We then went to the town of Montalcino, famous for its Brunello wine. Here it was overcast and not a single sign of other tourists. We split into small groups and explored the medieval town. Here is where I found a pair of new gloves, and tasted the famous Brunello wine. It was great, if only I had 100 Euro to bring home a couple of bottles for sharing…too bad. Instead, I bought a good dessert wine called Moscadello di Montelcino for a more modest price. After the wine experience we left for our hotel in Vescovado di Murlo. The hotel provided us with some fabulous food for dinner.
The next day we went hiking through the vineyards of the countryside and arrived at the medieval town of Murlo. Here in Murlo, an ancient town that once thrived, but only now housed 20 full time residents we dove into history of the Etruscan period by visiting the small but informative Etruscan Museum.
After visiting this museum we proceeded to hike to the Campriano Wine Estate. Here we had some great wine and an awesome experience of how to taste wine and eat freshly baked foccaccia bread. We tasted three different types of wine, a white, a rosso (mixed wine), a red, and a reserve red wine which was excellent. I highly 
enjoyed the white wine and bought a bottle for the asking price o
f 5 euro. All of the wine was pressed from the estates’ forty acres of grapes.
enjoyed the white wine and bought a bottle for the asking price o
f 5 euro. All of the wine was pressed from the estates’ forty acres of grapes.We all loaded back onto the buses and departed for the town of Pienza. Here, Pope Pius II was born and raised here. This was a great little town. It was a very cute little town that had three different roads leading to a nice panorama of the valley; such as Kissing street, Street of Love, Street of hugs, etc.
Here in this town I experienced great food. I ate at this tiny little family owned crepes restaurant where I had a crepes with cheese, salami, and spinach. It was fantastic!
The last day in Southern Tuscany we took our bus to an old abbey that had been abandoned a long time ago. The remains of San Galgano were still intact, but there was an absence of its roof. It was very interesting. About a 1 kilometer walk up a nearby hill we visited the chapel of Monte Siepi where the story of the legendary Sword in the Stone was “Created.” It was interesting, yet not that amazing to see since the actual sword was replaced with a replica. After this visit, we headed home and this concluded the Italian experience in Southern Tuscany.
