Oh Tuscany, you are a hazy, sunlight filled, lazing dream. But the journey didn't quite start that way...
We took the train from Manarola to La Spezia early to pick up our hire car so that we could wind our way through the Tuscan hills as previously envisaged. After some anxiety about whether or not we would actually get a hire car and solving a problem with my sim card, we stopped for hot chocolate and pastries as you do in Italy to take a breath and unwind. It worked and off we went to Florence where we planned to eat the number 2 rated gelato in the world and see the David. Not for the first time google maps got us in trouble. It seemed a little easy that we managed to park right in the city center with out so much as trying but naively we set out to explore the city. Florence is incredible and I wish we had more time. We went and found our gelato spot but decided to eat lunch first and stumbled across a beautiful restaurant converted from a family's private church. The food was amazing. I'm all about ravioli and this was probably the best ravioli I have ever eaten. After Rome we were converted to melon and prosciutto so that was added to the order and basically had the perfect meal in the perfect location. Food, food, food. My mouth waters just thinking about it. Then off we went for our lunch dessert, gelato, which was pretty incredible. Florence is an incredibly beautiful city, and it's a joy just to be there. We wandered the streets and headed towards the David. Turns out the line was insanely long and seeing as we had walked past 100 mini statues of the David on the walk there we decided we would leave it for this visit and just as we turned, I saw them... the Italian boots I had been dreaming of, in a store window, right before my very eyes. See I'd been on the look out and as cool as the David is, these shoes were mean't to be. In we went, on on they went. They are beautiful and just perfect and the ultimate souvenir from the trip. Next we headed to what we thought was the Medici chapel but wasn't. It was the church behind it that holds the remains of many saint and the tomb of Donetello. It was still an incredible spot. We decided to end it there and head to our accommodation in the Tuscan country side, noting that we would be back, Florence definitely needed some more of our time. What came next was a google maps disaster and a fine from the Italian government for driving through historic city areas. Me oh my, we got really stuck and literally had to nudge our way through pedestrians. I've never been happier to be free of the bind I was in. We got out, paid the price but have lived to tell the tale.
A drive through the sunlight hills of Tuscany soon erased the pain and it really was all that you can imagine and more. The hues of yellow and green, the rolling hills. It is just so beautiful. Our accommodation was lovely and we soon discovered we had the resort basically to ourselves, leaving a day ahead to laze by the pool, read, knit and draw, eat of course and siesta. And that's what we did, for a full, relaxing, perfect day. To finish it off we did head out to dinner and tried the local specialty of boar as well as pizza and the rest.
What comes next is our absolute favourite day of our entire trip. It also happened to be our last day and what a way to end it. We headed just up to the road to San Gimingnano, a gorgeous little gated town on the hill. We had booked a vespa for the day and the guys recommended that we head to the next little gated town 30 miles up the road and that is just what we did. It was so so much fun riding together on that vespa. Levi did an amazing job, having never ridden one before and it was an absolute blast. I was lucky on the back being able to take the amazing views in and really truly just enjoy the ride. We stopped a few times to gaze out over the hills and then when we made it to Volterra we had a truely memorable view as it is set so high on the hill. Volterra is a cobblestoned little place full of wonders. We stopped for more hot chocolate, then wound our way through the streets picking up a few gifts and finding the king of all canoli's, which I enjoyed every little bit. After a lunch of leftovers on the stone fence we took the ride back, returned the scooter and then went to explore San Gimingnano and try the famous gelato there. This gelato was the winner by a long shot. Raspberry rosemary may be the most incredible flavour ever invented. Amazing. I loved wandering the streets here too. There was so much history right before us and you can almost picture the way life was here once. It's incredible how old everything that surrounded us was, and amazing that it's preserved. What a day and what a place! I hope we get to return one day.
We set off after the adventures of the day back to Rome, where we stayed near the airport ready for our return flight in the morning. With some pizza and a nutella donut at the restaurant across the street, we crashed. It had been a huge day and an amazing trip. I'd do it all again and more in a heartbeat. Italy you were all I dreamed of. The food, the views, the history, the culture. What a place.
TUSCANY DAILY LOG
❤️ for favourite sites
✔️for favourite food
Wednesday 20/9
Up early with fruit to start
Train from Manarola to La Spezia
Pick up the car with some difficulty
A win with fixing my SIM card
Hot chocolate and pastries to celebrate and recover.
La Spezia is lovely, wander a little
Drive to Florence (2 hours)
Park right in the thick of the city
Eat at a 200 year old restaurant which prior to that was a private church - Ristorante Paoli ❤️
Melon and prosciutto
Cheese/ peppercorn/ walnut ravioli ✔️
Beef Carpaccio ✔️
Gelato at the 'worlds 2nd best' gelateria - Perche No. !
Fig and chocolate for Jade
Pistachio and blackberry for levi ✔️
Walk to see the David/ line is very long so decide against
Buy Italian leather shoes for Jade instead! ❤️
Go to what we think is the Medici chapel, turns out it's not the place we were thinking but is great all the same.
See saints bones in their a holders, the tomb of donetello
Battle pedestrian traffic to get out of florence, get stuck, drive in circles through crowds of indifferent slow moving people, finally get out. We feel Italian now!
Drive to our accommodation in Tuscany - Tenuta Quadrifoglio
Marvel at the view ❤️
Stop for groceries
Enjoyed a beautiful sunset
Bread / olives / salami for dinner
Bath
Florence - fashionable
Thursday 21/9
Buffet breakfast at the resort
A walk around the beautiful resort
Lay by the pool, reading, boat designing, knitting, sunning ❤️
Watch the birds dart and glide
Move in doors for more of the same
Snack on what we have for lunch
Bath
Short siesta
Photos on the balcony
Out to dinner at Boscotondo
Ossa bucca ✔️
Wild boar
Capricosa pizza
Creme brûlée
Tasting plate of desserts ✔️
Bath
Talk to the kids
Friday 22/ 9 OUR FAVOURITE DAY ❤️❤️
Woke up with breakfast at the resort
Packed our things and set out to pick up our Vespa in San Gimingnano
The views on the drive are beautiful and San Gimingnano sits walled in on all sides a top a hill
We get a white Vespa and take off to explore the next town Volterra ❤️
The drive is incredible and so much fun
We stop a few times to take in the view of the hills and vineyards and San Gimingnano in the distance
Volterra is similarly atop a hill and we stop at the top, parking our Vespa like and Italian and seek out hot chocolate, we have one and buy some sachets for home
We roam the streets, finding a truffle for Stew and some berry infused honey and a Vespa magnet to remind us of the fun we are having ❤️
We stumble across a huge and beautiful cannoli and buy it
We sit a top the city wall and eat out lunch, leftovers from our dinner last night with the Tuscan view behind us ❤️
We finished with the cannoli which is delicious ✔️
We ride the Vespa back to San Gimingnano and explore the beautiful town ❤️
Line up for the famous gelato in the square
Raspberry and Rosemary ✔️ / chocolate for Jade
Raspberry and Rosemary / lemon for levi
Sit on the steps of the duoma to enjoy
Stumble across a beautiful replicate model of the city
We buy a beautiful watercolor of the view we saw riding back from Volterra ❤️
Return the Vespa
Drive on to Rome
Have pizza and Nutella donut for dinner
Crash in bed after a huge day
Tuscany Trademarks - alabaster, wild boar, sunflowers
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