Monday, November 12, 2012

Tuscany Part 2


so..instead of driving to rome on friday
we changed our plans
and drove deep into the heart of tuscany..
the chianti region.
steve and i fell in love with this 
part of italy.
we decided that we want
to buy an old farmhouse here
and grow olives.
doesn't everyone when they come here?
we got a great recommendation
from steve's sister who had
stayed here a few years back.
she told us about
Lucky for us there 
was availability since we were
traveling during the off season.
we stayed in one of the apartments..
plenty of space for all of us.
(iphone photos..)


kids watching the only american tv station..cnn.




loved the loft and the exposed beams.



master with a fabulous view.


i re-read "A Room with a View"
while we stayed here.

saturday our plan was to drive the 45 minutes into florence.
however, during breakfast,
i ate something with pine nuts..
and i'm allergic to them.
i didn't have an epi-pen with me
and started having a severe reaction.
steve drove me down the hill to the doctor
and the pharmacy. 
after taking italy's version of benedryl..
i fell asleep for most of the afternoon.
steve took the 4 kids
all by himself to florence.
they had a wonderful time..
and even brought me back a book :)






i was sad to have missed florence..
but grateful for a day of rest and reading in bed :)

the next morning..sunday..
we drove about 45 minutes south to sienna.
i LOVED sienna.
and steve said he preferred it to florence.
i didn't take many pictures here.
we had a fabulous lunch 
and did a lot of shopping! 
sienna is a beautiful city.


looking down onto the square in sienna.


monday morning
steve woke before all of us and 
walked around the villa to take 
some pictures.


looking up at the main villa.


looking down at the farmhouse
we stayed in.

villa vignamaggio was where the mona lisa grew up
and it's where the movie much ado about nothing was filmed.
they offer wine tours and tastings,
painting classes
and tuscan cooking classes.
steve and i hope to go back someday.

our trip to italy was fabulous!


















5 comments:

  1. Me too, me too! Let's move to Italy and be neighbors! We loved Germany but have said no less than a hundred times ... Italy, let's move to Italy! Newel has already made plans for us to visit again with the kids once school is out come summer. I think I left my heart there :)

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  2. I could move to Italy in a heartbeat too!!! I loved both Florence and Sienna...awww...bought my first Pinochio in Sienna...when toby and I went on our trip we picked olives and went to see them through to press...best olive oil ever...and then we took a couple of cooking classes as well...one in Florence and one in Montaione...you are making me dig out all my pics again :)

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  3. I am so glad you had a wonderful trip to Italy. I love your blog.
    I hate to be a buzz-kill, but PLEASE get an epi-pen and carry it with you at all times.
    You have a beautiful family and need to keep safe for your sake and theirs.
    We have life threatening allergies in our family....as I am sure you know, each reaction is different
    And an epi-pen may be necessary. My favorite book is Food Allergies for Dummies by Dr. Robert Wood
    He is the allergist we see and he is great. This is NOT an advertisement. I am a sincere reader and fan.

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  4. Speechless too! Stunning! That view out the master window where you were staying is amazing. I just stared and stared. Love all of your pictures.

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