Tuscany

The changes in our travel plans worked out perfectly and we were able to move our reservation up for our place in Tuscany to before Florence instead of after.  We took the train from Naples to Florence and  picked up our rental car.  We then began the business of attempting to navigate Tuscany the old fashioned way ~ with map/sans GPS.  Which, all in all, went pretty well. :)

We were pretty hungry as we got on the road, so as soon as we got out of Florence we started looking for someplace to grab a bite to eat.  As we got farther and farther (and hungrier and hungrier), we finally saw a sign for a rest stop.  As we pulled in, we saw...McDonald's!  I guess they really are everywhere.

It was pretty similar to our McDonald's ~ with a few Italian twists.  

Chris with his fries ~ though he actually ordered the rest of his food from the other restaurant, an Italian cafe.  As many of you know, in the past, he has been a bit particular about food, but his tastes are hugely expanding ~ he has tried octopus salad and wild boar, and was excited about having thai food the other day.  Progress!!

Ben was pretty happy with his chicken nuggets ~ something they rarely have at home anymore.

Ben and Chris with our rental car ~ a Peugeot.  Fortunately, the Italians drive on the same side of the road we do, which helped.  

We stayed at a place called Tenuta Lupinari near the town of Bucine.  It was wonderful ~ set on 750 acres of beautiful hills with olive orchards and vineyards.  This is a picture of the inside of our villa.  Jeff thinks I am crazy for always taking pictures of the all our accommodations, but I want to remember it all and truthfully, with seeing SO much in such a short period of time, it is hard for this old brain to keep it all straight.

A beautiful rose right outside the door of our villa.

The property is an old village made into accommodations ~ it has its own castle!  In the summer, the owners of the property live in it.  Their two daughters run Lupinari.

The vineyard

Our villa was called "Il Belvedere".

Laundry ~ one of the less glamorous parts of travel.  Most of the places we have stayed have at least had a washing machine, but Lupinari did not.  One of our adventures, which was actually kind of fun, was to locate and use this "lavanderia" in a near-by village.  Never knew Chris would be so impressed with the size of a dryer.

Luckily, there were instructions in English as well as in Italian.  

The first floor of the building to Chris' right in this photo is our villa.  The building to his left is the office and restaurant.  Obviously, the castle is in the background.

Poppies are a common sight on the beautiful Tuscan landscape.

Another view of Lupinari taken as we started a hike in the hills behind it.

We thoroughly enjoyed these hilly hiking trails ~ we had done a lot of city walking, but it is so different to get out walking in nature.  It felt wonderful!

Ben with a little friend he found while hiking.

Apparently Tuscany is famous for wandering wild boar.  We were warned to watch out for them as we hiked.  We did not run into any but did see these hoof prints on the trail.  After our hike, we could hear two boar grunting to each other back up toward the trail.  I think the boys were disappointed that we didn't run into them, but it was probably for the best. :)

We have eaten a lot of great food in Italy, but if I had to pick a winner, I would say Tuscany had the best food.  That area served a lot more meats (some protein, at last!!!) and more fruits and vegetables.  Throughout Italy, there are plenty of markets with fresh fruits and veggies for at "home", but in the restaurants, which is mostly where we are eating, there are not a lot of options.  Even the boys are craving veggies, and THAT is saying something. :)  We ate at an interesting restaurant in a town called Levane and this is what I ordered ~ pasta with carciofo (aka artichokes), which I love.  I loved the dish AND the presentation!

We had many great adventures throughout this trip, but one of the most fun had to be four-wheeling (a lot of people go to Italy to four-wheel, don't they?).  We had a bit of difficulty finding "Crazy Quad Toscana" (if you would call multiple trips, with multiple directions asked of people from elderly gentlemen to a gang of children led by a boy named Roberto as we were being scolded by a police officer for having coming the wrong way on a road, a rescheduled time slot when we missed one,  and multiple phone calls and wrong turns, "difficult").  Our persistence paid off and when we finally found it, it was awesome.   (Thanks for your patience in bearing with all those details ~ they probably don't mean much to you, but I know Jeff and the boys will chuckle when they read this and remember that day.) Our guide, Mauricio, got us all dolled up in waterproof (or should I say mud-proof) gear.

Ben would have LOVED to have been driving himself, but he was my passenger.

I had one slight miscalculation during our ride, where Ben and I ended up off trail stuck in a thorn bush.  Mauricio was so kind as to present me with this thorn bouquet he took off the 4-wheeler before he got it out of the ditch for me.  Fortunately we made it through the day with no injuries.

I love this picture Ben took in our rear-view mirror ~ it pretty much defines the day ~ smiles and mud!

Here are the boys afterward ~ Ben and I are still trying to decide whether the difference in mud is because of the way our quad was designed (theirs had panels that blocked the mud from their feet) or because we were behind them ~ there were many times we were "accidentally" sprayed with mud.

I think Ben and Chris had almost as much fun getting sprayed down afterward as they did riding.  

Another great Tuscan adventure was horseback riding.  Lupinari had a connection with the local polo club and arranged for us to ride there.  The polo club we found, no problem. :)  None of us have much experience riding, although Ben and Chris have taken a couple of riding lessons sporadically on vacations over the years.  The plan was that some guides would take us on a trail ride.  For some reason, I had expected a little instruction before hitting the trail, but our guides spoke little to no English, which meant little to no instruction!  I have always loved horses ~ I think they are absolutely gorgeous animals, but when I have watched others ride, they have always made it  look so EASY!  I have got to admit, I was a little nervous once I was up in the saddle on that HUGE creature (could he possibly have grown a foot or three as I was swinging myself up into the saddle??) and my horse seemed to have a bit of a mind of his own.  Anyway, I ended up with one of the guides holding my reins while he held Ben's as well.  For the most part it was great ~ beautiful views, beautiful animals, doing something new and exciting....but once or twice it got a little bit TOO exciting.  Once, Ben's horse got spooked when one of the dogs that had accompanied us came rushing out of the bushes and Ben just managed to hang on as it startled.  Then later, my horse and the guide's horse must have gotten on each others nerves from walking so close together and they nipped at each other.  My horse got cut by the other horse's harness and he reared up on his hind legs to get away.  THANKFULLY, I stayed in the saddle, though I am not sure how.  Once again, we made it through an adventure with no injuries!

Ben on his horse ~ he was one happy boy.

Loved the polo helmets!  The face guards actually came in handy.  As I was riding next to Ben, there were numerous times I saw it keep branches from thwapping him in the face.  (I don't think the trail was meant to hold horses three abreast and the guide seemed to favor keeping me out of the bushes on my side ~ thank you, Maxi!)

Ben with Maxi, our sure and steady (and skilled) guide

After our ride, we stuck around awhile to watch some of the horses running and playing in the middle of the track.  They were so graceful ~ I could have watched them for hours.

The boys with Antonella, who manages Lupinari.   She was a wonderful host and we really enjoyed getting to know her a bit.  And, she had a wonderful sense of style. :)

And THIS is Angela ~ she is the amazing cook at Lupinari.  We truly enjoyed dining there, not only for the delicious food, but because of our interactions with Angela.  She spoke limited English but was so patient with all of us,  especially with Ben and Chris as they tried to communicate.  She was always pleasant and friendly in addition to be a great cook.  We miss her already!

Coming soon:  the details and many pictures from our wonderful cooking class in the kitchens of Lupinari