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Toscana - first impressions13 May 2006
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View from our terrace
Tuscan Landscape
Our place - Fattoria Quercia Al Poggio
| Well, this trip just gets better and better !!!! Train to Florence was fast and very scenic. At Florence airport we pick up the rental car, a little white Fiat Punto. I have concerns because the insurance cover is not clear, and I am not sure exactly how much we are covered for - it seems only E2330 worth of damage. Anyway, am clarifying this with the rental co in Aus. Dianes plane, amazingly, arrives 10 minutes early and she arrives looking glamorous as always. Shortly after many hugs and kisses, we are away onto the autostrada down to central Tuscany and our apartment (Go Don Arnoldo Schumacher...). Arnie is funny as hell and keeps us in stitches flicking between his Renee (Allo Allo) and Don Arnoldo (Godfather) impersonations. The place we are staying is nothing short of fabulous !!!! It is a fattoria - working farm, that still makes its own wine and olive oil, set high on a ridgeline overlooking beautiful chestnut woods, olive groves and rows of vines. We are presented with a bottle of the estates wine as we check in. Parts of the original farmhouse have been converted into apartments. There are stone villas and farms dotted around the landscape and the hills pile higher and higher into the violet distance. Our apartment is on the top story of the old farmhouse and we have two bathrooms, three bedrooms (with usual crisp white linen...)and a huge kitchen/lounge complete with dishwasher and washing machine - YAY no handwashing for at least 2 weeks. Best of all is our stone terrace overlooking the terraced gardens and countryside. All I can hear are birds, often cuckoos, (even at night !) punctuated by the occasional ringing of distant church bells. WOW !!!!!! It is SO peacefel and relaxing. It is cool, grey and raining on and off for the first couple of days so we just checkout the local area and towns. Our favourite and closest local town is Castellina which has great fast internet, beautiful views, an awesome castle and wonderful trattorias with Tuscan cooking. Arnie adds...and nice girls ! Food delights so far have included vegetable and bean soup (just like Mums), ravioli with truffle cream sauce, spinach with garlic, white beans with garlic and olive oil, and bruschette with various toppings. The gang have partaken in cinghiale (wild boar) and venison and plan to try hare as well before they leave. And the desserts!!!! Panna cotta with wild berries, Tiramisu, pistacio and chocolate semi-freddo etc etc etc (fat girl....). Must admit to a bit of a dearth of chicken on the menu though, due to the Italian reaction to bird flu, consequently am having a serious chicken craving. Of course all is washed down with the mandatory Chianti Classico vino rosso. The farm wine proves to be fantastic and is up to AUD$30 standard I reckon. Turns out to be 9 Euros per bottle...hmmmm......dangerous. Speaking of dangerous, I have not managed much more driving than two efforts to and from Castellina on the quiet backroads. As soon as challenging intersections or traffic appear I have to hand over to Don Arnoldo Schumacher. Not sure how this is going to work out after he goes, especially as I am supposed to be doing a lot of driving up north to the Cinque Terre, and on to Lake Como passing near Genoa and Milano !!!! It is being on the wrong side of the car with the gears on the other side that I find the hardest, and intersections are definitely not intuitive either. Blue arrows on signs along most streets help (guess they have had right-hand-drive tourists here for a few years now). Actually, I decided that I was not going to keep the car after the month in Tuscany because I feel SO challenged by the driving, but have discovered from the rental co in Australia that there is no refund for the unused 10 days (AUD$430 !!!) if I do so. Bit of a trap for young players as I though I could change the dates of the rental period when I got here. Yesterday I received news about the latest disturbing changes back at work - another call for voluntary redundancies, and all our regional directors have been sacked. More money saving initiatives by the excellent NSW government. Oh Yay. Where does it end ??? Must say that it all appears incredibly ridiculous from this side of the world. Stay tuned for more....... |
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