"Love and understand the Italians,
E. M. Forster
My goodness, how these three weeks in the restored farmhouse "Sassaia" at Chiarentana have flown by! We've done so much, seen so much, eaten and drunk so much (!) ... had so much fun with so many wonderful friends!
How happy I was, back in 2014, to discover this amazing place ... this beautiful sanctuary in the middle of miles and miles of breathtaking Tuscan scenery ... and how fortunate I've been to return for a second fabulous visit. Lorena, the new rental agent at Chiarentana, has been so lovely and so helpful throughout our entire planning process and stay. She, along with Chairentana's owner, Donata Origo (daughter of Iris and Antonio), have made our three weeks in Southern Tuscany absolutely perfect.
The Foldesi Group and I planned an easy and delightful itinerary for our
final day in Tuscany. It consisted of just two things: Go to lunch (at La Porta in Monticchiello) and go to dinner at Dopolavoro (at La Foce). I slept in, washed my hair, wandered around the quiet house, snapping pics of my bedroom, the long wooden dining table where I wrote this blog, brick kitchen counters .... and window sills filled with wine bottles from our friendly wine consumption "competition." (It was close, but I believe Week 3 was victorious)!
Our afternoon drive to Monticchiello was as beautiful as always and Daria was at the door to greet us. I ordered those fantastically tender and delicious beef cheeks .... SO good. As we lingered over lunch on Daria's lovely terrace, we could see a storm approaching from the hills in the distance, and by the time we headed home to Chiarentana, it was POURING!
Palmer saved the day by lending me his clear plastic poncho ... which kept me dry when I popped in to Lorena's office to say "Arrivederci!"
Time to pack up clothes and mementos I've purchased over the past three weeks ... hear about our friends' outings today to wine tastings (Richard's group) and Firenze (The Girls) ... figure out the final grocery shopping cost sharing, and then time to head over to La Foce's Dopolavoro for dinner. The rain was long gone and the sky beautiful ... we asked Jerry to stop the car along our bumpy "strada bianca" so we could snap some last pics of the cypress trees, the bales of hay in the fields, the ever-present and always-changing Mount Amiata in the distance.
Dopolavoro's efficient and charmingl manager, Asia, was there to greet us
at her restaurant's door. The quote above is spot on ... the Italian people are so warm and welcoming ... and Daria and Asia are two of my favorite examples of that!
So ... "Arrivederci!" Sassaia & Chiarentana ... and tomorrow, on to the Northern Italian province of
Lombardia and Italy's third largest lake: Lago di Como!
1 comment:
I feel a sadness as I read this entry, almost as if I, too, had traveled along with you and were leaving. Thank you for sharing the beauty of Tuscany with us!
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