Under the Tuscan Sun

While I borrowed this title, it is entirely appropriate to describe our weekend visit to the Italian Tuscan countryside. As it was both rainy and cold in London, our getaway to Tuscany provided a much needed bit of sunshine.

First up, Pisa. There’s not much to see in Pisa (aside from the Tower, Duomo and Baptistery) and to be so famous, we found the tower to be surprisingly SMALL! But, the locals were charming and after a bit of exploring, we were off to meet Kenny and Leigh-Emma in Florence…we hopped on the train and were in Florence in about an hour.

First, let me first say that I’m now planning our second trip to Florence…it’s beautiful, they have great wine, deliciously simple tuscan cuisine (yum), and AMAZING shopping. On one income at the moment, we’re not in a positon to splurge on hats, shoes, impractical dresses and impressive jewelry…but someday, someday. If anyone wants to join me for a girls shopping getaway in Florence, let me know (must be after October :))We met Kenny and Leigh-Emma at a cafe on the main square (by the David replica). G and I had properly gorged ourselves on margharita pizza and gelato before they arrived (of course!). And were off to see THE DAVID (not the silly replica). The statue’s much larger than anticipated and is housed in a beautiful museum. Next, a walk across the Ponte Vecchio (the bridge lined with jewelry shops) on the way to the very manicured Boboli Gardens (at the Palace) and a hike up to the Piazza Michaelangelo for wine at sunset. We then ended our visit with Leigh-Emma and Kenny over a hearty meal at a local restaurant, enjoying the very lively and talented chef’s creations.

Then, on Saturday and Sunday we drove through the Tuscan countryside. We made quite a path through the region visiting The Chianti Region (Strada, Greve, Castellina, etc), Pienza, Montepulciano, San Gimignano, San Giovanni d’ Asso, Montalcino and Asciano. Most memorable were Castellina, where I was introduced to Cocco gelato (my newest fave), and Montepulciano where we stopped to enjoy wine and dinner before heading back to Florence for the night.We returned to London bright and early this morning and were greeted by 14 degree weather, gray skies and rain…ahhh, Tuscany…

Note: I’ve developed 4 albums of photos from our trips. All under “Italy” in our Photo Gallery. Check the albums for Pisa, Florence, San Gimignano and Tuscany to see all photos from our weekend adventure. To make it easy, I’ve included one photo from each of the albums above. Simply click on each of the photos within this post and each will take you to a different album from our weekend travels.