DAYS 17 THRU 21: TUSCANY
/SAN VINCENZO A TORRI — If Day 13 is when you get a little burned out, Day 21 is when you shut your mouth and feel only absolute gratitude for this unexpected adventure. (Or maybe it has nothing to do with the day and everything to do with Tuscany.)
We woke up early on Saturday to take a train to catch a plane from Berlin to Bologna. In addition to our usual 4 carry-ons/4 backpacks/1 stroller payload — the packing and hauling of which we’ve now gotten down to a science — we added those two pesky car seats, which threw off our collective balance; however, Owen is increasingly eager to prove his Big Boy Status, and pulled his own weight and then some.
We picked up our rental car in Bologna and then spent an embarrassing amount of time reading and re-reading the car seat installation instructions in the parking garage. After 4+ years learning to master the U.S. car seat installation system, the European standards are ever-so-slightly different enough as to make us novices all over again. But once settled in to our funky little Ford, the hour-and-a-half drive south was lovely; besides the splendid vistas, we also got the benefit of two kids snoozing in the back seat — a perk of car travel that is not to be underestimated.
We pulled up to the walled villa having absolutely no idea what to expect. This trip epitomizes “last minute” everything, so we pick among the accommodations no one else wanted. This place, Villa Colli Fiorentini, was literally the only spot left on the Tuscan booking site we used, so that decision was an easy one; we were prepared for it to go either way.
But as soon as the iron driveway gates opened, it was like a little Garden of Eden was revealed: a 180-degree view of rolling hills covered in grapevines, a hammock strung between an olive tree and plum tree teeming with ripe fruit, a garden with zucchini and tomatoes and lemons and mint and basil and arugula, and an old stone home dating back the 11th century. I couldn’t have dreamed up something more perfect, and the last few days have been heavenly.
Besides enjoying good wine and cooking (wannabe) Italian food and spending lots of time outside, we’ve also been able to do some cool day trips. We spent Sunday (Father’s Day) in Siena, about an hour’s drive away, and Monday (Eliza’s third birthday) in Florence, about 40 minutes away. The kids were excited about exploring the cities, but surprisingly even more interested in touring the cathedrals (who’d a thought?). We’re planning a trip to Pisa and Lucca tomorrow and a beach on Thursday or Friday. Pretty great stop on the Grand Adventure.
As one final thought, it’s been quite entertaining to watch how the kids settle in to each new place, and one of the more interesting aspects is what, exactly, a 3- and 4-year-old find to play with when they have virtually no toys in tow. In Edinburgh, it was a stack of coasters that looked like old records. In Inverness, it was a roll of paper towels that they used to “clean” every surface within reach. In Copenhagen, it was a 3-foot-tall basket into which they stuffed every item they owned. In Berlin, it was drink stirrers from the mini-bar. And now in Tuscany, it’s empty 1.5 liter water bottles that they can fill and dump at will. The sheer amount of time they’ve spent playing with and joy they’ve gotten from each of those things boggles my toy-consumer mind. Moral of the story: we spent far too much money shipping their playthings to Barcelona.
