Montepulciano - Tuscany

Now let's see, where were we last Wednesday - Oh yes, I remember, Pienza! Our our trip in 2006 was the first overseas trip together in more than twenty years of Marriage. With four trips to France (and Italy) in that time, we wonder why we didn't travel earlier. Easy answer - money and children. Our holidays were limited to a day's drive away to such places as Lakes Entrance in Gippsland.

Before entering the village of Montepulciano, we took in the map located in the car park.

Sue was not looking forward to the climb and many, many steps that were in front of us.

Back to the story, Pienza is between Montepulciano and Montalcino in the Val d'Orcia, both which are hilltop villages. Our hostess Barbara lives in Montepulciano - check out her website http://www.lemaribelle.it/

Montepulciano is located to the east of Pienza and was only a 30 minute drive from our little villa in Monticchiello.

As in most hilltop villages, only the locals can bring their cars behind the walls so we had to park the car in one of the surrounding car parks outside the walls. At Montepulciano the first lot of steps into the village from our car park was a lung busting climb but once into the village it was worth the effort.


We needed to climb the steps into the village proper.

The streets level out at the top of the village but we needed a rest and popped into a cafe where we had our very first Italian hot chocolate, so thick that the spoon stood upright. Cioccolato Caldo....Yum.
The recipe:
http://www.food.com/recipe/italian-hot-chocolate-cioccolato-caldo-334403
We didn't have Internet back in Monticchiello so we decided to find an Internet cafe in Montepulciano but had to wait for it to open after their very sensible lunchtime break. Here at home I usually have a sandwich at my desk, although I do admit that I now enjoy going out at lunch time with a book and following the Euro lunch habit.

And still, onward and upward.

We were first in at the Internet cafe when the doors opened and were welcomed by a nice Italian man who was most helpful. As we sat there sending news back home, a very loud American woman announced over the top of our conversation with the manager that she needed to ring the US.

But it was worth it to enjoy the many outdoor gardens lining the paved streets.

She wanted to call home but didn't have any Euro to pay with. She said, "But don't you take real money", meaning dollars and cents.
Yes, we have them also from Australia - the ugly tourist.

One of the things we most enjoy is sitting in a piazza with an espresso or a vino and watching the world pass by. Montepulciano was no exception to this. The sun was shining and the local red was Bellisimo.


Not to mention these lovely clay wall hangings.

For more photos of Montepulciano, check out this sight - the village is to be the scene of a movie soon.
http://www.newmoonmovie.org/2009/04/beautiful-sights-of-montepulciano-italy-volterra-redefined/

Since returning back to Australia from our 2006 trip we discovered we could buy a Montepulciano wine but later discovered it was not from the area around the idyllic hilltop village of the same name. There is also a grape variety of the same name grown in the Abruzzo district. Montepulciano d'Ábruzzo is available here in Melbourne and is a full bodied red that is very enjoyable with pasta or a meat dish. The wine that we really did enjoy comes from across the valley from Montepulciano at Montalcino.  It's the famous Brunello, but more about that in a future post.

It was time to drive home and this time it was in the dark. We returned through the small forest before taking that beautiful cypress tree lined road that is photographed in every Tuscan scene that you could imagine. Our car lights cast shadows through the trees and across the valley, giving it a appearance from our daylight drives.

To come over the next few weeks;
Montalcino, the home of Brunello wine, Florence, San Gimignano, Venice and Arese before returning to Paris.

Melbourne and the Cycling World Titles.

As I sit typing, I look out of the window into the back yard and the sky is cloudless and very bright blue. I’ve just returned from watching the start of the UCI World Cycling Road Race. It actually started in Melbourne and proceeded down to Geelong on Corio Bay. For the next 5 hours I expect I will be sitting here in front of the TV to the end of the race.
But let's go back to the beginning of the weekend - Friday night.

La Rafle - the DVD.

Friday night I was determined to watch a DVD that was sent to me by my Parisian friend, Michel. Starring Jean Reno and Melanie Laurent, it is set during German occupation of Paris and centres on the 1942 Vel d‘Hiver roundup when the Jewish population were herded into the Velodrome d’Hiver before being trained off to the concentration camps. Although very depressing, the light in the film was of a young boy escaping and surviving. The movie is called La Rafle.
Not wishing to give away too much more info with a clip can be seen here.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1382725/

Saturday

Deb with hubby, Mark celebrating her win in the Australian Masters Road Championships during last week.

Our Saturday morning ride was special - we had a new champion within our group. Several of our riders competed in the Australian Masters road racing championships and “Our Deb” won her division. It was time to celebrate with Champagne after the morning ride.

With a magnificent sunny afternoon, it was time for our very first spring barbeque. I cranked up the BBQ and guess what - out of gas, a quick trip to change over the gas cylinder and back on the job. My first BBQ is usually not my best but this time the steak was just right, so Sue said.



Asparagus and onion about to be BBQed.



The first BBQ for the  summer season - and listening to Cyndi Lauper.



We sat on the deck, music playing and having a chilled rose from Chile. How good is that?

Sunday

The riders flashed beneath us as we looked down from our bridge.

This morning (Sunday) I was caught out by daylight saving. We usually hit out for a ride at 7.30 am and guess who forgot to reset his clock. We decided we would ride into the City to see the start of the World Title - quite thrilling with all of the color of the different nations. Located on a bridge above the freeway, we saw the riders, support cars and Police directing traffic as helicopters flew overhead..

After a coffee and an asparagus and sweet corn pie, it was off home to catch the live telecast.

Thor God of Thunder from Norway wins the World Title Road Race

And yes, I sat there till the end to watch the Aussies being amongst it all but sucumbing to "God of Thunder", the Norwegian Thor Hushovd - we did however get an Aussie on the podium in Alan Davis. He was third.

As I sat there, I heard Sue calling me to get ready as we had been invited to a Sunday BBQ at our friends home nearby.

I think this summer is going to be a real outdoors BBQ season - bring it on.



Funky Friday Foto

Earlier this month (16/9) I posted some pics of my "Voluptuous Water Lady" statue on our beach front.
Every night on my way home from work I pass this huge shopping complex and have always been intrigued by a group of statues at the entrance of which I can not explain the meaning. It's usually too busy in peak hour traffic to stop but last night at 9.00 pm I was able to park on the footpath. I rushed back with my little pocket Canon and quickly snapped these few pics.

Make of it, What you will...

Lake Trasimeno - Umbria

Our son Andrew whom had stayed with us in Rome and then a few days in Tuscany would leave for Moscow mid-week so we decided to take a drive to Chiusi to book train tickets to Florence and then on to Lake Trasimeno in Umbria. Chiusi is close to the borders of Tuscany and Umbria.



Chiusi to our eye was pretty much a modern town however back in 7th and 6th centuries BC it was a powerful Etruscan empire. I wish we had known more as we would not have treated it as just another town. We did have an interesting experience there but that will be explained in a week or two.

I’d read about Lake Trasimeno and the battle of Hannibal with the Romans beforehand and I was intrigued enough to want to visit the area. In our travels, the DK Eyewitness Travel books have been our guides and reliable travel companions. This is an excerpt from our own very ragged copy.

The Battle of Lake Trasimeno
“In 217 BC the Romans suffered one their worst ever military defeats on the shores of Lake Trasimeno. The Carthaginian general, Hannibal lured the Romans into a masterful ambush.”
The Romans suffered 16,000 losses to Hannibal’s 1500.



Sue talks to her brother in Australia
 "John, I'm really here - Where Hannibal defeated the Romans on the shores of Lake Trasimeno in Umbria."

We arrived about midday and Sue rang her brother in Australia to explained where we were. Imagine overlooking this huge lake where more than 2200 years ago, this great battle was fought.



Rocca del Leone (The Lion Fortress) completed in 1247

Andrew enjoys the surroundings of the ruins.



We were fortunate to have the place, almost to ourselves.

 Not far away on a small peninsula jutting into the lake is a medieval fortress at Castiglione del Lago. Although in ruins, the fortress was beautifully kept. I believe concerts are held within the walls during the warmer months. We lingered for an hour or so before returning to our home base of Monticchiello.

Sue enjoyed the Kitchen of Barbara’s lovely villa and almost each night we would enjoy a home cooked meal, washed down with the local Tuscan wines. This particular meal that night started with a porcini bruschetta with lots of garlic and a little Vino Santo. Sue had bought the porcini mushrooms from a roadside seller on our way back through Chiusi. That night’s meal was a casual affair with the previous night’s leftovers with a Tuscan bean mix.

The real life experience though was after dinner when we went for a walk in the village and discovered a small bar. I’m sure it was only known to the local old men of the village as there was no women which at first made Sue a little uneasy. She wrote in the diary

After dinner, Leon discovered a tiny bar, just a lighted doorway – He asked for permission to come in and we were greeted by eight or more old guys playing cards. No English spoken here, bit of a shock for a “Momma” like me.


There on the TV was the Italian version of “Deal or No Deal”. Coffee all round and the odd shot of Limoncello and we had discovered several new friends. I found myself in an animated discussion with one of the elderly gentlemen who ran an Agristuromo on the strada to Pienza. Meanwhile a woman had one 125,000 euro on deal or no deal and we all clapped and laughed with another round of Limoncello.

Sure, the great monuments and scenes are why you travel but the magic moments are ones like these.

When the Siren Sounded

Footy Final - Well not Really, yet!

On the last Saturday in September, the Grand Final of Aussie Rules Footy is held - well most years!!!!!
When the siren sounded to mark the end of the 2010 AFL Premiership final, 100,000 spectators in the hallowed stands of the MCG stood looking at each other with a look of bewilderment on their faces. Both teams, Collingwood and Saint Kilda had kicked the same amount of points. Yes, it was a draw.

Saint Kilda's jersey



Collingwood's jersey

 Unlike Soccer or other forms of team sport, the rules say they have to come back next weekend. It's happened three times in the history of the game.
I'm not big on the game myself but we were invited to join a group of good friends to watch the final. I thoroughly enjoyed what was a thrilling match and obviously a cliff hanger that resulted without a result.
Who's place next weekend?



Everyone pitched in for the spread of food which was enjoyed by all.

 See a report here.
http://media.theage.com.au/sport/sports-hq/collingwood-and-st-kilda-in-a-draw-1948696.html
PS: sorry about the commercial beforehand.

Just a little trivia for you from Wikipedia.
The Premiership Cup is silver (With the exception of 1996 – when a gold cup was awarded instead of the usual silver one in the AFL/VFL's 100th season) and manufactured by Cash's International at their metalworks in Frankston, Victoria. The cup was first introduced in 1959 by the VFL, and before this, the reward was a pennant known by supporters simply as "The Flag".

During the 80s and 90s I worked for the company that made the AFL Cup.
I can actually lay claim for this unique decision of the gold plated cup as it was me that suggested to the AFL manager at the time. He asked how we could make the 100 year celebration of Australian Rules Football Premiership Cup special. As I looked across his desk, I said, "we could plate it gold." And we did!
Yeah, I know, but we all have our 15 minutes of fame, so said Andy Warhol and that was mine.

Birds in the Trees on a Sunday Arvo.

I now know winter is over. Today I spent all day in the garden doing a "spring clean". It gave me a chance to become re-acquainted with my surroundings. There are times when I really enjoy getting my hands into the earth and pulling out the weeds and unwanted growth from the garden beds. Our soil is so productive that I can almost feel my fingernails growing with the soil under them.

The pink and white is back



As is the purple



And what is this - yellow and white, yes spring is back - how good is that?

To reward myself after a day's work in the garden, I sat in the back yard with a glass of wine and music from the out door speakers when I thought, I wonder if the birds are hungry.
I have a bird feeder hanging from the Jacaranda tree and I decided to celebrate spring by filling it with some bird food.
The wine went down very well in the spring sunshine as I watched the birds feed.

What a great way to end a weekend.

Hope yours was enjoyable as well.