Pienza, tuscany region
Trip Start
May 04, 2007
1
5
10
Trip End
May 15, 2007
Pienza, Italy
Thursday, May 10, 2007
We slept in until around 830. After packing our last few items we strolled to the outdoor market a few feet from the apartment. It is only there in the mornings and we were leaving so early and getting back so late we never had the chance to see it. It was beautiful. There were about 2 flower stands and maybe 12-15 vendors selling fruit, food, and souvenirs. It's was amazing how permanent every stand looked. All of them are set up and gone within about 5 hours.
We couldn't stay long because Alessandro would be arriving soon. He showed up right on time and we got our deposit back and headed on our way. We had two extra bus tickets that a nice couple from Scotland had given us on our second day when we were talking to them on their way out of the city. We used those to get the 64 bus to the train station and saved about 10 Euro on taxi fees. The train station was a little overwhelming at first but we quickly figured out the automatic ticketing machine and after asking around finally found our platform. The Rome station was quite big. The train was comfy and the 2-hour ride to Chiusi-Chiancino Terme went by fairly quickly because of all of the scenery. Upon arrival at the station we had to figure out which bus to get to find our hotel. I asked the local newspaper vendor and she spoke no English. I did the best I could with my Italian but to no avail. Luckily, there was a very charming young man; we will call him Guisseppe, who translated for me. We had to take a bus to Montepulciano and then another to Pienza. It took about an hour and a half to get there by bus due to wait times but we finally made it and it was spectacular. The view was like nothing we had ever seen before. Rolling hills, cypress trees, and blooming flowers galore. We got off the bus and had to ask directions from about 3 different people all who were incredibly friendly and happy to help. We arrived and the hotel, room, and view were out of this world. The pictures won't do it justice. I could live there my entire life and never see a Target again and be completely happy. We both took a shower, which ended up taking a while. The shower in Rome was not that great but here it was like a spa. We both spent about 20 minutes each in the shower. The water pressure was enough to knock the fat off your legs and they even had a shower seat.
We finished our showers and headed to the town. It was all of 500 meters away and so so charming. We did a bit of shopping, took some pictures, got a panini of mozzarella, tomato and basil, and discovered the best soft drink. It's a lemon soda. Café della Volpe was the name of the café. After a couple of hours we headed back to the room to enjoy the view from our balcony with some wine and a few cookies left over from Rome.
About 20:00 we went back to town for dinner. Earlier we had found a cute looking restaurant overlooking the hills and decided that was where we would go. It was called Giardino Ristorante. We appeared to be the only diners there and would remain that way for the entirety of our 2-hour stay. It was a little bizarre but whatever. We had the absolute best meal and waiter ever. Our waiter, who I like to refer to as Marcello, recommended the Florentine steak, as the pheasant I wanted was unavailable. We decided to split that as our second course and each got our own first course. I got the wild boar ravioli with a cream sauce and Chad had the strawberry tortellini. I have never had something so good. Chad agreed. I liked his but loved mine and he agreed that he loved his and liked mine. Marcello was there at every moment we needed him, refilling wine, cleaning the table. He was very friendly. He even took our picture and joked we needed to take a picture of the steak. So we did and then he preceded to cut the steak into bite sized pieces just like mom would. It was huge and cooked perfectly. It had a very simple but fabulous flavor. It was probably as simple as Olive oil and salt and pepper but I am sure I couldn't recreate it. For dessert we split a poached pear on a cream cheese base with dark chocolate sauce. It was yummy. We had to leave Marcello a tip since he was so wonderful (which isn't customary in Italy for whatever reason) so we spent the most we had so far at about 100 Euro.
We got back to our hotel around 21:30 and took the computer down to the lobby to try and figure out the next day's schedule of trains and buses. We couldn't get it to work but the super friendly front desk clerk, Antonio (let's say) spent about 20 minutes finding us the best way. Rather than go back to Chiusi he helped us figure out a way to Florence by bus to Sienna and then train. This gave us a better opportunity to see more countryside.
The weather was so nice we sat outside in the dark for a bit after our second shower of the night since the shower spa was so relaxing. We decided to sleep with the veranda door open as there was no air conditioning and the countryside noise and weather were so serene. That worked until about 5:00 in the morning when the dogs started barking at one another and owls began hooting like there was an audition. It was a bit annoying until I got up and realized it was a perfect photo op with the colorful pastel sky and the sun beginning to rise. I took about 20 pictures. After an hour I was able to fall asleep. At 7:00 it was time to get up and get ready for our train ride to Florence.
