Tuscany South Untour, Spring of 2004

by Betty Rhines, Jackson, MS

After my second tour of Italy in the spring of 2001, I knew I wanted to make just one more trip, but this time it was going to be an “untour”. A friend passed along an Untours catalog and it sounded just about too good to be true. We decided on Tuscany south and Ada Theresa at Poggiarellino was a perfect fit for us. Our host family, Anna and “Lele” were wonderful. Anna was busy planning their daughter Louisa’s wedding and Lele enjoyed farming his family vineyards and olive trees. The apartment has 2 bedrooms and two baths with a sitting room and large kitchen. The furnishings were comfortable and very adequate. We spent a lot of late evenings around the kitchen table planning the next day’s adventure.

Terry, Robert and I had been to the major churches and museums on previous trips. So we were glad that my husband, Aaron, wanted to climb the towers, explore the city walls and hike the Cinque Terra. Since I’m not one to haul around a big travel guide, I made my own. I purchased a good Tuscany guidebook and cut off the book spine. Then I separated it by regions, added a few blank pages for notes and had it rebound at a local office supply store. It proved to be a great time and space saver in my backpack.

Our ‘roman chariot’ was an electric blue Opal Vectra station wagon. We were fortunate to have 2 drivers so they could alternate the responsibilities. Driving in Italy is not for the faint of heart, but it’s all part of the fun. It was really important to know where we were going and cites we hoped to pass through. On occasion we were rewarded with a “tour bonus”. The traffic rotary was a new experience for us and sometimes it took a couple of trips around to decide the right direction and even then, sometimes we had to back track. We knew we’d get lost and we did...we knew we’d learn where to park and find the parking meter and we did. It didn’t take long to learn to read the road signs quickly by colors. On the road, the blue signs direct traffic to a town, the brown signs to places in a town like museums or churches, and the white signs to hospitals, parking areas, hotels and restaurants. One really important discovery was the blue sign tutte le direzioni. This sign directs traffic to a larger intersection where more cites are listed. It was especially helpful in getting us through or around larger cities. A really good map to carry in the car is from Touring Club Italiano- Toscana and is available from major bookstores like Barnes and Noble. The train system in Italy is great. Why drive to Florence and fight the traffic and search for a parking place? The published train schedule can be really confusing, but the web site is easy to use and much more current. During tourist season additional trains may be added but not listed in the book. Only once during the trip were we really confronted by gypsies and it was on the train into Florence. Just don’t ever make eye contact and they will move right along. The new travel agency in Boun Convento (just a few doors down from Mario’s) was an easy place to purchase train tickets, and make or confirm hotel reservations. Their English is very good and they were most helpful.

What if your Italian isn’t so good? No problem. A smile, “mi scusi”,or “per favore” will go a long way with these wonderful people. A lot like Southerners, the Italians are very warm and gracious people. They love to help you and enjoy your attempts at the language. We all carried phrase books, but never really needed them. Learning a few basic words and phrases and then picking up others as you go will help get you engage in some really delightful conversations.

Euro shock! With the declining American dollar, things were more expensive than our trip in 2001. Most all restaurants and shops accepted our credit cards and easy to use ATMs were everywhere. We carried some traveler’s checks in case of an emergency, but brought them home!

All of us had read different guidebooks and trip commentaries on where to eat, where to park and what to see. We discovered very quickly that our favorites many times were found quite by accident. So for what it’s worth, here are some of our favorites:

Favorite cities:

Pienza ( great city wall walk and gardens)
Murlo (small Etruscan museum)
Montelcino (shopping and enotecas)
Siena (climbing the tower, the Duomo and San Domenico)
Cortona (Etruscan museum, the view)
Cinque Terra ( train, hike, boat, and unbelievable scenery)
St. Antimo (evening vespers)
Florence (climbing the dome at the Duomo, and the Museo dell’ Opera del Duomo)
San Gimignano (the view from the rocca), Pisa (reserve tickets on line to climb the tower)

Favorite places to eat:

Pienza– La Latte de Luna- If you don’t have reservations, try arriving about 1-2p.m. and maybe you’ll be lucky like we were...Roberto enjoys patrons who enjoy the food and the lemoncello.
Murlo- can’t find the card, but it’s in the back corner of the city wall, behind the museum. It was a little expensive, but a nice experience.
Boun Convento- Osteria da Duccio (If you’re lucky, the chocolate cake will still be warm.) and I Poggioli (just north of Boun Convento.. on the road to Siena)
Montelcino- Caffe la Fortenzza- great for a late night snack of warm pecorino and honey
Just south of Sienna – La Capannina-Great pizza...full of locals..
Siena- Nanini for the BEST gelato
San Galgano- for a picnic
Monticiano- Ristorante Da Vesto for the luncheon sponsored by Untours
Eating alfresco- at our house on the hill

For the Italians, a meal is a daily ritual to be savored and enjoyed. When it took 30 minutes to get the check (per favore, il conto), sometimes it was difficult to be patient, but we never had a really bad meal. Sure we paid too much for lunch in Pisa, but it was in the shadow of the tower. And yes, some house wines were better than others, but we rarely left an empty bottle on the table. We saved some time and a little money by eating breakfast in the apartment and then only one big meal, either lunch or dinner. Since a meal can last for 2 or 3 hours, we would pick up pizza or panini to finish out the day. We found that the chefs enjoyed meeting customers and the servers were anxious to translate menu items. Early in the trip, we laughed over several “moos” and Baas” at restaurants.

Winery:

Big commercial- Barbi
Best small winery- La Crociona- Roberto and his sister, Barbara, were delightful. Just call ahead for a tour.

Favorite shops:

Buon Convento-Coop for groceries (be sure to try the red orange juice) and Tutta Frutta for fresh fruits and vegetables
Buon Convento- Artelier- a nice shop across from the Sports Bar
Montlacino- Le Antiche Tele di a. Salvioni – a nice shop for linens
Siena- leather goods, ceramics, flags
Cortona- Il Girasole –an Etruscan gift shop

The Untours Tuscany South staff, Andi and Andrea, were always helpful and patient, no matter how ignorant my question seemed. Harriet, the onsite contact for Untours, provided lots of travel information and details. She even came by to check on the air conditioner in our car. For years, I have talked about the special Italian experience, but it’s just impossible to convey in words or pictures the wonderful people and culture. We appreciated the freedom of our days and were able to really enjoy the culture. All of us agreed that we would travel with Untours again...maybe Switzerland or Provonce. We keep our passports in the kitchen drawer and can be ready in about an hour!

Betty and Aaron Rhines, Jackson, MS
Terry Fletcher, Clinton, MS
Robert Carmichael, Jackson, MS

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