TUSCANY.....MY HEAVEN ON EARTH....

We landed in Rome, all thirteen of us (six adults, six teens and one six year old). As we drove towards our home for two weeks, the Villa Podere Casalfava in Sarteano, we could not help but be in awe at the beautiful landscape that surrounded us. The cypress trees seemed uniformly in line, grapevines basking in the sun, bales of hay so perfectly put in place and the happy sunflowers bursting in deep yellow color.

The Villa, an amazing 45 acre property, with an olive grove, lavender bushes with hummingbirds and honey bees aplenty. There was NO satellite TV, meaning no TV :); there was NO wifi. All we had was monopoly, charades, fresh food, vino and a million dollar view of Tuscany from our backyard where we could clearly see Castello del Lago and Lake Trasimeno.

Our only plan before we left NY was a tour of the Vatican, a visit to see Michaelangelo's David at the Academia and to be inspired by the artworks of Boticelli, Da Vinci, Vespucci and of course Michaelangelo. The rest of our days travels were decided within 12 hours of that road trip.

Our first happy indulgence included a trip to Orvieto. A visit to the infamous Duomo di Orvieto (Roman Catholic Cathedral) is a must. The Duomo is famous for internal and exterior artwork. The Rose window made of marble is surrounded by busts and Gothic figures. Inside the Duomo are several chapels with dramatic frescoes. Orvieto has a network of caves which dates back to the Etruscan era where olives were pressed.

Happy Indulgence number two is a road trip to Montepulciano.
Montepulciano was one of our favorite stops. Little did we know when we got to the Communal Palace that New Moon was filmed where we were standing. To the right of the Communal Palace was a restaurant where the locals and tourists watched the World Cup. While the men sought out some Montepulciano wine, the ladies and kids enjoyed a gelato and a walk down the small narrow roads of this beautiful medieval hilltown.

There is so much to write about this beautiful Italian countryside but duty calls.

In the meantime, enjoy the pictures and tune in for more of happy indulgence in Tuscany, 2010.

Thank you for visiting my first blog!