Piccolo Hotel La Valle Pienza

... room in the afternoon and played cards on the terrace and drank the last of our beer. People were gathering under our terrace to take pictures and we had the terrace all to ourselves. This place has been so friendly and wonderful. Coletta and her sister E'letta have been such help. I think I spelled the names wrong and will check when I get home. We went back to the square to have another gigantic slice of ...

... of me. She yelled at me and I snapped my hand back. In Italy the Italians eat at the counters after ordering and stand there and eat. It was funny, Mick and I were laughing and then decided we should order a little of meat and sausage. In Rick's book it talks about a picnic lunch they make for around 15 euros. I told the guy just small plate, please. Well 21 euros later the stupid americans were taken again. We went to our balcony and drank some wine and ...

I hope this works, it has been hard to attach some of the video because it times out. FYI to all my not so computer literate friends and family. When you first open the video, it will start and then stop in the middle to keep reloading and then start and stop again. This can get frustrating but is necessary until it is completely ...

... like we knew what we were looking at and of course I was talking when a young girl named Meghan came up to us and helped. Yes, a Meghan wow it was great. We talked to her and she was here on her own from Washington going to med school for free because she was volunteering at the hospital. She stays with an Italian family and she said it is O.K. We followed her and then she went one way and we ...

... Osteria Gucini Restuarant: Grilled Veal with Shaved Truffle and Hand Rolled Spaghetti with Smoked Ham, Tomatoes and Cream, followed by Pana Cotta. Our first experience with truffles, more smell than taste!<br>Next morning a 7.00 am departure from the apartment took us on to the Autostrada, this time, north to Firenze Airport.<br>After a bit of a delay we were on our way to Spain!

On a drizzly morning we set off in the Panda and in an hour and or so got spat off the Autostrada at 130kmh!<br>Only about 80km further than we needed to go, so we followed a few back roads to arrive at the hillside town of Cortona.<br>After parking below the town's walls we were greeted by a posse of cats.<br>Guess what? Jane has bought another bag. Apparently two was clearly not enough, so now she has to carry the extra one.<br>The sun finally came out and we found ...

... to see life on a working farm. Our agriturismo was called Cretaiole and is just outside the picturesque town of Pienza. From day one we knew we were in for something special. We arrived (that story will come at the end) to the idyllic Tuscan house where we had a charming room and began meeting the other Americans (yes, all Americans) staying for the week as well. We were given a packet of information including all the events for each day of our stay ...

... town is surrounded by a walk along the medieval fortressed walls where we enjoyed breathtaking views of the 360° Tuscan countryside. The weather was sunny and 6o as the morning fog lifted off the Tuscan Hills. Literally, the city was as picturesque as the Tuscan rolling hills seen in the books. Next Stop was Montepulciano where we would spend more time.

Today we took a bus tour to wine region. We spent many hours in a very comfortable tour bus which was a godsend for the many of us who have desperately needed to catch up on our sleep! We sketched some churches. I'm most fascinated by the rich history of Italy and the urban evolution over so many thousands of years. The materials and craftsmanship are also beautiful to me. We walked through some beautiful ...