The Cappella della Madonna di Vitaleta on the road from Pienza to San Quirico d'Orcia

In 2001 I came to live in Italy. I had some fun, wrote a journal and this is the blog of my story...

"Tuscany is a state of grace. The countryside is so lovingly designed that the eye sweeps the mountains and valleys without stumbling over a single stone. The lilt of the rolling green hills, the upsurging cypresses, the terraces sculptured by generations that have handled the rocks with skillful tenderness, the fields geometrically juxtaposed as though drawn by a draughtsman for beauty as well as productivity; the battlements of castles on the hills, their tall towers standing grey-blue and golden tan among the forest of trees, the air of such clarity that every sod of earth stands out in such dazzling detail. The fields ripening with barley and oats, beans and beets. The grape-heavy vines espaliered between the horizontal branches of silver-green olive trees, composing orchards of webbed design, rich in intimation of wine, olive oil and lacy-leaf poetry. Tuscany untied the knots in a man's intestines, wiped out the ills of the world. Italy is the garden of Europe, Tuscany is the garden of Italy, Florence is the flower of Tuscany." Irving Stone from my favourite book " The Agony and the Ecstacy" A fictional biography of Michelangelo



230. Ripe for the picking

Amazing... We've been living in Tuscany now for four years without sharing in the olive harvest and in the space of two weeks we are back in the fields. My new student, winemaker, Stefano Chioccioli has invited Annette and I to his rather beautiful, large house which has an olive grove with some 200 trees, bursting with fruit surrounding it.




In true English style we are the first to arrive at 10.30 am, but are soon joined by his family and some other friends. There are 15 of us, the early morning fog has lifted and the sun has appeared. Luckily seeing as it's mid-November, it turns out to be a warm, balmy day.





We stop for lunch at 2.30 for a huge picnic feast of bread, cheese, salami and ham has been layed out and of course as this is Stefano, we are treated to some very special wine. One of his juicy merlots from Cortona. After lunch we continue toi strip the trees and enjoy the company. His garden has gorgeous views toward Impruneta and a huge swimming pool. The sun finally gets the better of us and at 6 o'clock we're done.
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