Trapped in Tuscany

Here I am on the beginning of a long weekend. We started our field trip on friday morning at 6:00am. Our journey took us to a pig farm in Tuscany. It was beautiful except for the pigs. I am sure some people might call them beautiful but not me. This picture is taken in front of an old fountain in the side of the hill. It was so rustic and Under The Tuscan Sun looking. The baby pigs were very cute but again not beautiful. The next leg of our trip we went to lunch and ate some of those pigs. The meal was set up by the pig farm, very tasty pig. One of the sausage we had was seasoned with fennel. It was softer than most sausage and cured not cooked. You could almost spread it, It was GREAT. Then on to drink wine, not that we did not have enough at lunch. This is a great picture of the wine barrels the room went on forever. I was not sure if the picture would take but like I said a great picture. I have Steve to thank for a really nice camera.
The rooms were dark and moldy. The place was really cool looking. Our guide was the best sommelier in Italy in 2009 and will be representing Italy again this year. The wines were super tuscans and some say made for the US. This wine producer says they make a superior product in a different way. Thus coming up with a wine that is Italian and appeals to Other countries as well.
Our next journey on saturday took us to a goat farm and pecorino cheese. The family of this business was set on organic and quality products. They sell to most of the top restrauants in Italy and France. This picture is of the main course at lunch. The whole meal was cheese and it was very good but no more cheese for me after that for awhile. Be careful what you say. Off we went to a chianti wine and olive oil producer. This was the coolest place. Old world castle, rows of grapevines, olive trees everywhere, and the wine was great. They set up a room with meats, cheeses, and really good bread. The room was heated with a stove and felt sooooooooooo good. It was cold outside and we were not prepared for it. The weather said 65 and sunny, NOT. The glasses were very big and delicate. They sure knew how to do a tasting.
These are the grapes they use to make Mascato. They will dry for months, on bambo racks until they turn to raisins then they will be made into wine. Mascato is dessert in a glass.

Well this is the part about getting stuck. We went to Florance from there and had a great time looking around in the rain. It was still nice to be there. So on Monday when we got up to go back to Colorno, NO TICKETS FOR THE TRAIN. NO CARS TO RENT. NO BUSES AVAIABLE. We got a room and stayed. It was still wet and rainy and it was a cheap room near the station. It was not so much fun. Today was uneventful and the trip went smooth. I was very happy to be back. Went out and got the stuff for chicken noodle soup. Just what I wanted. Yvonne