In mid October, Nick and I drove to Italy to rendez vous with our Duxbury friends, Ted and Edie and Jono and Lisa. One of their sons is doing a college semester in Florence and you don't need a better reason than that to plan a 10 day trip to Italy, do you!?!? Part of their 10 day trip included renting a villa for a week about a 15 minute drive south west of Florence in the small Tuscan town of Cerbaia. They invited us to come and join them there for a few nights and no arm twisting was required for us to say yes to that offer! Our first rendezvous point was Lucca, one of our favorite Italian towns. It was approximately a 5 hour, pedal to the metal, drive from Aix. We made it just in time meet for a late lunch in the Piazza Anfiteatro located in the center of town...
We enjoyed a simple pizza lunch at the aptly named Anfiteatro Pizzaria and then headed off to see the town. Being a cloudy, Monday afternoon, the place was fairly quiet and many of the streets which would normally have been teaming with tourists during the high season, were almost empty.
A highlight of our afternoon was visiting and climbing to the top of the Torre Guinigi. This 14th century tower is one of two towers you can climb in Lucca. Despite the overcast skies, the 360 degree views of the of the city and the surrounding countryside made the climb up 230 steps well worth the effort!
Somehow, no matter how many times I see them, the red tiled rooftops always captivate me...
The rooftop garden provided a great back drop for a great photo of Jono and Lisa...
and the 'sister act', Edie and Lisa..
We meandered about the town in and out of rain drops....
Driving out of town, I tried to capture the marvelous medieval walls that encircle Lucca.
Nick, Lisa and I followed Jono, Ted and Edie (with the GPS!) back to the villa and arrived about an hour later in Cerbaia right in the heart of the beautiful, Tuscan country side...
In order to get to Villa Mezola you must cross the narrowest of bridges....we wouldn't want to do this often, in the dark or in a hurry!! Notice the very sturdy looking side rails...
Once across the bridge, you drive slowly up a very narrow dirt road, being sure to stop along the way and take in the view....
which just kept getting better...
and then you arrive!!
The lovely villa, which sleeps ten, has many spacious rooms filled with an eclectic mixture of antique and modern furnishings, art work and sculptures.
This little bridge crossed from the pool over to the house....
We were all treated to a fabulous dinner prepared by Alexandra, the on site chef and caretaker. She served us antipasta of italian hams, olives and cheeses, a delicious entree of warm homemade pasta torte followed by the main plat of veal, potatoes and green beans. Desert was a rustic apple raisin tart with a small glass of the sweet italian after dinner wine, vin santo.
We loved this dining room with it's spacious, square table...
After a leisurely dinner it was time to say buona notte. We're off to Siena in the morning!! Arrivederci!!
Driving out of town, I tried to capture the marvelous medieval walls that encircle Lucca.
Nick, Lisa and I followed Jono, Ted and Edie (with the GPS!) back to the villa and arrived about an hour later in Cerbaia right in the heart of the beautiful, Tuscan country side...
In order to get to Villa Mezola you must cross the narrowest of bridges....we wouldn't want to do this often, in the dark or in a hurry!! Notice the very sturdy looking side rails...
Once across the bridge, you drive slowly up a very narrow dirt road, being sure to stop along the way and take in the view....
which just kept getting better...
The last few hundred feet you must take care not to scratch your car on the side of an ancient rocky wall...
and then you arrive!!
The lovely villa, which sleeps ten, has many spacious rooms filled with an eclectic mixture of antique and modern furnishings, art work and sculptures.
This little bridge crossed from the pool over to the house....
On our first night, Edie and Ted's son, Alex, came down from Florence for the night.
We were all treated to a fabulous dinner prepared by Alexandra, the on site chef and caretaker. She served us antipasta of italian hams, olives and cheeses, a delicious entree of warm homemade pasta torte followed by the main plat of veal, potatoes and green beans. Desert was a rustic apple raisin tart with a small glass of the sweet italian after dinner wine, vin santo.
We loved this dining room with it's spacious, square table...
After a leisurely dinner it was time to say buona notte. We're off to Siena in the morning!! Arrivederci!!
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