Day Four: Etruscan Roots
This morning, we had to leave our luggage outside the door by 7:30 a.m. for our trip to Orvieto and Tuscany. At least the motorcoach wouldn’t be leaving until 8:45 a.m. -- a much more civilized time! After one last wonderful breakfast and at least a pot of heavenly coffee at the Excelsior, we boarded the bus and within minutes were outside of the city and enjoying the scenery of rural Italy. Tony ended up loving Tuscany the most, as it reminded him of his country, Lebanon, with its rolling hills, farmlands, mountains, and vineyards. It was a lovely and peaceful drive, when two buses weren’t fighting for right of way on high winding roads.

Our first stop on the way to Tuscany (after a quick “pit stop�? for the bathroom -- see “pot of coffee�? above -- and “necessity shopping�?) was to its neighboring region, Umbria, and the lovely village of Orvieto. Orvieto is perched on a 984-foot plateau and overlooks smaller towns and vineyards, and is reached by a “funicular,�? a cable-car system once run by water. Tourists are drawn to this village for the Duomo, one of Italy’s greatest cathedrals, which began construction in 1290 and took over 300 years to build. With its winding cobblestone streets, beautiful views, and interesting history, this is a special village to visit.

After exploring the little side streets with its shops and restaurants, we had a lovely lunch with two of our new friends in a little out-of-the-way café that Tony found by asking one of the locals where she liked to eat. I had raviolis cooked with a black truffle sauce that was just heavenly. Did I mention that the food was good in Italy? ;-)

We shopped around a bit more after lunch -- Orvieto has some very nice wines, wonderful olive oil and truffles, and lovely ceramics -- and then boarded the funicular and motorcoach once more for the drive to our villa, the Borgo de Fontebussi in Cavriglia. But not before purchasing our own bottle of Limoncello!

As we were told at the previously mentioned “pit stop,�? the Borgo de Fontebussi is miles away from anywhere, and the luxurious amenities found at a place like the Westin Excelsior are not to be found in these accommodations. There is no “room service�? nor is there a local tavern to visit at 1 a.m. if you’re looking for Limoncello. ;-) What we did find at this lovely establishment was character, scenery, peace and quiet (other than our group), and an abundance of pure charm. I could have spent a month here and never tired of looking out the window.

When we arrived, it was a bit misty and foggy, and the outlines of the buildings and the streetlights appeared almost mystical. Once a working hamlet, we soon discovered that each of the rooms at the Borgo de Fontebussi was uniquely different -- from simple rooms with small baths to multi-level townhouses with kitchens and sitting areas. After unpacking, Tony (since dubbed “the Mayor�? by most of our group) took me on a tour, showing me where each of our group was staying. “Rick and Jan are across from us, Marc and Robbin are in that building over there, Maura and Erin are in this one to the left…�? Our room was in the “main villa�? where there were also a few sitting rooms if guests chose to congregate outside of their rooms.

On the motorcoach earlier in the day, we had chosen our dining time and our dining companions, and eight of us were scheduled to eat in the hotel’s restaurant at 7:45 p.m. Again, we were given our choices in advance and this time I went for the Fried Pecorino (incredibly tasty fried cheese) for a starter, the pasta with wild boar sauce for my first course, and the pork loin with a side of potatoes for my second course. Dessert was a choice of ricotta cake, chocolate mousse or Penna Cotta. Ahhhhh.

Day Five: Tuscan Holiday
Our Daily Viva for today says that breakfast will be served at 7:30 a.m. and that we’d be leaving for our pasta making class and lunch at Castello Vicchiomaggio at 8:45 a.m., and our “word of the day�? is “pasta.�? I’m Italian -- that’s my word of the day on every day. That’s why I look like this. ;-)

Breakfast at the Borgo didn’t quite compare to the elaborate spread that we partook of each morning in Rome, but it was quite adequate! Every morning, there were fresh cheeses, meats, bread and boiled eggs, along with juices, cereals, and dessert type offerings (sweet breads). I did miss the Excelsior’s delicious coffee, but I’m a hardy traveler -- I adapted.

Castello Vicchiomaggio is located not far from Florence, and has been producing wine for centuries. It’s situated on top of a hill overlooking the Greve Valley, affording beautiful views of the surrounding countryside. The castle itself houses wine cellars, which extend under the castle, and also guest rooms, dining areas and meeting rooms. Our pasta making class was set up in one of the private dining rooms, and our teacher, a feisty little woman of Italian and Scottish descent with lots of energy and a wonderful sense of humor, easily got us all in the pasta-making mood. In our aprons and hairnets, covered in flour and eggs, we truly were a sight to behold. I do have to admit, however, that we were much more interested in lunch once we found out that we really didn’t have to eat what we created in the class!

Lunch consisted of three types of pasta and a salad, followed by very tasty biscotti and a wonderful dessert wine. We were then treated to a guided tour of the wine cellars and were free to explore the grounds for a bit before boarding the bus for our trip to Siena.

Upon arrival in Siena, we were met by our local guide, Nicoletta, who was prompted to tell us about the rivalry between Siena and Florence, and why we should never mention the name Florence in her presence. Nicoletta was a very informative, humorous, and passionate guide, and to have someone lead this tour who actually lives, works in, and loves her hometown, made it immensely enjoyable.

In Siena, we toured the Piazza del Campo, where the famous Palio, a bareback horse race first recorded in 1283, is held twice each summer. Jockeys from each of Siena’s contrade (neighborhoods) compete for this highest honor, with festivals that last for weeks afterwards. A visit to one of the contrade museums, and a video of the actual race, made this event much more imaginable. Our visit to Siena also included a wine tasting at the Grand Hotel Continental, which included a nice assortment of appetizers -- likely provided so that we could navigate back to the bus later in the day. Dinner was on our own that night, and Tony and I opted for a pizza at one of the cafes lining the Piazza. Heading back on the motorcoach, we watched “Roman Holiday,�? an old favorite of mine with Gregory Peck and Audrey Hepburn, and were able to relive some of our own Roman holiday!

Day Six: Romance and Renaissance
(In case no one has caught on, I’m not making these up -- it’s the title of each day’s Daily Viva!)

Another early start, today to board the motorcoach to Florence. On the way, we made a surprise stop at what Walt Disney World would call a “Kodak Picture Spot,�? but what Adventures by Disney has given over to Hewlett Packard, based on the “HP Photo Tips�? on the back of the Daily Viva. ;-) The view from this area of Ponte Vecchio, the Arno, and Florence in the distance was just magnificent! This was also a great area to watch the local “merchants�? bargain with the tourists, as this huge expanse of paved parking area was covered with t-shirt vendors, local artists, and sellers of various touristy items. We got a few cheap t-shirts here, and were handed a key chain that had “Firenze�? engraved on one side, and a …ah… raised impression of part of the Michelangelo’s David on the other. Not quite the souvenir to bring home to the grandchildren, but quite the conversation piece on the bus. ;-)

We arrived in Florence and made the long (but scenic!) trek from the motorcoach parking area to the actual city. Elena was our local guide, and again with headphones and lanyards attached, we covered a lot of space in a little bit of time. One highlight was the Piazza della Signoria, where Michelangelo’s David stood until 1873, and where a copy now resides. Another highlight, of course, was seeing the real thing in the Galleria dell’ Accademia! The Duomo, Europe’s fourth largest church and one of Florence’s oldest buildings (and the tallest), was even more magnificent than how I imagined it to be.

After a nice lunch of pizza and lasagna with two of our, by now, quite good friends, we explored the city’s shopping areas -- the leather is quite beautiful, and the silk scarves are stunning -- but my most exciting find was the Disney Store, where I bought a Firenze sweatshirt and T-shirt! And with this group of travelers, you know that this purchase was a big hit on the way back! At the straw market, we kept running into others from our group at every turn (“Hey! I know you!�?) and many of us brought multiple shopping bags back with us.

We boarded the motorcoach for our last night at the Borgo, and watched the remainder of “Roman Holiday�? on the way back. Our dinner on this final night was a “Tuscan BBQ�? and we all agreed to bring our collective bottles of wine and Limoncello to share -- and share we did! It’s probably a good thing that we took up most of the rooms at this beautiful hotel because sitting on the outside patio of the restaurant, we weren’t the quietest of guests…