We are having such a great time in Tuscany. Such a beautiful place with marvelous wine, food and people! After checking into Hotel Italia in Cortona, we headed to Montepulciano and a wonderful tasting of Vino Nobile di Montepulciano with our friends Loredona and Fabio; amazing day! The next day we headed to Avignonesi winery for a nice tour with Marina followed by a great lunch and wine tasting.
The first day of the trip is always tough as we try to fight off sleep and adjust to the new time zone. We had a nice lunch at a little restaurant then drinks and dinner at Cacciani; one of our favorites, founded in 1922. Today, we drive to Cortona for our tour of Tuscany.
We arrived back in Italy today after a 4 year unplanned break. It is bitter sweet to return without our dear Mum but I know she would want us to continue to enjoy this amazing country. She and Pop are here with us in spirit.
We flew into Rome and are spending our first night in Frascati with a visit to Cacciani, a tremendous restaurant that Pop discovered 50 or more years ago. It has been here since 1922.
For the to do list….https://youtu.be/3nimVINFtZ0
Pizzeria in Naples (Vomero) that was recommended by relatives. We need to try it next trip: https://www.facebook.com/pizzeriatrattoriacilea/
Yesterday, we took a trip to a Buffalo mozzarella factory and farm. It was a very educational tour of the production process for famous and delicious Mozzarella di Bufala. We even got to visit the happiest Buffalos in the world. They are pampered with classical music, on demand massages, showers and they even get to choose when they get milked. Happy Bufala make for tastey cheese! For the return route, we drove along the Amalfi coast for some amazing views of the most beautiful coastline in the world. Thanks to our driver, Flavia Mendozza for a wonderful day!
On Sunday we took a quick trip to the Isle of Capri. We had Pizza at our favorite spot in AnaCapri and ran into the gathering of the Vespa clubs of Italy.
Every day in Italy is a celebration of life but this trip is a double celebration because of my Mother’s 80th Birthday. Last night we had a dinner at a Sorrento classic, ‘O Parrucchiano including family from a nearby town, Meta and from Roma.
Great meals, great wine, amazing scenery, beautiful people. We went by an old hotel that we used to stay at years ago that has now been restored to a 5 Star boutique hotel; The Hotel Lorelei.
Our Mum’s 80th Birthday was on October 1 and we had a nice celebration lunch at Cacciani in Frascati. This is another of our favorite restaurants that we have been coming to do over 50 years! We then proceeded to beautiful Sorrento on the Amalfi coast.
There & Back Again - A Traveler's Tale 