It was almost 8am when Avery woke us up so I guess that’s pretty good in the scheme of things. Breakfast at La Volpaia is nothing like dinner. For breakfast, nothing is prepared from scratch. We had sette biscotatte which are like cracker breads, cereals, yogurts and juice. The crackers are supposed to be eaten with butter (otherwise they are painfully dry and boring) but of course the butter is hard to spread and the biscotatte break. Josh taught us a trick: if stack two or more on top of each other, then when you spread the butter on the top piece it won't break! We’ve come to realize that Italians just don’t take breakfast seriously. The only serious thing about breakfast is coffee which can be prepared in a myriad of different ways to suit anyone’s morning needs. But otherwise, unless you like a sweet pasty, like a cornetto with cream in it, or a dry cracker... you're largely out of luck. For instance, it took Josh a good long while to find Oatmeal in Rome. As for me, I am very thankful that both Josh’s parents and my parents have brought me the “green stuff” for my breakfast shakes.
Okay enough about breakfast (or the lack thereof): moving on. We decided to visit two nearby towns today. First we headed for San Gimignano. Both Josh and I had been there before (separately) but it had been years. San Gimignano is known throughout Tuscany for it’s skyline which is filled with Torre – the medieval version of skyscrapers. At one time there were 56 Torre in San Gimignano but only 13 remain. We had a stroll through town and then we climbed up the 218 steps to the only Torre open to visitors. The views of the town as well as the rolling hills filled with vineyards and olive groves were fantastic. Before leaving the main square, we savored a long overdue gelato break – it was noon afterall. Josh thought it was the very best gelato we’d had in Italy thus far. Definitely worth the indulgence. Then, we stopped at the local park and let the kids play in the playground while the adults enjoyed the view of the olive groves.
It was time for lunch and we’d had such good luck finding roadside restaurants during our trip in Puglia that we adopted the same strategy here. Volterra was to be our next stop but if we found an appealing looking place to dine en route, all the better. We landed at Locanda il Borghetto. Our streak is alive. It was an excellent yet simple lunch: bruschettas, antipasti, pastas, salads and one perfectly seasoned, perfectly grilled pork chop. And, lets not forget the Vernaccia di San Gimignano – the wine of the region. Too bad we only ordered a half bottle (we had to drive).
We arrived in Volterra and walked through a wooded, winding pathway up to the hillside
town to search for the Etruscan Acropolis -- but it appears they decided to build a park over it. This was the first town of our tour that Josh and I had not visited previously and we were in awe. Apparently Florence was modeled after Volterra and the Renaissance flavor was readily apparent. Volterra had been an Etruscan settlement -- one of the 12 cities of the confederation -- but many if the buildings you see today are from the Renaissance period. This town had everything: a fortress, a charming main square, a castle, well-maintained ancient stone edifices, an elaborate
Roman theater dating back to the 3rd century with "double decker" columns, and a vibrant authentic feel. We loved Volterra! There is apparently a very good Etruscan Museum in Volterra too. Had we been without Avery, we probably would have spent more time there but by the time it started getting dark, he was having a melt down and it was time to go.
Back at La Volpaia, we enjoyed a round of wine, grappa and beer before dinner. Tonight, Silvia served a ravioli with truffles and ricotta cheese inside. Drizzled with olive oil and parmesan, this was my favorite among all the courses we tried over the two days. Silvia did not make these special ravioli, they are ordered in advance and purchased from another proprietor. The main course tonight was cinghale (again with the swine). Pig is an extremely prominent source of protein in the Italian diet. Think about it: prosciutto, ham, sausages, and pork dishes are much more readily available and much less expensive than turkey, chicken or beef. Tonight, we were served the leg of the pig - essentially the same thing as prosciutto but baked in the oven. It is a fatty dish but once you get around the fat, it is quite tasty. For desert we first had the cheese course and then a chocolate marscapone semi-freddo. After two days of eating this way, I felt like I could be the stuffed pig served up for dinner tomorrow night. Except, of course, the kids found a way to have an extra helping of the chocolate desert.
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