Sunday, October 19, 2008
Our Honeymoon--a little belated
It's now been more than a month since our honeymoon in Italy--and I'm not sure why it's taken me so long to post the pictures. It was such a spectacular trip that I don't think my photos do it justice--and I don't think I can write enough about it to describe all the wonderful things we did.
And honestly, I'm not sure if all you readers out there are all that interested in the writing of things.
Time for introspection: Why do I think that? Is it because I'm a skimmer by nature? But I always read my friends' blogs and what they have to say, so they're all reading mine most likely...hmm. Okay time to actually write this blog.
We rented a car in Rome and drove into the Tuscan countryside to stay at out lovely Agritourism, Terrapille. Agritourisms are all over Tuscany, you can drive down the road and see dozens of signs pointing you to a farm and a bed to sleep in. 
We would highly recommend staying in one of these--there are tons of websites listing amenities, etc. They're homelike, affordable, and if you really want to immerse yourself in culture, this is the way to go. Basically, they are farmhouses that sit on actual working farms. Like B&Bs, they usually give you breakfast. In our case, we thought we would get to have a home-cooked authentic Italian supper, but the parents of Lucia, our host, were in Sicily, and she didn't think she could do justice for her mother's cooking. Sad for us.
Each day we had a quick breakfast at the house, then took off in our little stick-shift Fiat up the gravel road and off into the countryside. We explored country roads and wound our way up and down hills the likes of which I've only seen in the Ozarks--and people were passing each other right and left! I really loved driving. It was quite simple, and the roads and attractions are so well marked with signs that you barely need a map. And yes, in Italy, they drive on the right (correct) side of the road. Except for the refilling with gas situation, which was confusing. And one day in Siena we turned a couple of wrong turns and ended up in the historical center--in a car, which is sort of a no-no. We gunned it up a street so narrow that we had to pull the mirrors in and honk the horn to make people move. After that Jason said I deserved 2 gelatos!
This is the Abbey of Sant' Antimo. They are Gregorian monks who chant 7 times a day. We explored the grounds and stayed for the chanting. We were only minorly distracted by the new young monk wearing a white polo shirt with the collar popped and jeans.
Here is the upstairs communal apartment at Terrapille. Our room was lovely with a king sized bed and bathroom, but I never took a photo of it. Sometimes I'm just lazy with my camera.
This is the view from the living room up to the medieval hill town of Pienza--where we ate dinner every night.
And scenes from Pienza.
We also went to Florence for a day of hot touristy action, and despite it being my favorite city on Earth, after staying in the peaceful countryside, we were sort of overwhelmed by the crowds and noise.
At the end of the trip we spent 2 days in Rome. I haven't like Rome in the past, but staying in a high-end hotel and eating dinner in Trastevere made me love it much more this time around.
So that's the abbreviated version. If you want to hear more or have questions, let me know. I'm trying to figure out what my problem is with blogging recently--not that I don't want to, but sometimes spending so much time crafting a post to send out into the blind universe seems strange and slightly pointless. I need to know that someone is reading--and I know you are, Dad, and thank you, but I need to know about other people too. :)
If you want to see all the photos you can go to my flickr page--there are about 350 out of 800 there.
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Beth,
I'm reading. I love your photos and would be interested in more. i won't be making it to Italy any time soon so I'll have to live through those I know. More on food, more on the people? Um, cute shots of you and the new husband in the amazing cities of Italy? If you've been before, how was this trip spectacularly different- was was it just that way because your NEW HUSBAND was with you? :)
I'm reading too! Your Nashville friends want to keep up with you.
Ditto that! I want to know more. I love reading your blog and keeping up with what's going on. And, I'm dying to go to Europe and we're in the process of saving up to do so. Italy is definitely on my list, so I'd love to here more about what's worth seeing and doing. That being said, BRING IT ON!
I have blog stalked you since the end of april when I mad bunting and your tutorial and email helped!! :) I made more this weekend ironically. Your blog is one of my favorites and I love your thoughts and pictures. Have a great week.
www.lgsm.blogspot.com
I've been waiting for the Honeymoon blog post!! I'm glad you finally got to it. I feel another Blurb book coming along.
I finally finished Miles' Blurb book and really love it. Chris made me order extras to give as gifts to the grandparents.
I read. I can't remember how I found you but I have had you in my favs ever since. I check almost everyday and hate it when you haven't posted. I admire your creativity and your ability to just DO. I don't start anything because I think it won't be perfect. I'm hoping your courage and enthusiasm will rub off on me.
I read. I can't remember how I found you but I have had you in my favs ever since. I check almost everyday and hate it when you haven't posted. I admire your creativity and your ability to just DO. I don't start anything because I think it won't be perfect. I'm hoping your courage and enthusiasm will rub off on me.
*sigh*
I love Italy. Your trip looks like it was so amazing and unique.
I hear ya on the "what is the point" mentality of writing blogs sometimes. But i love reading your blog and sometimes it's kinda nice to document your life in a pg-13 sort of way. Like a journal you're not embarrassed to read in ten years.