It's Always An Adventure

So, this is what jet lag feels like. We arrived back to our final North American destination last night at 8:00 pm local time, and after nearly 24 hrs of travel, I definitely had no trouble falling fast asleep once my head hit the pillow. This morning, not soo much. I am wide awake at 5:30, as my body is used to getting up and facing the day by now. Sigh… guess I should take advantage of it and hope that I am not falling asleep by dinner time 😉

It is great to be back and to see the girls, as wonderful as it was to have two whole weeks alone with Ron, I really missed those little monkeys. We are easing our way out of vacation mode by hanging out in our old ‘hood in Ottawa. It feels great to be back and to see cherished friends. Nothing like getting the five star treatment by chauffeur Nina and staying at the beautiful Casa Genier 😉

That being said, it was a wee bit disappointing not waking up to the sounds, sights and smells of the heavenly region of Lucignano d’ Asso and our incredible home away from home in Tuscany- Borgo Lucignanello.

One of the many incredible views from the property

Pool side

Our trip to Tuscany was the perfect end to an incredible adventure. The slow, relaxed pace of our week in the magical Tuscan countryside was exactly what was needed after the faster pace of sightseeing in the larger cities of Prague and Rome. We kicked back, read books, challenged ourselves to bike ride through the hill landscape, caught up on sleep and conversation, while enjoying and taking in the culture of warm and friendly people that are proud of their history, food and wines. The easy going, good natured half italian/half english conversations with locals were one of the highlights of my trip. Ron was much braver than I in trying to speak Italian, many times being asked if he was actually Italian visiting his roots. I just smiled a lot and tried to make up for my lack of Italian words with politeness. It seemed to work =)

We enjoyed too many amazing meals to count. We also bought home made pasta from a woman in town and Ron cooked fabulous dinners made up of fresh ingredients. One of the local cheeses, Pecorino, is a mouth watering delight! The wine was also flowing… We visited a fabulous local vineyard, Poggio Antico in the Brunello region of Montalcino. Ron was simply beyond excited about the incredible wine cellar and tasting and I will not soon forget the lunch we had! There may be a case of wine waiting for us on our return home 😉

Wine cellar at Poggio Antico

Ron's happy place 😉

Aside from hanging out pool side, Ron and I did manage to do a lot of exploring of the numerous medieval and renaissance towns in the region. With my navigational skills and Ron’s spectacular defensive driving we tackled the winding S curves, up hill climbs and crazy Italian drivers (road rules are merely a suggestion) in our incredibly powerful (insert sarcasm) Fiat Punto! We visited Montalcino, Montepulciano, Volterra, Siena, Pienza, Torrenieri and San Giovanni d’ Asso. The magnificent beauty of these towns are unlike anything I have ever seen before. We also indulged in a wee bit of shopping (LOVE the shoes) and of course, trying out the local cuisine and drink 😉 An incredible adventure, indeed.

Street view- Montepulciano

Graffiti in Montepulciano- gotta love teenagers 😉

Stunning views

Ron enjoying his cow, I mean lunch at Osteria Acquacheta A dining experience MUST!!!

So, now we are back in North America. My first trip to Europe is over and as I take the time to let all all of the wonderful experiences sink in and share stories with friends about their summer time adventures, I realize how incredibly lucky I am. These memories will last a life time. I know that I will be back and next time when the girls are a little bit older I look forward to seeing a first time European trip through their eyes. For now, I am happy to have some time to see old friends but I am also looking forward to returning home, to the crazy city that I have come to love- NYC, I have missed you. Can’t wait to see that incredible skyline as the taxi races over the bridge… back to reality and the chaos of it all.

Forever and Always