Thanksgiving in Italy

The day started just like any other traditional Thanksgiving:  I woke up and looked out the window at the Italian countryside.  Ok, maybe it was not so traditional - but we were certainly prepared to make the holiday as authentic as it can be in the middle of Italy.  

A few of us went to the local grocery store in the morning to search for all the items we would need for the foods that we would be eating if we were at home.  Surprisingly, most things were easy enough to find.  One surprising exception was bread, which all seemed to have a crusty exterior that doesn't quite work for stuffing.  Of course, the most important item for the day (wine) was in plentiful supply. 

Brian and his aunt were well prepared for the lack of turkeys in Italian butcher shops, so they ordered one in advance.  To my surprise, we ended up with a fresh one (so fresh, in fact, that it still had some feathers attached)!   

The centerpiece of our Thanksgiving dinner.

Nick also predicted difficulty in finding cranberries, so he brought a bag all the way from the US.  He was talking about how Massachusetts is a huge provider of the world's cranberry stock, so I did some research and  learned some interesting random facts about the cranberry:
-  It is one of only 3 commerically-grown fruits native to North America. 
- It is Massachusetts' #1 agricultural commodity crop and Massachusetts is home to 40% of all cranberry growers in North America.  (Who knew there was agriculture in Massachusetts?!)

Shortly after returning to the villa with groceries, the cooking activities had begun and the first bottle of wine was uncorked.  I am not much of a chef (I haven't even cooked a meal for myself since August), so I just took the role of prep and support.   

By mid-afternoon, Brian had suggested a hike in the hills around the villa, which was the perfect activity for me.  We hadn't done any physical activity since the marathon (4 days ago), so it felt nice to get outside and actually stretch out my leg muscles a bit.  Our task for the hike was to come back with a "table-scape" (too much influence from the Food Network), so we grabbed some leaves and twigs on the way back.    

Views from our hike

Doing some activity for the first time in 4 days.

Vineyards (post-harvest)

Throughout the afternoon, our kitchen was remarkably efficient.  Emily and Nick took the roles of head chefs and the rest of us stayed busy with various tasks and, of course, more wine drinking.  

Nick and Jason slice apples for the pie

Brian sautees leeks for something (gravy? stuffing?)

Paul prepares some sausage stuffing.

Emily prepares the brussels sprouts

Brian and Paul test the mashed potatoes. 

There was also a lot of hanging around with wine. 

Our Italian neighbors arrived just as the food was finishing and it was finally time to sit down and see if our cooking was up to standards.  It's hard to know whether Italians would enjoy traditional American dishes but I think the flavors are universal enough to appeal to almost anyone.  With a toast of champagne, it was time to dig in.  

Toasting to start the Thanksgiving Dinner

I was pleased to see the Italians not only filling their plates for one course but actually returning to the buffet for second helpings.  They obviously understand how to eat like Americans on this holiday.  

Here's a picture of the entire group at the table

After we finished eating, we even taught the Italians about breaking the wishbone.  The only tradition that seemed to be missing was an American football game, but I guess I can forgive Italian tv coverage for not offering this as an option.

2013 marked the fourth time I have been out of the country for Thanksgiving and, of all four years, it definitely felt the most like being at home.  (Last year in Istanbul, the only thing that reminded me of Thanksgiving was the fact that we were in Turkey).  This year, reminders of home were just what I needed and I'm thankful to my friends for making it happen.  

Wine Tour and Pienza, Italy

It's almost required to visit some wineries while traveling in Tuscany.  With that in mind, we chose to spend Wednesday on a full-day wine tour that started bright and early at 8:15AM. 

We piled into a 12-passenger van while our tour guide took us on a two-hour ride, ending at a small estate on a hill that produced a wine branded as "Il Macchione".  Before going inside the estate, we listened to the winemaker speak a bit about the grapes that surrounded us and some history about his family business.  

Il Macchiato estate near Montepulciano 

I was a little surprised when we entered the estate because it was actually the home of the winemaker.  Yup, we were tasting wine at his dining room table, while bottles were aging in the basement.  Personally, I prefer a more commercial atmosphere but it did feel good to know that we were supporting a small family business.  

Wine tasting #1 in the dining room of the winemaker

After a few generous pours, we were all enjoying ourselves without even pretending to savor the overtones, undertones, or any other tones.  I don't actually remember what we drank.  Everything tasted good but nothing was particularly memorable.  A few of my friends ordered bottles to ship home (I may have bought some as well if I had a home).  With a gracious Italian farewell, we were off to our next destination. 

A few people in the group expressed interest in seeing Montepulciano, which is a hill town made famous by the "Twilight" movies.  Our tour guide agreed to take us on a driving tour through the town but we weren't able to stop.  Montepulciano reminded me of San Gimignano and was, perhaps, even a little more beautiful.  Definitely worth a stop if you're not on a strict wine-tasting schedule.  

We then went to lunch at a restaurant that didn't even look open until we awkwardly peered into the windows and were about to drive away.  We each ordered a pasta dish and a glass of wine (of course).  My black truffle raviolis had so much truffle that it crunched as I bit into it.  The flavor of the truffle was more muted than I am used to, but the volume made up for it.

After lunch we stopped in Pienza for the obligatory "shopping stop" at a pottery shop that was embarrassingly amateur in quality (why do tours always make people stop at horrible touristy shops?).  Most of us just stood outside rather than pretending that we had any interest in the merchandise.  The only cool part of the shop was the entrance to an old tunnel system that connects the city as an evacuation route.  The tunnel was blocked many years ago when people realized they could break into each other's homes, but it's a cool idea otherwise. 

We walked through Pienza a bit, stopping at the duomo and enjoying the views of the surrounding countryside from the perimeter walls.  Pienza is the birthplace of Pope Pius II and it benefitted from significant investment when he was pontiff because he wanted everything to be rebuilt as the ideal renaissance town.  Although Pienza is one of the first examples of urban planning, it didn't seem all that much different than the other two hill towns we had seen.    

The (tiny) piazza in front of the church in Pienza

This statue looked sad, so I decided to keep her company. 

The perimeter walls of the town had fantastic views of the countryside. 

Before our visit was complete, the tour guide took us to a cheese shop for some tasting (and buying).  The cheese piqued our interest a lot more than hand-painted pottery.  

Our final stop was to another winery for some Brunello tasting. I had never heard of Brunello before this trip but it is essentially just a fancy name for Sangiovese with a very specific aging period.  (Wine enthusiasts are probably cringing right now).  This tasting was also in the home of the winemaker but at least we stayed in the front room, which was designated specifically for tastings. 

Wine tasting #2 - Brunello!

I really enjoyed this wine and would have definitely bought some bottles if I had anywhere to ship them.  Fortunately, my friends more-than made up for my purchasing deficiencies and sent several cases back to the US.  

The ride back to our villa was very quiet, as most of the group slept in the van.  I'm not sure if returning home sober would constitute a successful wine tasting trip but I certainly enjoyed the day. 

Florence, Italy

The city of Florence has held a special place in my mind since a long-weekend trip I took there during undergrad.  One of my friends was studying in Florence for the semester and I just remember thinking that the entire city was like living art.  I was excited to refresh my 12-year old memories with another visit to one of my favorite cities in the world. 

Our Monday morning involved some grocery shopping for the villa, so we didn't arrive in Florence until lunchtime.  Our search for a good meal brought us to a food truck, which served the most incredible sandwich I have eaten in a long time.  Surprising?  Not in Italy.  All of the ingredients are so fresh and full of flavor that even a food truck can be satisfying.    

Brian completes his transaction at the food truck

Our first real destination for the day was the Mercato di San Lorenzo for some leather goods.  I was in a mood to spend money, but nothing really appealed to me.  My traveling lifestyle requires me to think about everything carefully before making a purchase because I am forced to transport everything multiple times before returning home.  This extra effort means that only the best things make the cut!

We started getting cold from wandering through the outdoor market, so we stopped at an inviting bar for a drink.  or four.  The bar actually reminded me a little of Spain because it had some free tapas items on the bar to accompany the beverages.  We spent a few hours there and eventually decided that dinner was in order (although I would have been perfectly happy skipping dinner after all the tapas).

Any walk through Florence will inevitably take you past the Duomo

Passing the Duomo (again).  This time at night. 

Side note: After a few glasses of wine, everything is funny - including this statue, which looked a little too much like Renaissance porn.  The shadow cast on the building was also pretty entertaining...

Statues in the middle of Florence. 

For dinner, we found a random place in a random part of town that just happened to serve more excellent food.  Honestly, I think that you can go into almost any restaurant in Florence and get a high-quality meal for a very reasonable price.  This restaurant made the smart choice of seating our group in a separate room so we would not disrupt anyone else.  

Enjoying our private dining room

On the way out, they even gave us a free glass of limoncello as if we had not already drank more than enough.  Reflecting on the day, it seemed like our sightseeing was for the sole purpose of passing time between meals.  At least we can use the excuse that we just ran a marathon yesterday!

Cheers to a fun day in Florence!