Today was about the first significant rain we’ve had in Tuscany for three months. It’s still shirt-sleeve weather, and despite the early morning rain we ate lunch outside.
Yes, ladies and gents, this is the very best time to be in Tuscany. There are all sorts of harvest festivals in the planning stages, the flint corn used for polenta is drying on the stalk, and the grapes are in big, swollen bunches, awaiting the feet (or something) that will crush them. The tomatoes bend vines; our neigbors encourage us to “take, take”.
But Tuscany is the biggest Italian region. Where would you go? I’ll answer that. I’d go to the area around Lucca.
Tuscany Villa - Cerbaie
Over there to the right is a darn nice villa called Cerbaie that’s just outside of Altopascio. Never heard of Altopascio? Well, it was a stop on the old Via Francigena pilgrimage trail, so it has a small, medieval heart. It got a reputation for great bread, and still is known for it if you find a small bakery. Several large firms, wanting to bank on the reputation of the name Altopascio have built great industrial bread factories outside of town.
But what’s attractive about this villa’s location is that it’s close to Lucca, one of my favorite walking towns. Go east and you can get to Florence in a jiff. Above Lucca is the Lunigiana and Garfignana for you explorers, and there’s even Massa and Cararra, where you can visit the marble quaries used by Michelangelo and his buddies. There’s so much to do in this small area–including taking that funny picture of the wife holding up the leaning tower of Pisa–that you might consider renting your villa for two weeks or more–a month is better.
Listen, the porcini will be out soon–what with this rain and all, and that’ll be followed by truffles and wine festivals. Will you be ready?
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