Tuscany’s Top Twelve Amusing Quirks
Amazing views, miles and miles of vineyards, fresh olive oil and wine everywhere!! It’s like ‘heaven on earth’! Want To Know Tuscany’s Top Twelve Thirteen Amusing Quirks…?
Amazing Views of Tuscany!
1) Lasagna doesn’t look like lasagna, it’s brown.
2) Bread isn’t a better version of our Italian bread, it tastes like nothing. On purpose. So as not to overwhelm the food. (It does save on calories).
3) Pizza is hit or miss, but gelato is incredible and available at almost every corner.
Worth the Cost of the Plane Ticket. Gelato On Every Corner.
4) A bar is where they gather to drink cups of espresso. It looks more like an empty deli with a long counter that everyone leans on. They are not into ‘take out’ coffee, in fact, they don’t get that at all.
5) Old men really do sit and play cards in the street, in the ‘bar’ or in the park in their sandals and socks.
6) Any 95 year old Tuscan woman can beat you in a race – uphill, with her hands tied. They stride right past you, carrying their groceries and whistling, as you ‘wheeze’ your way up hill.
7) Which brings me to this fun fact…. Everywhere you go is uphill. Both ways.
8) In a restaurant, you are greeted, “Buongiorno. Red or white?.. (they mean wine), Gas or no gas?.. (they mean water or seltzer). Doesn’t matter when, could be breakfast. Why not? When in Europe… just try to blend in.
9) They won’t give you an alcoholic beverage without some food. WON’T. It’s an actual rule.
10) Most of their streets have no name and you need to be a human GPS to blindly navigate the narrow, winding, mountain roads, with no guard rails. I think this may be why there is an over-abundance of churches to pray in.
11) Big wooden windows with no window screens?! So you think maybe there’s no bugs… haha, wrong. The bugs are on steroids!
12) The big fountain in Cortona, where they filmed “Under the Tuscan Sun” is not really there. They brought it in to the village for filming, then took it out!
No matter what quirks you encounter, nothing can be more amazing than walking through the villages, gazing at the landscape. When you walk into the town of San Gimignano, through the massive walls of this small town, it screams tourist. Just keep walking… the higher you get up into the village and away from the souvenir shops, the more of the actual town you see. With ‘locals’ restaurants and businesses tucked into corners. There are people hanging laundry out their windows to dry. Mom’s are yelling ‘Anthonnnnyy’ out the window to get their kid to come home. Seriously. At first I thought they were actors. There’s a pretty park with a great view at the top if you can make it.
Borga del Piettrafitta, Tuscany Kitchen
This first trip to Tuscany brought us to Borga di Pietrafitta in the town of Castellini in Chianti. We had a beautiful apartment with amazing views. We loved it there. The town is really cute and has a great weekly farmer’s market. There is a tunnel/passageway through the town which is a whole separate main street with shops/restaurants. We didn’t realize it existed for the first few days!
The Ground of Borga del Pietrafitta, Tuscany
I can’t say enough about it. The landscape is just awe-inspiring. What a different world. Being a Long Islander, I’m all about the coastal scene, but Tuscany absolutely takes my breath away. Tuscan pictures adorn the walls in my coastal home! This is a place I will return to, time and again.
P.S. Get the extra car insurance. Yet another destroyed car in Europe! This time a deer flew (not exaggerating) off the side of the mountain and caved in the rear quarter panel of the car.
Sightseeing in Tuscany
Oh. That reminds me of one more quirk. Let’s call it lucky 13… Don’t be surprised if you car isn’t ‘exactly’ where you left it. It’s probably close by. The roads are so narrow and cars so small, it’s been said that workers get out their truck, pick up a car and move it out of their way. Scusi.
P.S. Know someone heading to Tuscany? Be sure to share this post please!!
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