Story and photos by Nancy Morgantini
How do you say "TOO MUCH" in Italian? Picture me, at the Saturday market in Greve in Chianti trying my hand at buying olives from one of the vendors. My Italian husband, Luigi felt that it was time "to cut the apron strings" and I was completely on my own. There were rows of baskets full of olives, dried fruits, nuts, marinated this and marinated that...but I just wanted a "few" olive dolci. The vendor first thought that I asked for sundried tomatoes and gave me one to taste, so I repeated "DOLCI" and POINTED to the olives. He promptly scooped what seemed like 10 pounds into the bag and looked at me for confirmation... okay...the wheels are churning, I "think" I should say "troppo" (too much), but I am not sure...so what do I do? Nod my head and end up with enough olives to last us until Christmas!
My husband and I recently spent four weeks in the land of his childhood, Italy. After four days of sensory overload in Florence, we headed to Tuscany to rest our cobblestoned feet. We enjoyed 12 La Dolci Vita days in Greve in Chianti at Agritourismo Poggio Asciutto. I was in olive (lots of olives), wine and pasta heaven. I also fell in love (ooops did I say that?), with Eva, Massimo and little Olivia (the farm owners) and the handsome, tall (about 15 hands) Pedro.
Our apartment at Poggio Asciutto Agritourismo is in an ancient stone-built house nestled between rolling hills, complete with a small kitchen and modern bathroom. The Tuscan countryside was right outside our door, rows of vineyards full of what we named “Chianti pre-press 2009” along with silvery leafed olive groves.
Every Saturday, there is an outdoor market in Greve with vendor booths selling locally grown produce, leather goods, clothing and Tuscan-look printed tablecloths. The leather purse vendor is one of my favourites. I drive him crazy with my indecisiveness. We also went to the leather factory in Greve. There were some beautiful purses and leather jackets with prices to match. The factory makes leather purses for upscale companies all over the world. In stores those items would likely fetch twice as much!
One afternoon I joined Regina and Sean, also from Canada, in a "traditional" Tuscan cooking class at Poggio Asciutto, taught by Eva and Franca. In Canada, I think it would have been about 4 classes...one per week...but this was ALL in one evening, five dishes.... two Antipasto (Crostini Toscani and Carpaccio di Zucchine), one Primo (Spaghetti al Chianti Classico which translates to red wine pasta), then one Secondo (Stracotto, i.e. braised beef infused with aromatic rosemary and sage), then a Contorno (Patate al Legame, i.e. potatoes with tomato sauce and fresh rosemary) and finally il Dolce (Schiacciata con l’uva, i.e. cake with wine grapes). Eva and Franca were great "teachers" even though Franca's English vocabulary was limited to "OK". I loved the class and being able to taste our creations at supper that night.
A lot of visitors to Italy have a mission…a mission and a “checklist” of things to see and do. Not us, we threw the checklist out of the rental car window. Not that we haven’t seen a lot of interesting, memorable sights, but Luigi has taught me the “Italian way”…enjoy the day as it unfolds.
We loved the siestas “il riposo pomeridiano”. We had become accustomed to the “Italian way”. The afternoon “recharge time” was mandatory. One lazy afternoon, I was sitting outside writing in our journal while Luigi was lounging across from me sipping a glass of wine. The only sounds I heard were the birds and the occasional…what I thought, sounded like distant thunder. Ahhh…it was just Luigi “recharging”.
Our last day in Tuscany was “spaghetti-western” day. Luigi and I joined Eva, a certified equestrian guide, on a horseback ride through the vineyards, olive groves, across a centuries-old roman bridge, and back home to Poggio Asciutto. I fell in love…with the countryside and with Pedro, my very “bel” (handsome) horse.