HELP! I’VE FALLEN IN (love with) TUSCANY AND I CAN’T GET UP

Then What Do My Wondering Eyes Should Appear…

     A week before Christmas, during the rush to get the two school sing-a-longs together, and deal with the Christmas Eve music at church, I got an e-card…from Donatella: Merry Christmas and best wishes for 2010  Donatella     

    I was amazed that she had even remembered who we were.  It wasn’t like I had 

kept up correspondence; I hadn’t emailed in three months.  To be honest, I thought 

she’d have ‘cut bait’ and moved on to more lucrative ‘waters’.  Yes, she was definitely fishing, but she was just so darn cute about it, I got ‘filled’ with the Christmas spirit 

and just wanted to pay a thousand buck just to meet and drink wine with her.  Nothing clandestine, just drink and talk.

BUON NATALE DONATELLA!!
Oh mio Deo! Grazie for the card! Mi Piace... We haven't forgotten
you. We had to get air line tickets...!!!!!!!!!!!!...so that has taken up
our 'tempo'. Would Monday, giugne 21 work for you for a visit to Chianti? I hope so.
We have been 'on' and 'off' two times with our friends who wanted to join
us. Mi dispiace. So it is just Marianne and I.
The best holidays to you and your family.
And Happy New Year!
I don't know how we are going to be able to wait 6 more months...!?
MOLTO GRAZIE!
David and Marianne Jones

Hi David, Hi Marianne,
great news!
Monday, June 21st 2010 is still available and I will plan
something really special for you!
Let me know asap if you want to book, at which point I
require a small deposit for the booking…
Have a great holiday season.
Auguri,
Donatella

     ‘Auguri’--Best wishes.  Wow, she can work it well.  I knew that this was going to set up back ‘big time’, but I didn’t care:

Buon Natale!
Si. Let's do it. Send me the paper work and I'll make a deposit.
If you want to wait until after the holidays, that's fine.
Quite honestly, I can't remember what your last offer was for just the one day.
When you have time, per favore let me know.
Grazie.
Pax,
David and Marianne Jones

   I suddenly realized that I hadn’t even thought of the Scattini’s. Even though we we’re the ones making their 2010 Christmas merry and bright, they were kind enough to ‘take 

us in’ and show us Italy.  I found a fine e-card, it had a video from YouTube with winter/Christmas pictures from Italy’s famous landmarks, and a cute recording of a kids choir singing an Italian Natale folk song.  When Marianne saw it she didn’t think much of it, “You should have done this…” but, oh well, call me a child at heart.

     Then, Rosetta and Fernando replied:

Dear David and Marianne,

thaaank you very much for your special Christmas ecard !!!

Your is a special gift as given us 5 special minutes to realize how we are lucky and that nothing can be nicer than something that can feel our heart of love.

We wish you and your dear ones a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year !!

Fernando and Rosetta

Equally cute, but at the same time it was heart-felt.  I hoped they would have a “Buone Feste”.

     Then we got an e-card from someone we didn’t think we even knew: BUONE  FESTE  HAPPY HOLIDAYS  Barbara Anselmi  Florence & Tuscany.com

  The only clue was ‘Florence and Tuscany’, which had to be the rental company we dealt with in Florence.  Maybe they owned the company—who knows.  So then I decided that I should send Cristina G. a greeting because of her help.  Then I should send something to Dario for his help, and the list would go on…

Dario …

Dario, Buon Natale!
Grazie for all the help you have given us for traveling in Tuscany in 2010.
If we had the money, we would tour Dievole, but maybe in a different life.
Hope all is well. From your recent pictures, you have been traveling? Buono.
Auguri,
David and Marianne Jones

     I really didn’t expect Dario to respond.  It was the week of Christmas and the man’s got other things going on in his life.  But he did:

David!

20 euros for 5 glasses of wine plus a tour and snacks is too much? What are you going to be drinking in Italy, water?

This guy is every the salesman.  I responded, expecting him to say no:

Dario:
You are great...
Listen...our plan: We are driving from Montalcino and June 30, hopefully before noon. We could swing around through Vagliagli and have a sample, but, we have to have the car back in Empoli by 2:00 PM--reposo? Can we do that--driving like 'little old' people...?
Ciao,
David and Marianne Jones

Dario responded after Christmas:

mmm the 30th is a bad day as I will be in Contrada (palio days) but yes maybe we can work something out

Oh crap, he was talking like he really wanted to do it!

Dario:
We don't want you to go out of your way, or miss any part of Palio preparations. We physically can't 

be in Vagliagli until 10:30 or 11:00 on the 30th. Getting the rental back could be a challenge after sampling 5 glasses of vino....?
We leave it to you.
Grazie.
Bene anno,
David and Marianne Jones

     I figured that Dario would not be able to get out of Contrada obligations and we won’t ever hear from him again.  So we decided we should just forget about that leg of the trip back to Empoli from Montalcino.

HELP! I’VE FALLEN IN (love with) TUSCANY AND I CAN’T GET UP

The Dream of the Musician—the Carmen Room

     We decided on staying in Montalcino two nights instead of driving too far to the east and Chiusi.  If we wanted to drive beyond La Foce and Chianciano Terme, and all the way into Chiusi, we could, or we could take it easy and stay in the Val d’Orcia area.  The least expensive B & B I found was “The Dream of the Musician”—same block as the Duomo.  The owners, the Gigliola family, have three themed rooms, named after famous operas—Aida, La Boehme and Carmen.  Mr. Gigliola helped paint, but his daughter is the musician-- trombonist. 

Hello,

I have avaiable disponibility for the night request the new year.

the room carmen is don't problem because is located on the lower floor, there

aren't  stairs...

 the price is Euro 60 for two people with breakfast.

reply me for the confirm the room.

best regards

Mrs Gigliola

Hello,

yes , I have avaiable disponibilty for the night 28 and 29 June.

the parking is pubblic and is near at the b&b, but is free during

the holiday period.

best regards

Mrs Gigliola

Hello,

ok I reserve the room carmen for you for the night

28 and 29 june.

 for the deposit don't problem, you pay me when do

you arrive or when do you go out.

write to me if something changes  and you can not  come.

best regards

Mrs Gigliola

Car Rental?

     How do you interpret this one?  I was really unsure of the car rental company that our friend Bob, aka ‘Roberto’ (from Gina’s advanced class), had used.  The two emails that we got were ‘cryptic’ and strange.  I had hoped we weren’t heading into ‘la cosa nostra’ territory here.

Dear David Jones,
Thank you for your interest to our company.

We kindly inform you that as we are car rental broker company, we cooperate with several 

suppliers to every destination, and we are not able to know in advance which of them will confirm 

your order as to provide you with any further information at the moment.
All the available locations, their options and prices are available online as to select the 

most preferable for your rental.
Please note that all delivery / pick up details as well as contact information for the 

company, which has confirmed the booking, will be written on the confirmation voucher.
You are more than welcome to create an order online according to your preferences 

and also check the local terms and conditions of your destination through this link https://www.economycarrentals.com/LocalTerms.aspx
As soon as we have a reply from our partners you will be informed to your email 

account. For any additional information do not hesitate to contact us!

Best Regards

Ms Filio Ramaki

         Reservation Team
And…

Dear Mr Jones,

thank you very much for your interest to book your car with Economy Car Rentals.

We kindly inform you that we are a car rental broker company and we have several car rental partners that supply the cars.

As a consequence, we can not give you a specific address as we are unable to know in advance which partner will confirm your request.

Please, proceed with your booking on our website www.economycarrentals.com and when it is confirmed, you will receive a voucher with all the necessary information (car rental company, address, telephone numbers and meeting point details).

For any further information, do not hesitate to contact us!

Best Regards
Efi Ktistaki

     The concept of ‘partners’ and a company not knowing who is in the train station 

area of Empoli struck me as just a little odd.  I certainly didn’t want to pay the prices 

that Avis and other companies were charging, but I wasn’t sure that after we had paid 

for it there would even be a car waiting in Empoli.  I emailed Roberto and asked him 

if they had any trouble with the rental company.  He said he didn't recall having any 

odd conversations with the car rental people.  It went very smoothly for them .  He 

suggested that we may have gotten someone who was not very fluent in English. 

Effluent, perhaps? I was being forced to take another leap of faith and it was unsettling.

     The place I had chosen to stay for our two nights in Volterra was a Seminary.  You laugh, but it became very clear that if we were to actually do a third week, there would have to be compromises.  The car rental would be cheaper than a big name company and so each of our six nights’ stays while running around the Tuscan countryside had to be really economical.  Cheap, okay.  The Seminario Vescovile sits just outside the north east city gate of Volterra.  It is at the end of a street and about a ten minute walk up to town.

Monday, December 07, 2009 2:21 AM 

Buongiorno; 

My wife and I am planning a trip to Italy in June of 2010.  We are hoping that we may stay at 

Seminario Vescovile San Andrea.  I was very encouraged when I read about your rooms in Rick 

Steves book. 

Hopefully we will be driving to Volterra via San Gimignano on Monday, June 28 and staying to 

Wednesday June 29th.  We will need a double with a bath. We will also have breakfast both 

mornings. 

My wife and I are middle aged and she will be using a walker to get around.  She really can't do 

stairs and she needs a toilet that has handicap access.  Per favore, any information that you have 

would be greatly appreciated. 

Molto grazie, 

David and Marianne Jones

Good morning, 

we are very pleased for your choice and we thank you for this. 

We inform you that we'll open the reservations for the next year 

beginning from January 2010 so we please you to contact us again in January. 

For the stairs we don't have any problems because we've got the 

elevator, but for the bathroom we unfortunately don't have bathrooms with handicap 

access.But if you want we have a multiple bedroom with a large bathroom at the ground floor. 

The price for bedrooms with private bathroom is 18,00 euro per day. 

We thank you and we hope to hear you soon, 

best regards, seminario 

HELP! I’VE FALLEN IN (love with) TUSCANY AND I CAN’T GET UP

Those Airlines—Gotta Love ‘em

     I had carefully and methodically, some might say ‘anally’, planned and plotted out the third week scenario.  I had searched the net and combed the possibilities out there for a ‘road trip’ across rural Tuscany.  I had found a very cheap car rental; found we could rent out of Empoli after we got off the train.  Had responses back from albergos and Seminaries in Lucca and Volterra, and was anticipating something back from the B & B in Montalcino.  I had check train schedules, plotted driving scenarios that cris-crossed the Tuscan countryside, and looked for bus and taxi connections in each place we might stay.  I typed it all out in various forms, and included (when possible) printed web pages and compiled a loose, unbound book that Marianne could easily go through and understand what the possibilities were and understand the trip.  We had agreed to leave Italy the 3^rd of July, and I had used every possible minute of that time—wisely.  I was so proud of my accomplishment.  The itinerary was complete and in a “publishable” form.  Perfetto—right?  That was all well and good, if you read the book.  If you didn’t you’d end up with the problem that slapped us in the face during the second week of December.

     I came home from work one night and Marianne was so happy and proud of her accomplishment:  She had booked our fight, including getting the straight-shot flight from Portland to Amsterdam to Rome.  She went on in detail about how the flights and connections would work so well…and how we would have to leave the Rome airport at 6:45 AM---on the second of July.  I really didn’t listen to the date at first, knowing my wife, the reader, would have seen the plans and booked the flight accordingly.  Yea, right.  It dawned on me, in the bathroom later, that if we were leaving at 6:45 AM on the second, we would already have to be back in Rome.  That would mean that the 5 plus hours it would take to make connections and take the train back to Rome Termini and then to Fiumicino, would wipe out the whole day of driving through the Val d’Orcia, La Foce, and Chiusi.  I was stunned, but hardly said anything.

     “The second?!” I screamed from the bathroom.

    There was total silence from the living room.  I knew in my heart that I could probably deal with this change.  After all, we were going to be in Italy, what more did I want?  I decided not to press it with Marianne.  I retreat to the computer and the hot tub and did not talk to her for an hour, or so.

     When we finally talked, I was ‘bravely’ feeling okay about wiping out a whole day of the trip, and absolutely blown away by the fact she never even looked at the itinerary.  I was determined not to get upset. 

     “I really blew it,” she said admonished.  “I wrecked the whole thing, didn’t I?”

      “You’re damn right,” I thought, but never said it in words.  However, as Marianne is quick to say, I always wear my heart on my sleeve, and my face is too expressive for my own good.  I couldn’t believe she had just ignored all over my hard work and preparation and just made an arbitrary decision like that.  Okay, yes, I was pissed, but I wasn’t going to let her know.

     In two days Marianne had solved the problem—and gotten us trip insurance for the $3,400 dollar flight.  I was happy, knowing that I could keep my temper and not over-react.  I was, however, so freaking mad at the airlines for ‘gouging’ us with their price--taking an arm, a leg, and my right nut. 

    

Amici en Italia?

     Now our theatre friends started to ‘get onboard’ with the Italia idea.  Most likely the two interested couples could not (or weren’t willing to) do the first week with Fernando and Rosetta, but they could be alright will Firenze.  Penny and Charlie were ‘on’ again for about a week and then ‘off’ again.  Now our friend Harry wanted to add in Pompeii.  That sort of addition, you might think, would send me into orbit, but no, just the opposite.  I have always wanted to see Pompeii.  I grew up on the tales and legends of A.D. 79 (August 4^th—want the time—1 PM).  My twin and I, being as creative as we were, had a whole fantasy world about the buried city.  I would even have dreams about being a Roman kid, who on the morning of August 24^th, A.D. 79, was climbing the side of Vesuvius, and discovered the gapping, steaming fisher that fore told the eruption.  Of course the rulers of the city sent me away, laughing at the child.  But when the ‘big one’ hit at 1 PM, nobody laughed then.  Doug and I even used the local clay, which was in ditch bank of or rural property in Rupert, Idaho, to fashion pottery, and other Pompeian ‘artifacts’—including mummified dogs, etc. that had been ‘unearthed’ in our excavations of our own ‘backyard’ Pompeii Scavi.  We also created our own Yellowstone Park in the vacant lot next door after the family visited the park in 1966.  Yes, so visiting Pompeii could be worth dumping Lucca—in a heartbeat.

     Even though Penny and Charlie couldn’t commit, they did forward me her niece’s web/blog site url.  Fiona Lapham is a chef, a good old Rhode Island girl, married to a cab driver in Firenze, and working in a fine ristorante.  I found her website fascinating to read and I boldly sent her an email via her comments box:

Hello David and Marianne,

That's nice that you will be here in June, too bad about Penny and Charlie. My husband and I would love to meet up with you when you are here. I would also love to invite you to the restaurant where I work, but the future of the restaurant is a bit unsteady at the moment and I am not sure I will be working there in June. Hopefully I'll have another job somewhere in Florence. Keep in touch and we will think of a plan!

Fiona

Beautiful.  An actual real, live, although we’ve never meet, person to meet with in Firenze.  She speaks English and can probably give us the inside ‘poop’ on everything.  Plus, her husband, the taxi driver, probably knows how to get any where.  This seems like a very cool contact to have made.