Day 10

How is it possible that 10 days have gone by already. Sheesh. I'd like to put the brakes on and slow things down a bit, but I'm not sure how. A couple of days ago when we were at the il Melone hotel (they also rent apartments), there were some ladies that looked to be in their late 50s playing cards at a little table outside one of the apartments. I had a flash of retirement come through my mind, but had to push it to the side for a few more years. But when it comes, I think Italy will be in our future for longer than just 2 weeks at a time. :) Something to dream about anyway. So let's talk about today. I'm calling it a "recovery" day since there was NO driving and it involved a nap! ;)

We woke up about 8:30 to the sounds of fresh produce trucks delivering their goods to the restaurants in the piazza. It was fun to watch them work. It appeared the gelato shops were also open, but in front of the shop that is our favorite (the shop that won the area championship) an older gentleman was outside pulling stems off some kind of fruit. That makes me want gelato for breakfast. ha ha. There were a group of old local guys sitting in chairs and talking with their hands (and lips). They were fun to watch but were too far up against the building for me to get a photo of. So after looking out the window at our view and seeing that the weather was going to be gorgeous, we got ready for breakfast and went together (no, Guy didn't bring me breakfast in bed again!) The spread of food was much better than the il Melone. We had cereal, toast with jams, a sweet roll assortment, ham, prosciutto, cheese, hard rolls, soft boiled eggs and fresh melon. They also made coffee or cappuccino if you'd like. I wish I liked, but they don't make chai lattes here - and no Starbucks. We've tried to learn to like coffee, but just can't.

So we headed out for the day with map in hand. Several areas of the town we covered last night, so we hit everything else today, side streets included. We got a great feel for the town and came across a few fun sights. One guy is dressed like a priest and a lady is playing the harp. He is performing something religious but I can't tell what he is saying of course, but I saw a book that said the word "comedy" on it. So not sure what that was about. There are a group of teens in town today who are in town singing on the streets. Probably 25 or so. Some are handicapped. We thought they were on a school trip at first as they all piled in the town, but when we later came back into the square we saw them singing and dancing (like an Italian Flash Mob). Guy has it figured they are on a mission trip as he guesses the lead singer to be a nun. They were later singing their song and playing their instruments going down the streets. This was not a usual site as some of the store owners were looking out to see what was going on. Besides the kids, there were several street artists who were out selling their goods, mostly paintings and some were quite good. We also came across this guy working on a model of what San Gimignano looked like in 1300. Towers everywhere. He spoke excellent English and he and Guy talked for quite a bit on the work being done. There were 5 of them who took a year and a half to research to the best of their ability what the town looked like. Then they recreated it in 1/100th scale, each piece hand crafted out of clay. It took them one year to make it after their research. It is almost complete. He said it was a "fun project". I'll bet. So I have a photo of it today at the beginning of the blog. I was reading up on the town last night and lots of things went on here in history, but at one point families feuding would just see who could outbuild the other guy's tower. So that is part of the reason there were so many. Very interesting stuff. We ended our morning exploration with a gelato. Mine was dark chocolate and maybe some kind of cookie flavor. This was from the shop that claimed to have the best gelato in the WORLD. It was pretty good, but the shop that was the local champions may have them beat. Neither place ever has a short line.

So I don't think I mentioned today how hot it was. We walked in the shade as much as we could, but we both wanted to come back to the hotel and cool off a bit before we went to lunch. There are lots of places to eat here, so we just chose a spot that had a pretty good crowd and something on the menu that sounded different. So we went with the Trattoria Antica Macelleria because the ravioli sounded good. We had hoped to eat outside, but there were no spots open so we went inside. It looked like at one time it had been a meat store as there was a side with large hooks hanging and some kind of sliding contraption. We didn't inquire. They had 3 men cooking in the back, which I could kinda see in, so I watched. Two older guys were doing most of the work, but the other looked more like a punk kid and he was more interested in coming out and visiting with the server. The one who looked to be the owner also delivered food and mingled about. He was a bit unkept because his shirt was untucked, but he still had a sport coat on of some kind. We ordered Croustini with mozzarella and tomato. It was a combination of a caprese salad and bruschetta. But the bread had been grilled and the fresh mozzarella was slightly melted. Large slices of tomato were on top, drizzled with olive oil. It was excellent. Then the food came out. I had the ravioli stuffed with spinach and ricotta cheese with a walnut and pear sauce. Not as good as Guy's last night, but was still very good. Guy had spaghetti with tomatoes and zucchini. It was just ok. The bread was good and he made good use of his bread with the left-over sauce on my plate.

After lunch I headed for the shops and Guy to the room to think about a nap. He made me promise I would not have a gelato, but I couldn't keep such a promise and headed straight for the line. This time I had caramel and pistachio. The caramel was to die for, the pistachio was good, but not my favorite. I bought a few goodies, but not too much as I'm not sure how we are going to get it all back as it is. lol. The carry-on luggage only idea is apparently going to be a one way plan. So after my adventures I came back to the room and joined in on the napping. About 5pm I peeked out the window to people watch. We have the perfect spot for it. So here comes two guys who were playing in the street. Unlike last night, they were younger, rougher looking musicians who appeared to be playing for tips. There was a guitar and violin. The violinist is frequently distracted by his phone. Then a few minutes later comes the big base, an accordion, and a clarinet! They have been playing for about an hour and they are beyond good! Wow! So of course we have our window open and are listening to the sounds from the piazza. Last night the two guys were singing songs from the US. That doesn't put you in the Italian spirit as much as these guys who are playing old Italian songs. Guy is looking out the window now and said they are packing up. Too bad, they were amazing. So now we are thinking about dinner. Last night, when we were unsure if we'd be able to get into the best restaurant recommended by the hotel, Guy booked us for tonight at 8pm. But as you know we got there last night at 9pm and was able to get a seat. So we have that standing reservation tonight that we'll probably keep. There are several restaurants here, don't get me wrong, but some have not so good comments on Tripadvisor, and some don't take credit cards. The food and the view were so good last night we'll probably go back and just try something different on the menu. We've eaten so much the last few days I told Guy tonight I'm only getting one thing. Most nights we get 2 plates each. I'll report in after dinner. Until then I'm going to people watch for a bit and enjoy our last night at the hotel Leon Bianco.

So we decided to keep our reservation tonight at the le Vecchie Mura and just try something different. We didn't get a seat on the rail tonight, but thats ok. We'll let someone else enjoy it like we did yesterday. We still got a seat on the terrace and it was a lovely evening. We got there at 8pm instead of 9, so we got to enjoy the Tuscan hillside view for our entire meal. Last night it got totally dark before we were done, but the twinkling lights of distant towns made for a lovely view as well. So we decided to split a starter and opted for the assorted bruschetta. One was the classic tomato, one was topped with marinated eggplant, and one was a mystery. However, we think we have decided it was what they call "lard". It looks like only the fat part of prosciutto, and it was interesting to try. Probably wouldn't order it again. Our meals consisted of single plates tonight. I had the lasagna and Guy tried the carbonara. We were both pleased, but I think mine was better. We decided not to have dessert, but opted for one last stop at the best gelato shop I think I've ever been to. Please don't judge me, but yes, this was my third gelato of the day. I've developed a problem and I may need an intervention. ;) It was chocolate, coconut and caramel. Guy ate one tiny bite and I polished off the rest with no problem. I'm in a miserably blissful state that only someone on a non-calorie counting vacation can experience. We walked around the piazza a bit while I ate my gelato and watched some kids play soccer, now that most of the tourists have left and they have room to run. It is a lovely evening and we've thoroughly enjoyed San Gimignano. I told Guy today he did a good job in planning because two nights was the perfect amount of time to spend here. Time to relax, yet take in the entire town without being rushed.

Tomorrow we head for Mornico Losana, a small town southwest of Milan, for my glass class starting Monday. Google maps has it taking just under four hours of drive time. There were several routes we could have taken, which could have been a northeast route where we could have seen Bologna, but we decided to take the northwest route closer to the Italian Riviera/Mediterranean coast. We've been to Rapallo before, which is beautiful, but may opt to navigate a smaller town for lunch. We'll ask the reception desk tomorrow for a smaller town on the water that still has beautiful scenery, but doesn't take us too far off the autostrada. Please keep us in your prayers tonight for safe travels tomorrow. :) I finding it fitting to end this post with another photo.