Europe 2010: Italy and France - Part 4, Tuscany!

While Jeannie and I were in Florence, we took some time to head out into Tuscany! Think... Sonoma in the middle ages and I think that might describe it. On our trek we visited the towns of Siena, San Gimignano, and of course, Pisa. Each town had its on charm and character with the locals fiercely proud of where they had come from. According to one woman we spoke to, pregnant moms-to-be from Siena would carry a canister of the town's dirt with them when they were near their delivery date. In the event they went into labor away from home, they would place the soil under their bed so when their baby was born, the could still claim that the baby was still born on top of Siena soil. How's that for local town pride!

Shot of the beautiful Tuscan landscape. Despite the overcast, you could still appreciate all of the beauty the scenery had to offer!

While in Siena, we visited the world's oldest bank. Rather than gargoyles protecting their rooftops, we spotted these crazy heads jutting out of the top of the building. Wish I knew who all these heads were but I'll assume they were all famous...

Inside the Duomo in Siena was this older man on his knees doing what I can only imagine is painstaking work. He was using some sort of filler to repair the microcracks that were in the marble floors. Even though my back hurt just watching him, I was in awe admiring his patience and attention to detail he put into the repairs

A view from a roadside in Siena. The church you see in the background is the Church of San Domenico where the remains of St. Catherine are held

Il Campo, one of Italy's most famous squares and home to the Palio horse race. The whole square was shaped like a seashell that slants downward to a single drain.

Jeannie and I had the opportunity to visit a local organic farm in Tuscany. Raising their own cattle, growing their own grapes and olives, the owners introduced us to their organic wines and wonderful olive oils. Definitely one of the highlights of our trip!

Selection of wines from the farm we visited, Fattoria Poggio Alloro. Super pleasant and mild wines all of which were very tasty. Gotta find me a local store that offers their wines for sure!

Doggy that I spotted enjoying his patch of sunlight during the break in the rain on the farm.

Let me introduce to you... The Man. I wish I knew his actual name, but let's just say that for three years straight, he and his gelateria in San Gimignano have won the Ice Cream World Championships for Italy (yes, apparently this actually does exist).

Shots of some of the many towers in the medieval town of San Gimignano

I really don't know what it is, but when you're in the town of Pisa, people do crazy things like this for that "check out this totally unique picture I was able to get!" shot. Haha! Sometimes you just have to be a tourist and take the obligatory cheesy photo! Gotta love it!