My Tuscan Experience

Have you ever been to Tuscany?  No?  What are you waiting for?  Tuscany's go it all.  If you want to get away from the city-like atmosphere and enjoy some of Italy's most picturesque sceneries and medieval cities,  still intact, then you ought to visit Tuscany.  Florence  is its capital city, the birthplace of the renaissance, home to the influential De Medici Family and Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo.

Tuscany is also famous for its cuisine, varying from the famous Bisteccha Fiorentina, Cacciucco Livornese to the numerous wine regions amongst which, that of Montepulciano.

This is where me and my better half decided to spend our 5 day summer holiday.   A short holiday of course, considering the vast stretch of land of the Tuscan Region.  We landed at the Galileo Galilei Airport in Pisa.   This is where all the major low cost airlines land.  A reasonably small airport considering the constant flow of tourists pouring in from around the world. We had to wait in the blazing sun for a few minutes before the airport bus took us to the car depot  to pick up our pre-booked car.  

Driving in Tuscany is a must if you really want to enjoy the hidden gems this region has to offer, the far stretching lands covered in sunflowers complimenting the vastly green areas and the occasional lonely tree sitting on a hilltop.

Our first taste of the Tuscan cuisine was at VignaIlaria.  A wonderful place nestled in the countryside outside the city walls of Lucca.  

We noticed a beautiful garden on our way in and opted to eat outside however we had to cancel our plans, rain started pouring down heavily.  

 The ambient inside is equally pleasant.  Vigna Ilaria is what I call a casual fine dining spot.  We were greeted by Andrea, the owner and left it up to him to impress us with his tasty dishes.   

Inside Vigna Ilaria

We had a selection of 4 starters followed by a main course and desert.  We had some red wine of the region suggested by the sommelier.

The antipasti we chose were Insalata Lia and Acciughe di Monterosso (anchovies).  

Insalata Lia

Fresh anchovies with lemon juice are a speciality of the region with the fish being caught from Viareggio and Livorno (famous for the Cacciucco alla Livornese which I managed to taste as well.  My next dish was also fish based, the Carpaccio di Sarago bianco

Carpaccio di Sarago Bianco

and an interesting small pan for Vanessa.  Inside was an egg immersed in some of the best cheese the area has to offer.  

An evening to remember, a brilliant food experience with dishes which taste like poetry.

We bid Andrea, the owner and his staff farewell and took to the road for a 30 min drive back to our base in Pisa.  

To be continued...