July 12th 2020: Tanta roba! This literally means a lot or so much stuff but culturally it is one of the highest compliments you can give for food! We were saying this quite a bit this weekend!!
I took a bus from Florence to Chianti for a day of exploring the small towns, eating alllll the great food, and seeing the wonderful views. It started out a bit rocky because the bus wasn’t stopping at actual stops, just the side of the road once somebody had requested it! I didn’t know where to get off let alone where I was in the countryside! I ended up hopping off on the same stop as another person and then walking around the town hoping for wifi so I could call my friends to come pick me up. Unfortunately there was no free wifi but I did see a sign that I recognized so I knew I wasn’t too far away! I met some very nice people who let me borrow their phone so I could get in touch with my friends.
After the craziness of getting to Greve, I ended up having a blast. We walked around the beautiful streets and they showed me the main piazza which is shaped like a triangle! All of the little shops were so much fun to see but my favorite was the butcher shop. It was super cute and had photos of the family through the generations. And they ship their wine and oil internationally 🙂
Lunch was a beautiful outdoor restaurant called La Castellana and I tried a Florentine favorite for the first time. Truffles were highlighted on this super unique and specialized menu. The best part of this restaurant was that my friends’ butcher shop supplies it so they brought out the raw meat to make sure we were happy with the cut! So many laughs were shared around the table, my abs are still hurting from laughing so much!!
Once we finished lunch, we headed up to Montefioralle which is a beautiful little village. Walking around was so much fun because there was very few other people and the views were amazing! Many homes had absolutely beautiful flowers and the village church was fun to see as well.
After we hung around Montefioralle we moved on to Panzano. It was so fun to see the local families spending their Saturday in the piazza and the local Gelateria was booming because it is HOT! I met world renowned butcher Dario Cecchini who was born and raised in Panzano and is the eighth generation town butcher. But he has left the tiny village as well and has been featured on Chef’s Table and Top Chef to help the world redefine meat.
The countryside is a lot like Vermont with lots of green and way less people! We even passed a tractor while I was on the bus! With the bus ride to the country and the car ride back into the city I was able to see nearly the whole Chianti Wine Route so that was lots of fun! I wholeheartedly recommend exploring the country to everyone! Even though the day started out a little rough, it ended up being one of my favorite days ever!
Abbie Abroad 