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Puglia…within striking distance of Rome. Stay at the exquisite, small (and well priced) boutique Hotel Pineta in Ruvo de Puglia.

Visit Ruvo, a small (Etruscan-origin) sleepy town a few
km from the sea, seated among a small pine forest and
surrounded by beautiful olive groves. History is every
where you go, Ancient Greek, Roman, and lots of
baroque. The food is excellent, and the area produce a wonderful, organic olive oil, so plan to come home loaded (and with several empty suitcases maybe)!

Or have a great day out from Rome at the beautiful gardens of Tivoli at the Villa d’Este, and take in a lunch at the superb, family-run and family-friendly restaurant Anfiteatro di Bleso, known for its fresh fish and typical specialities of the region. (ChI had some of the best prepared sea bass she has ever eaten, there). In the picturesque mediaeval village of Tivoli, on Vicolo S. Croce 16. Tel 0774 314 757.

Tuscany, Il Palaggio

Image courtesy of www.culturalitaly.com

Getting There

Rent a car at the airport and drive across.

The closest airport is Florence (about 30km from Il Pallagio – but allow a bit more time for getting lost, as signs are not always very visible – or indeed, there at all.) Pisa is only a little bit further away. You can also fly into Bologna (about 1 ½ hrs drive away).

Or, there is a good bus service by SITA to/from the Florence main bus terminal (next to the railway station), serving towns near Il Palagio and your hotels such as Greve-in-Chianti, San Casiano Val di Pesa, Mercatale, Panzano (roughly one every 1 hour). For timetables, consult their web site:
http://www.sita-on-line.it/sita-toscana/hometoscana.htm, then click on “Chianti e Val di Pesa”.

Accommodation

In the immediate vicinity of Il Palagio and Montefolchi (within 5km or so), there are numerous choices…..

I Greppi di Silli (2km away from Il Palagio)
A small, simple, family-run “agriturismo” or farm holiday complex, with 6 nice apartments with good common facilities like swimming pool, coin laundry, mountain bikes, baby cot rental etc. Their website shows photos and floor plans. Minimum stay 7 days in high season - (Saturday to Saturday). Check out Casa Vecchia, Casa di Giotto, and Casa di Sotto http://www.igreppidisilli.it Email .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) Tel +39 (0) 55 821 7956, Fax: 39(0) 55 821 8401

Fonte de Medici (5km away from Il Palagio)
A more up-market and elegant apartment complex with common facilities like restaurant, gym, pool etc, offering both daily and weekly rentals. Photos and floor plans available on their website. http://www.fontedemedici.com Contact Elizabetta at Mail: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) Or call/fax: Tel:+39(0)55.82.44.700; Fax:+39(0)55.82.44.701; Cell +39(0)348 397 9600 Via Santa Maria a Macerata, 31, 50020 Montefiridolfi (Fi)

Hotel Antica Posta (8 km away, in the town of San Casciano) A 3-star hotel in San Casciano, suggested for those who will have not have a car. Inside there is a nice restaurant. Eail: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) Tel +39 055 822 313, fax ; +39 055 822 278 Piazza Livio Zannoni 1/3, 50026 San Casciano in Val di Pesa
Castello di Bibbione (about 8km from Il Palagio)
A lovely hamlet of cottages renovated into charming 14 holiday apartments, with a swimming pool and a chapel. Another good wedding reception venue. www.castellodibibbione.com.
mail: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Via Collina 66 – 50026, San Casciano in Val di Pesa
Telfax: (+39)055-824-9231

Villa Le Barone (in Panzano)
An elegant and historic manor house with a swimming pool and an amazing view of the hills and vineyards, with about 10 rooms.
Info at : www.villalebarone.it
Mail: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) Via S. Leolino, 19, 50020 - Panzano in Chianti (FI)
Tel.: (+39) 055 852621; Fax: (+39) 055 852277

Albergo del Chianti (in downtown Greve)
A 3 star hotel at the charming town centre of Greve in Chianti. Useful location for access to tourist information, mountain bike rental, and bus service. 16 rooms with shower, WC, telephone, air conditioning and satellite TV. Also a swimming pool and a restaurant. http://www.albergodelchianti.it/welcome.htm Piazza G- Matteotti, 86 - 50022 Greve in Chianti (FI)
Tel: +39 055 853763 - Fax: +39 055 853764
Mail: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

Ancora del Chianti (north of Greve towards Mercatale) offers both B&B (bed and breakfast) and apartments. A small, rustic and charming 200 year old stone house, surrounded by vineyards, cypresses and olive groves, located near Greti, 3 km north of Greve. Double, single, twim rooms and two apartments, “Sangiovese” for up to 4 persons (a double room with a livingroom sofa bed) and “Malvasioa” for 2 persons. Special rates for direct Internet booking. http://www.greve-in-chianti.com/ancora.htm
Laura Rontani, Via Collegalle 12, I-50022 Greve in Chianti (FI)
Tel/Fax: +39 055 85 40 44
E-mail: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

Villa Sangiovese (outskirts of Greve and Panzano)
A charming country villa with a swimming pool and mountain bikes for guests.
Info at : http://www.charmingsmallhotels.co.uk/Units/336.HTML
19 Rooms (15 double, 1 single, 3 suites) all with bath or shower; all rooms have phone; rooms facing the piazza have air conditioning. Average price of EUR 119 for 2 persons with breakfast. Minimum stay of 3 days.
Mail: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Piazza Bucciarelli, 5, 50020 - Panzano in Chianti (FI) Tel.: (+39) 055 852461; Fax: (+39) 055 852463

Castello Vicchiomaggio (north of Greve towards Mercatale) Formerly a fortified castle, this building, now a prestigious wine estate with a tasting facility you can visit, Castello Vicchiomaggio dates from 956 and was rebuilt during the Renaissance.

Throughout the 9 apartments and 2 farmhouses you will find wonderful heavy antique wooden furniture, in keeping with the estate’s history. The restaurant serves homemade pastas and specialties such as stracotto, beef cooked in the farm’s own prize-winning Chianti Classico. 8 apartments, 2 farmhouses; restaurant, in-room safes, kitchenettes, refrigerators, cable TV, pool; (no air conditioning though, if this is an issue) http://www.vicchiomaggio.it/en/index.shtml
mail: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Via Vicchiomaggio 4, Greve in Chianti 50022
Phone: 055/854079; Fax: 055/853911

Villa Vignamaggio (around Greve) This historic estate has guest rooms and apartments in a villa, as well as two small houses and a cottage on the grounds. The villa, surrounded by manicured classical Italian gardens, dates from the 14th century but was restored in the 16th. It is reputedly the birthplace of da Vinci’s Mona Lisa, and more recently, the film Much Ado About Nothing was filmed there. It has 2 rooms, 15 apartments, 1 cottage, 2 houses; and offers minibars, tennis court, 2 pools, playground, some pets allowed, no-smoking rooms available.
www.vignamaggio.com Mail: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Via Petriolo 5, Greve in Chianti Phone: (39)055 854661; Fax: (39)055 8544468

Further away from Il Palaggio, (more than 15 km) but very charming, is the hotel Villa Rosa di Bosco Rotondo (south of Panzano). It offers 15 double rooms, all equipped with private bathroom. Each room has its own decor, either hand painted or handmade furniture, wrought iron beds with canopies in beautiful Italian fabrics. http://www.dormireintoscana.it/VillaRosadiBoscoRotondo/enindex.htm

Castello di Lamole (15 minutes further south of Panzano and Greve) A medieval village on a hilltop preserved and converted into a hamlet of holiday apartments. Their 9 apartments have been restored from the original village houses, with charming furnishings. Weekly rentals required.
http://www.castellodilamole.it/eng/ospitalita.html phone: +39 055 630498
fax: +39 055 630611
e-mail: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

The Italian Countryside
Le Marche

The region of Le Marche on the east side of Italy next to Umbria, is only about 4 hours drive from Rome, and presents a fantastic rural venue for a country retreat, in winter or summer. ChI actually prefers winter, which makes a great change from the usual skiing holidays, for a get-away-from it all Christmas! If you strike it lucky, you will open your windows to a magnificent view of the Monte Sibillini’s snow-capped peaks, with the russet tones of the foliage in the hills and valleys that lead towards it – an amazing picture of colour, tone, light and shade which lends a magical quality to the cold winter air.

Head up the AI in the direction of Florence and if you have the time, stop off in the charming hill town of Spoleto for a coffee en route. For those of you that don’t yet have Tom-Tom or an equivalent GPS system, the best maps are in the Touring Club series (for Le Marche, Italiano Umbria e Marche.

ChI stays in the area near the superb, unspoilt Monte Sibillini National Park, in the vicinity of Sarnano, a wonderful mediaeval village (with great cafes and good shops for local produce such as cinghiale (wild boar) sausage), and the adjacent tiny village of Gualdo in the Valle di Chienti, in traditional Marchegiana farm houses typically built around 1800. ChI always makes sure they are well heated, as it can get cold (and you can even get snowed-in, so beware!)

In summer, the area is gorgeous too, but with many more tourists.

Try the charmingly-named Osteria Scherzi a Parte (“joking apart) in Sarnano for a home-cooked meal featuring local Marchegiana products.

To organize your stay, Tony Wells, at Travel a la carte, Tel + 44 1635 201250 www.travelalacarte.co.uk and .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or us .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) can sort you out, and enable you to rent the perfect farmhouse.

Puglia...within striking distance of Rome. Stay at the exquisite, small (and well priced) boutique Hotel Pineta in Ruvo de Puglia.

Visit Ruvo, a small (Etruscan-origin) sleepy town a few km from the sea, seated among a small pine forest and surrounded by beautiful olive groves. History is every where you go, Ancient Greek, Roman, and lots of baroque. The food was excellent, and the area produce a wonderful, organic olive oil, so plan to come home loaded!

To the Countryside
Le Marche

In summer, the area is gorgeous too, but with many more tourists.

Try the charmingly-named Osteria Scherzi a Parte (“joking apart) in Sarnano for a home-cooked meal featuring local Marchegiana products.

Useful Links

Hanging Out in Nearby Tuscany

Not really Rome, but just up the road (sort of)….and you don’t have to be involved in a wedding to stay there (with a nod to “Major Occasions” elsewhere on this site).

Chianti-shire’s “top ten” locations for hanging out, wining, and dining, as well as aesthetic joys, are:

• Greve in Chianti (Macelleria Falorni is one of Italy’s greatest butchers/delis)
• Castello di Brolio (a vineyard since 1007) producing memorable wines since the 1800’s
• Radda in Chianti, the hilltop town capped by the 15th century Palazzo del Podesta, with the stone coats of arms of past mayors – check out Luciano Prociatti’s butcher shop/deli
• Badia a Passignano, where the Antinori wine empire owns the vineyards around this 11th century monastery. Domenico and Davide Ghirlandaio frescos, and baroque paintings by Ridolfo di Ghirlandaio and Il Passignano.
• Montefiorale, a 14th century hamlet above Greve, with one street and fantastic views
• Pieve di San Leolino, whoere the tiny Romanesque church features several Sienese paintings
• Castellina in Chianti, the most medieval of the Chianti League towns, with the Rocca Fortress – formerly the last outpost of Florence before Siena.
• Ipogeo di Montecalvario, with has a 6th century BC tomb and passages into the burial chambers
• Badia a Coltibuono, another abbey, dating from 770, with Lorenza di Medici’s cookery school and a classy restaurant.
• Panzano in Chianti, where there are a couple of fine enoteche, where you can sample local wines with snacks

Further Afield - Pantelleria, Sicily

With a nod to http://materialicio.us/2007/08/27/monastero/

There is a saying in Italy, “After Rome, Africa…..”. Other associations with Sicily apart, check out the exclusive volcanic island of Pantelleria (the largest of the Sicilian islands) between southern Sicily and the coast of North Africa, for an Italo-Arabesque experience which has caught the imagination of the likes of Giorgio Armani and Gerard Depardieu, both of whom have houses there.

6h by ferry from Rome, or a short plane ride, and a natural fusion of cultures, Pantelleria is situated in an age-old crossroads between Europe and Africa. Only 70km from the North African coast, and weather, food and culture all reflect the Southern Mediterranean location. The small island of Pantelleria is famous for its history, its buildings and the well kept authenticity and nature the island offers the visitor (apart from being a haven for the rich and famous!) It can be reached by boat from Trapani Palermo (a 6h trip) and through direct flights from Rome. www.pantelleria.it

On the island, ChIs always stay in a “dammuso”, the amazing ancient Arab construction of houses typical for the island of Pantelleria south of Sicily often dating from the 5th or 6th century. These are usually a series of one-storey square buildings, wiith a cistern on the roof to collect rainwater.

Once there, stay at the Santa Teresa Resort Pantelleria, with its volcanic origins, is the largest of the Sicilian islands. The resort is just 6 km far from the local airport, 10 km far from Pantelleria centre and harbour, and only a few minutes away by car from the small village of Scauri. Via Contrada Monastero Alto-Sibà , 91010 Scauri Siculo (TP), Pantelleria, Sicily. www.designhotels.com

Located in the exquisite environment of Valle di Monastero and Piana di Siba, a collection of ancient dammusi have been restored and renovated into individualized, unique high-level lodgings, within the confines of Santa Teresa, a working farm which extends over 40 hectares of vineyards, producing wines, olive trees, vegetables, lentils, beds of aromatic herbs and woodland.

The resort itself is a collection of 18 “dammusi” clustered into 4 mini-villages (each with its own pool). Each dammuso can accommodate between 2 and 4 people, some with the main bed in an alcove or a gallery and all featuring a bathroom, a kitchenette and air conditioning. Santa Teresa provides a great stepping-off point from which to take in this beautiful Afro-European slice of the Sicilian archipelago. There is also great swimming in the crystal blue-green southern waters is a few minutes away by car. The sky is always blue, and the black of the island’s volcanic rock foundation all provide stunning visual accompaniment to the slow pleasures of this part of the world.

The small village of Siba and its delightful church are a stone’s throw away; and Scauri, a village with a small harbour and a shingle beach, is only a few minutes away by car.

Food served at Santa Teresa is fiercely local, often Italian-Arab fusion, and features “Pantelleria pesto”, the freshest of fish, and couscous and Arabic sweets. The resort’s Arabian garden is the ideal place to relax sipping a drink in the evenings.

Or stay at Monastero, a resort created totally in keeping with its natural surroundings, in the middle of the Pantelleria National Park. Monastero consists of three groups of Dammusi, the typical local houses, all of which are surrounded by vineyards, olive groves and the natural vegetation of the island. Residence Il Monastero”, Nr Porto Scauri—Pantelleria,Sicily

Beautifully, minimalistically-renovated, all the architectural characteristics of the dammusi have been preserved, and the rooms are furnished with antiques and exotic fabrics. The outdoor sitting areas, the Arabian gardens and palm trees make for a beautiful external environment.