Day 27 – June 15, 2025 – Foiano, Italy
Went to one of the little villages in the Chiana region, called Castiglion Fiorentino, in the province of Arezzo. We walked around for a few minutes then decided to do the museum. We started out in an area that looked like it had at one time been a prison. They also had an archaeological museum containing findings from excavation campaigns that helped to identify Castiglion Fiorentino as a formerly, unknown Etruscan center surrounded by walls dating back to 4th century B.C.
We checked out the art gallery that is in the church of Sant’Angelo. It contains religious art that has been collected from the local churches/monasteries and showcases pieces of Medieval and Renaissance jewelry.
There is an underground path that runs beneath the Cassero (tower) which shows the archaeological site from the Etruscan Age, around 8th century B.C.
Perguians built the Casseretto around 1330 and today which appears as a square plan structure where only the perimeter walls with their round-arch portal were preserved. It also has a deep well and a narrow staircase leading up to the portal through which the tower is accessed. You can see the different stages in which the structure was built as you go up. In the upper portion of the tower there are remains of the brackets supporting the tower’s balconies and battlements are still visible. The very top of the tower holds all their networking stuff, lol! John went up, I didn’t.
After going through all of that, we needed to leave so we could run to the store for a few things before having lunch with Lorenzo and Fiorella. We got back around 1pm and then Fiorella set a nice table outside, though it was hot, and she started with homemade tagliatelle with tomato sauce and some chunks of pork. That was followed by roasted duck with potatoes and fresh peas from her garden. Next was ricotta with dark chocolate (which was baked and yummy!) and just when I thought I couldn’t eat anymore, she brought out some fresh mixed fruit. One of the fruits looked like a very tiny dark cherry, but she had soaked them in some sort of alcohol, and they were pungent! It was a lovely gesture and the food was great.
Scott and Catherine arrived around 4 pm, so they got sorted and then we all went into the pool for the rest of the afternoon before doing a huge charcuterie and some pasta leftovers from lunch, for dinner.
At 7pm, we had our Clippers Cocktails call with Marguerite and Joe, and our drink was a limoncello spritz. We caught up with each other and then talked about our travel plans coming up in December/January.
Catherine and Scott had had a long travel day, so we called it a night. Tomorrow, we plan to drive to San Marino (another tick off the country list!) which is about a 2 ½ hour drive, but it’s through some beautiful country. Ciao!
