Heading for the hills!

After having spent the last five days exploring the coast, we decided it was time for a change in scenery and so headed for the hills. After breakfast Giaccumo spent time planning an itinerary with us for the day. We ended up with quite a list of small towns to visit.

It was warmer than I expected in the hills. We took our time winding up hilly roads, soaking in the sunshine and different sights. We would then drop in to a small town, park our Pietro and walk in to the centre. Each town was different to the next. We wandered through tiny streets and lanes, pausing to take photos of pretty doors and house fronts. We watched people go about their daily business and appeared to be the only tourists around. We got by with the little Italian we have picked up the times we have been here, communicating with locals. In Licianna Nardi, I confidently ordered a cappucino and asked where the toilet was. To my delight I even understood the responses from the friendly bar owner! A little effort goes along way with Italians. If you attempt to speak the language and understand their routines and customs, you are welcomed whole heartedly.

A few villages we stumbled upon felt almost like ghost towns. Shops, bars and restaurants were closed and there was barely anyone on the streets. The reason for this is that many people go home for a period during the day to eat lunch and spend time at home with their families and then reopen in the late afternoon. 

That however, didn't stop us from finding an amazing little restaurant for lunch in Villafranca.  When traveling, you have to be savvy about choosing places to eat. When in the big cities, we always steer away from the restaurants in the centre, especially those with picture menus! It's sometimes a little harder in smaller towns to determine the good from the bad. Trip Advisor is useful, but not all places are listed ( or the phone has mobile coverage and internet access to check - Shannon). We have had a couple of bad experiences, but the good has far outweighed the bad. Locanda all Antico Mulino was an eye catching little place. Seating outside with vines overhead and a charming waiter who didn't speak a word of English and was very patient with our little Italian.

We arrived at 1pm and were the only people there. We weren't sure if this was a good or bad sign, but we were hungry and had managed to work out some things on the menu so decided to stay. We hit jackpot. With a 1/2 litre of house red wine (for 4.50 euro), sparkling water and an Antipasti to start. The plates came out with heavenly slices of prosciutto, parma ham and baked risotto. We knew we had made a good choice after the first mouthful - simply delicious food. Shannon and I both ordered a pasta dish to follow. Shannon has been looking forward to a feed of porcini mushrooms and had ordered tagliatelle with porcini mushrooms and black truffle and I ordered ravioli ragu. They were both delicious!

With full bellies we drove on to the last stop for the day Bagnone, which proved to be the most picturesque. We sat in the shade for a while with a cold drink watching the world go by, then walked through the centre stopping to admire the pretty bridge and river running below. We're back at Villa Ducci now, resting before dinner.

Tomorrow - Tuscan paradise.