Wednesday, 18 ottobre 2006 After an early breakfast and a spectacular sunrise, we all got on a rented bus to go to a biodynamic farm, Poggio Antico, and then to San Gimignano for a much anticipated field trip. This day was bittersweet for me – my excitement about riding through the hills of Tuscany and…

Wednesday, 18 ottobre 2006 I am thankful that I was able to see this sunrise at Spannocchia.

Tuesday, 17 ottobre 2006 After that incredible lunch, we had a little bit of time to relax. Sandino played chess with Charlie, and I spent some quiet time in il giardino segreto (the secret garden) with a book, my notebook, and camera. I didn’t go far, since I was trying to heal my foot before…

Tuesday, 17 ottobre 2006 A couple of weeks ago, I posted a short paper that I wrote about the history and culture of pasta in Italy. Part of the project was learning to make my own fresh pasta, so I documented this part of our cooking class with Loredana in great detail! (Thank you, Teresa,…

Tuesday, 17 ottobre 2006 After our tour of the kitchen gardens with Carmen, we entered la cucina di Spannocchia (the kitchen of Spannocchia) for our cooking lesson with Loredana. We would be preparing lunch for everyone that day. Sandino surprised everyone, especially his wife, who barely recognized him. He leapt forward at every opportunity to…

Tuesday, 17 ottobre 2006 On Tuesday morning, after a customary breakfast of bread, jam, yogurt, granola, hard-boiled eggs, juice, and some kick-ass coffee, half the class went out to work in various areas on the farm, and our half toured the kitchen gardens with Carmen, the orto (kitchen garden) manager. As you might guess, the…

The history of the estate dates back to the 12th century, when a group of monks settled at Santa Lucia, an hermitage located on the banks of the Rosia river at the base of what is now the Spannocchia property. – from www.spannocchia.org Monday, 16 ottobre 2006 We set off at 5 p.m. for Santa…

Monday, 16 ottobre 2006 After breakfast, the class went on a historical tour with Randall Stratton, one of the owners of Spannocchia. He explained about the mezzadria system that the farm (and many others like it) operated under for hundreds of years. Under that system, sharecroppers lived and worked on the land for one half…

To be continued…

Monday, 16 ottobre 2006 After taking in the stunning views at the top of the tower, we had a vegetarian lunch that included the traditional Tuscan panzanella, a salad made with leftover bread, and a green salad. I was happy to have some time to roam on my own and write a little in my…