Wine Tasting in Siena

 We spent yesterday wine tasting in Montalcino and Siena. The vineyards were beautiful, and the sun came out, giving us extraodinary views for our drive through Tuscany.

The courtyard at the first winery we stopped at. They featured a few types of Brunello wines, as well as an olive oil they make.

Chels and I at the first winery. You can see the vineyard behind us.

I would not want to hand pick those grapes!

We stopped for lunch in Montalcino. Many of these towns are set atop the hillside, so they offer wonderful 360 views. We mistakenly drove into the city initially, so Barry had some tight squeezes down the old cobblestone roads. Yesterday was also a national holiday in Italy, liberation day (from the Nazis after WWII), so we found ourselves literally in the middle of their liberation parade! Complete with a marching band, men in tights, and what seemed to be the whole town walking behind the parade to celebrate. 

We had lunch at a wonderful Italian restaurant that Andrew and Rachel had researched and made reservations. My lunch was gnocchi with porcini mushrooms, I wish I had taken a picture! It was delicious! And local wine, of course. Chelsea had a pasta with Strangozzi noodles in a meat sauce, very tasty.

After lunch, we headed to our second winery outside of Siena.

Gorgeous buildings and grounds of the winery

A tad bit windy, but warm and comfortable in the sun.

Chelsea and Cindy at the vineyard.

Tour of the second winery, some of the barrels were big enough to hold 10,000 bottles worth of wine!

Gelato shop, OMG. We can't get enough!

After the winery, we headed into Siena to explore and have dinner. This is a view of the Piazza del Campo. After hiking up into the city, we're walking through narrow, winding cobblestone streets with shops and cafes. All of a sudden, there is a break in the street and the huge piazza comes into view. This is where the Palomino races take place, a la one of the recent James Bond movies, where you have possibly seen an image of this event. The town folk gather in the center of the piazza, and the jockeys race around the outside path of the piazza for the event.

Fonte Gaia fountain

Torre del Mangia

Chels and I at the Piazza del Campo.

There were so many people spending time in the square. Locals, tourists, it was a nice mix. I love that whole families are out walking around these Italian towns, really enjoying each other. Wonderful!

Base of the Torre del Mangia

Me sitting in a cool cutout wall on our way to dinner. I love the greenery, nature find a way to thrive in the heart of the city!

Dinner in Siena

Chelsea's delicious cheese and assorted honey plate at dinner

Andrew and Rachel found another great spot for dinner. It was almost as if we were in an old tunnel, converted into a restaurant. Very cozy and tasty, the food and wine are so good here!!! 

With that, I'm off to breakfast. Ciao!

Our first full day in Italy

After a full night's sleep, we're feeling rested and refreshed; ready to start our Italian vacation! The bride and groom arrived late last night, along with a set of their friends. They found their way to the Villa via hilly, winding roads. Chels was already asleep, I managed to stay up long enough to say hello and have a glass of wine with the soon-to-be newlyweds.

                                          The front of the Villa

Another picture of the Villa, and the guest rooms on the right side. Our room and the Tobys and Davidsons are all staying in the main part of the old house, off to the left side of the Villa (first picture)

This is the guest cottage, with a few more rooms, pool table and sitting area. Both the Villa and guest cottage have their own swimming pools

Path down to the guest cottage, set back and to the right of the main house. Also, there are a few cats roaming around the grounds. This kitty wanted to be in my picture!

They have bikes on the property, so we can bike into town. Also, another cat keeping a close eye on me while I toured the grounds.

The Villa includes a nice breakfast each morning. We slept in, ate our breakfast, and headed back into Fabro for some shopping, cafe lattes, and lunch. Many folks were walking around the town today, the church had recently let out from the service, so it felt like quite the European experience to be out among the locals, walking down the narrow, cobblestoned streets. I love hearing the church bells ring, every 15 mintues! 

It's been a rainy day, much like our typical Seattle weather. Waiting for the sun to come out, stay tuned for more pictures, hopefully poolside! The remainder of today will be spent relaxing at the Villa, adjusting to the time change, and meeting some more of Andrew and Rachel's friends who come in tonight via train in Chiusi. Then wine tasting tomorrow. Having a wonderful time!

Arrivederci! 

Fabro, Italy

Arrival day: on our way to the Villa, we pass through a quaint town, Fabro. Unfortunately for us, many restaurants close between 3pm-7pm for afternoon rest time or siestsa, so we haven't yet gotten a chance to taste the gastro delicacies. But am looking forward to it very much! 

Cool door knockers

Duomo (cathedral church)

Lots of neat alleys

A bit scary driving through these narrow streets in a 8-passenger van! Barry was an excellent driver, we made it safe and sound.

Citta Della Pieve is about a mile walk from the Villa, will definitely be going into town tomorrow to check out the shops and eat at a local pizzeria or two.

We've made it to Italy!

Hello all,

We have safely made it to Italy! Currently at the Villa, outside of Chiusi in the Tuscany region of Italy. After being up for 28 hours, a hot shower and change of clothes makes me feel like a new woman.

We have a welcome dinner at the Villa tonight, I am looking forward to a glass of Italian wine in Italy and a delicious local meal. Will take pictures of the Villa house and grounds tomorrow to share. I'm off to relax, arrivederci!

It's been awhile!

Hello family and friends,

My, it's been quite some time since the Tovigby's have posted!  We're getting ready to travel to Italy for Andrew (Chelsea's brother) and Rachel's wedding. Flight leaves tomorrow!  We're hoping to post pictures and updates onto our blog while we're away. Stay tuned!

Better get some stuff into this suitcase, pronto! 

Stephanie & Dan's Baby Shower

Chelsea and I hosted a baby shower for Stephanie & Dan in October. Little Baby Budi should be arriving in the next few weeks, due mid-December!  We're all very excited! Aunt Cathy graciously let us host at her house. We had a jungle-themed party, very festive and cute!

Cindy came in to town for the weekend, here are the Toby ladies.

 

Sisters!

 

Homemade monkey cupcakes!

 

 Festive punch bowl

Wild safari outfits we found at Goodwill!

 Grandpa Jack, the game hunter

Cousin Miranda and Matt, with a festive scarf on (most likely not of his choosing!)

 

Miranda and Chels

Festive friends

Me, Chels, Cindy (with her cute cat ears!)

 

More sisters! Cindy and Cathy

 

Papa Jack and his girls

Our littlest guest, a T-Rex!

Exciting new baby trappings!

The guests had festive animal hats and all

 

 

 

We had a very fun time, good food and good people!  Good luck Steph & Dan, can't wait to meet Baby Budi next month!

 

 

Happy birthday shout out to my Mama today, wish we could be there to celebrate with you!  Love you Mom!!!

 



November, my my!

Well I really can't believe it's November already! Where has this year gone? Chels and I are well, busy with work and life as usual. Last night we went to dinner with Grandpa Jack, to our favorite local Mexican place, Cactus. Delicious! We watched a movie and spent some time together, it was a fun evening.

In early October, we hosted a baby shower for Stephanie and Dan, who are expecting their first baby in a little over a month. Our first Toby niece or nephew, we can't wait! This will be Grandpa Jack's second great-grandbaby. His first, little Jaxon, was born to cousin Jake and Jazmin last month. He sure looks sweet! Gramps will be heading down to California for a visit over Thanksgiving.

Chels and Barry have made major headway in our backyard! Stay tuned for pictures, it looks great! Barry and Cindy were visiting this summer and we all spent time working on the project. Can't wait until the spring when all the new blooms come up! Aunt Cathy has been our gardening expert and advisor, we've been to the nursery a few times to get some nice additions for the flower beds.

We've also had cousin Joe and Mary's wedding in California in August, so beautiful and a great time! Chels and I had a weekend adventure up to Camano Island this fall, relaxing and very pretty. We've got lots of fun photos to share! Thanks for reading, and I'll post pictures soon!