Morales22.com » buonconvento

This little piggie went to market…

Debbie — Wed, 13 May 2009 19:01:18 +0000

The market is a big thing in Italy. No malls, no Costco, and not many people have cars, so the market comes to them. We have our market in Montalcino on Fridays (8 AM to 1PM), Buonconvento on Saturdays and Siena on Wednesdays. Vendors pull up in trucks, open the side panels and display their wares so all the locals can come to do their shopping.

Montalcino has about 3 food vendors (fresh fruit and vegtables and at least one large pig) and about 12 clothing vendors (purple is the “in” color this year). Siena on the other hand probably had 75-100 clothing vendors.

No real “deals” but a fun way to spend a part of the day. (Steve hopes to catch a deal on a leather jacket at the Florence market place)

Mother’s Day

Debbie — Mon, 11 May 2009 20:49:38 +0000

We celebrated Jeff and Carolyn Serfass arriving from Washington D.C. They have joined us in the celebration of Mothers Day and Steve’s Birthday.

Walks, wine, Siena, Buonconvento and more good pasta all enjoyed with awesome weather. This is the first Mothers Day with no flower shop in 20 years (and we could celebrate Steve’s birthday without him being on delivery).

I was a good girl and did not volunteer at the local flower shop, tho’ the owner is a delight!

Hilltowns in Tuscany

Debbie — Sun, 26 Apr 2009 19:07:08 +0000

Somedays it all starts to look the same. But if you quiet your spirit and look closer, each of the hilltowns we have visited thus far, have their own distinct flavor. Each of them was an important oasis for traveling either to Rome on a pilgrimage or to the Holy Land on a Crusade. The hilltowns were markers and way-stations leading the greatest of personages-such as Charlemagne- to the lowliest laborer on their faith-quest dating from the 700′s. There are even walls, catacombs, and art remaining from the Etruscans 900 b.c.

These walled-cities were fortezzas and places of refuge for the travelers and later places to hold off the sieges of waring tribes and provences. Much greater populations were in these towns then (Montalcino pop. 5000 was said to be around 15,000). All sorts of services rose up to fill the needs of sojourners, and they were also surrounded by farms, orchards, and herds to sustain the populace.

Montepulciano, Pienza, San Quirico d’Orcia, Bagno Vignoni (hot springs) and Cortona (of “Under the Tuscan Sun” fame), San Angelo en Cole, Buonconvento, and of course our own Montalcino, may seem like notches on our belts, or another set of photos to label, but listening closely we hear the voices of the so many as they struggled to live, love, and hammer out an existence in their own time in history.

If stones could speaks and walls talk…