Tuscany is a beautiful region of Italy.  Here are three more terrific villages in which to experience Tuscany.

Montepulciano

A beautiful village with Renaissance buildings and impressive fortifications in Tuscany, Montepulciano was our first stop for the day. The town sits high atop a narrow limestone ridge in the heart of the Vino Nobile Wine growing region.

We drove up to the lower edge of the village, and then we walked farther up looking at views all along the way.

This is such a quaint beautiful town. In the distance, we heard church bells calling. After all, this is Sunday. Down below we could hear a rooster crowing. The sights and sounds were awesome.

The weather today is cloudy and in the distance, one can see a fog hanging in one area below. There is a very large lake near here with a story of a major battle, a story that has been passed down from family to family through the ages. Our guide shared it with us.

I can see why Tuscany is such a draw. This area of hills, farms, and vineyards are so picturesque. The views were awesome at every turn.

We entered the village through an arched door and foyer.

This is the village where parts of “Under the Tuscan Sun” were filmed. It reminded me and Chuck that we need to go back and watch this movie again.

It is early morning and is the perfect time to see all of this.

We stopped to see Tempio di San Biagio. What a beautiful church

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Sometimes the churches are more beautiful inside than out, but this one was an exception to this.

After a walking tour, we boarded our bus again and near Montepulciano, we stopped at a countryside restaurant called Pulcino. Here, we sampled Tuscany’s renowned Italian red wines.

Tuscany is known for its Chianti, but this region is also known for its Vino Nobile Wine. We also toured their olive oil cellar and got to see a 5000-year-old Etruscan mask, a funeral mask.

   

They served us a light lunch which included tastings of several different wines from the region including one dessert wine. We also tasted several different ages of Porcino cheeses. Then we had a pasta with tomato sauce. It was all delicious. On the terrace were beautiful views of Montepulciano in the distance.

Last, we tasted their local sweet white wine that was served with biscotti. They suggested this was best not to drink alone but to eat the biscotti after dunked in the wine. They were right! We have a new dessert to serve at home.

Pienza

Next, we went to Pienza, another medieval village; and we spent the afternoon shopping for local specialties such as their famous pecorino cheese which is unique to this small town. Chuck and I bought pecorino Nero. We will bring it back to the states to eat later.

Pienza is another lovely medieval village. We had a grande cappuccino and set in a restaurant’s little courtyard in the outdoors. It was a perfect afternoon snack.

Most Etruscan towns were built high for fortification and protection. The views from Pienza are beautiful. This is the fall so their fields have already been plowed for the next crops.

Pienza did have problems during the war and parts were destroyed, but it is still beautiful. “The English Patient” was filmed here.

San Gimignano

Another beautiful town is San Gimignano with Romanesque and Gothic architecture.

It is a city of towers. Whereas most Tuscan cities or towns lost their towers due to wars and other catastrophes, San Gimignano managed to retain fourteen of theirs. It is known for its skyline of towers and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

We used our time here to just walk and observe. It was a beautiful cloudless day for it. We also wanted to sample the “World’s Best Gelato.” The line was long.

Afterwards, we rode to Civitavecchia to board our ship. Tonight we begin our cruise, and tomorrow we visit Portofino.