My 10 favourite Moments in Italy in 2011

I have been going through my photographs of 2011 and came upon a few memorable moments. This year was my first blogging year. Having to come up with news for my readers actually made me do things which I have been wanting to do for years.

February in Paris

The happy bidders and the happy me (in the middle)

I have always thought that running a company should give me the possibility to go beyond the stage of simply  “making a living”. This year for the first time I had the opportunity to donate a weeks holiday in one of our villas (Villa Maramai near Montepulciano). The charity auction organised by the American women’s group in Paris was for the benefit of Envol, an association which sets up holidays with medical assistance for very sick children in a castle near Paris.

March in The Veneto

Vicenza, early evening early spring

I strolled through Vicenza on my own one early evening end of March. I got my first whiff of spring here. I love Italy out of season!

The Rialto food market in Venice (just below the rialto bridge!)

After a week working in the Veneto area, my husband joined me for a week-end in Venice, we are still end of March. We strolled through the main food market next to the Rialto bridge, bought our first strawberries of the year and sat down on the embankment in the sun, watching the gondolas and vaporettos come by.

April in the Maremma, southern Tuscany Coast

Empty beaches in April in Tuscany

I went back to Italy the second week of April, this time I took my daughter along. A few days were warm enough for us to go the the beach in Bolgheri, the children had such fun and the beach was empty.

An umbrella pine tree alley leading to the beach in the Maremma, the southern Tuscan coast

In May, I finally planned a hike through the Maremma National Park. I went with Verio Piroddi, the owner of Fontanile, which is nearby. Of course I forgot my camera in the car (!). As you have to get onto a shuttle bus into the park, going back to get the camera would have been too long. The walk was memorable and I will go back next year to do a longer treck. Afterwards I drove along the boundaries of the park and came upon this beautiful alley of umbrella pine trees. They are one of the landmarks of the Maremma.

August in Tuscany

Walking towards the Campo di Siena on the day of the Palio in our Sunday clothes

Back in Italy in August, this time the whole family went. We were invited to see the Palio from Palazzo d’Elci with windows exactly above the departure, known as the mossa. I had been to the Palio 3 times before, but this was a new way of seeing it. Here we are walking to the Palio after having parked our car along the road outside town .

After the treasure hunt at La Foce

In August we spent a week at La Foce. The estate had organised children’s activities on 3 afternoons of the week. This picture shows the end of the treasure hunt.

Bottom up - this picture was taken from the bottom of the well

This picture was taken from the bottom of the well of San Patrizio in Orvieto – another sight I have been wanting to see for many years. The well was built by the architect San Gallo in the 16th century, he also designed the castello at Vivo d’Orcia, one of the historical Estates I have been working with for many years.

Beginning of October in Veneto, Vicenza and Padua

The piazza del Duomo in Padua

Back to Italy at the beginning of October, everybody couldn’t stop talking about how warm it still was, as in Summer. I went to see a new villa above Vicenza, which I will be telling you more about, and stopped in Padua to visit the Baptistry, another visit which had been on my list for many years. The baptistry is painted with very early luminous frescoes (14th century) .

November in Tuscany, the Val d’Orcia and Florence

Collecting chestnuts in the hamlet of Vivo d'Orcia

M y last visit to Italy this year was a trip to Tuscany at the beginning of November. Here an old man was collecting chestnuts in the hamlet of Vivo d’Orcia. The air smelt of burning leaves, the sun was still warm, even though there was a nip in the air. What a lovely time to be there.

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I visited some new houses in the Orcia valley, a part of Tuscany I know very well. This restored farmhouse (Rombellana) has a beautiful vegetable garden. Next year I will launch a vegetable garden competition among the owners of “our” villas. I will keep you posted…

The nice owner of the Hotel Palazzo Guadagni in Florence

This nice man is the owner of the Hotel Palazzo Guadagni in Florence I wrote a blog post about. He showed me around the hotel pointing out the careful restoration work of the frescoes and wall paintings the hotel had gone through over the last couple of years. While talking to him I realised that he is the brother of an old acquaintance of mine. Lovely coincidence, but this sort of thing often happens in Italy….