Summer 2007 pt. 3: Tuscany

Coming home from Finland, I had 18 hours in Copenhagen to repack and reorganize before setting off for Pisa with my mother, my brother and sister, my stepfather and his whole family. Coming from the erratic and rainy Scandinavian summer weather, it was great to see some stable sunshine, hang out by the pool, read lots of books, see a bit of Renaissance art, and most importantly hanging out with the clan which was lots of fun (except when all 13 of us, spread across 3 generations with widely different interests and agendas had to go do anything touristy together. Luckily, we did well to organize ourselves into smaller groups for most excursions).

Tuscany is a great place, though understandably crowded with tourists at this time of year. It is amazing how perfectly sunny the weather is, how perfectly sun-ripe the vegetables are, how well-tasting even the simplest meal is. Once away from the main body of tourists at the local agri-turismo (we stayed in a small village called Barberino Val d’Elsa halfway between Florence and Siena), you batteries recharge surprisingly quickly, allowing you to come home with the necessary mental and solar surplus to keep you going at home.