Where's Papa???

Let me begin by saying that our ritual of detouring from Google has begun to wear us a little raw. Getting into Rome was hairy and trying to find our very tiny, obscure car rental return was all but almost impossible! Up until this point of our trip I had almost kicked my smoking habit, but this trek required a strong dose of nicotine once we arrived. Our brains and nerves were fried. I guess that's why we were not thinking very clearly and allowed Papa to walk a block or so to hail us a cab unescorted. You know that little voice inside your head that says " Ya know....this is probably not such a good idea.".  And yet you still ignore it for whatever reason be it stupidity, arrogance, carelessness, or in this case ... mental exhaustion. As Meg and I sat in the narrow alley keeping a watchful eye on our suitcases, the realization of what we had just done began to sink in. The minutes began to pass by and slowly, panic began to set in. Time for another cigarette. We had just allowed our 79 year old father, who's hearing isn't quite what it use to be and who's Italian is even weaker, to wander away without a map or even the name of our hotel! Visions of Papa clenching his jaw in frustration while trying to explain to a non-English speaking cab driver that he just wants to go around the block to pick up his girls flash in my mind. At this point I can't help but chuckle at the thought of explaining to everyone back home how we have no clue where Dad is and neither does he! Poor Papa must have been gone for almost 30 minutes before they finally turned down our street. The look on his face was priceless, and so was the cab fare! LOL

We arrived at our hotel Villa San Pio and had had just about all of Rome we could take. We were greeted by the "can-do man" Aga, the hotel butler. Another angel who took wonderful care of us while on our travels. Meg and I soon mustered the courage to explore just a little. One can't come to Rome and stay put. We had to at least check out the hood! To our amazement, our hotel was really very close to quite a lot and we were able to take it all in in a pretty respectful amount of time. 3 hours to be exact! Here is our quick tour.....

Our Chianti Retreat

We left George's haven mid-morning and began heading north to our destination in  Greve, Chianti. Even though we ended up on what was now becoming our typical "google maps detour" the drive was pleasant with beautiful scenery to enjoy.

Once we arrived at our hotel, Tenuta Di Rica ,we were all pretty much in a state of decompression and chose not to venture around the countryside and just absorb the peace and tranquility that was present among the mountainous terrain and tall pines. Our hotel, we discovered, had a marvelous past and a book to go along with it's history. I think that I was one of the few visitors that actually inquired about it's story so the current owners allowed me to keep a copy of the book which was written by it's owner from the 1940's. It was fascinating and I began to feel a connection with Mara, the author and former mistress of the estate. I could easily see why she and her husband fell in love with the once run down farm. They discovered Ricavo at the beginning or World War II in a state of disrepair and put much of their heart and souls into restoreing it's charm.

The current owner, Alexander, and his wife bought it directly from Mara some 30 years ago and have taken marvelous care of the retreat. There were a handful of guests present but you would have never known it. It was so very quite and peaceful...it was as if we had the place to ouselves.

A stroll to the garden...

The majestic timbers of Ricavo...

Groves of olive trees and grapes lined our journey to the hotel.

This was a portrait of Mara's daughter which I loved. I thought she looked just like Drew Barrymore!

Much needed decompression....

A view of the changinig colors from Papa's room.

Yeah, I could get use to this....

This was a wonderful outside kitchen for roasting meats and such.

Now that's a profile!

Our host, Alexander, had a wonderful collection of candelsticks.

Meg and I were a little disappointed when we discovered that grapes had all turned to raisins, but once you took a bite...WOW! I'll never be satified with a Sunmaid again!

Getting ready for cold weather.

Mara was a wonderful artist and this wall was full of self portraits. I like this lady...a lot!

 

Man, I make her look good. Although it doesn't take much!

Our wonderful lobby. I can only imagine the stories it could tell.

More of Mara's talent.

A view from our balcony down to the main courtyard and restaurant.

Enjoying the tale of Ricavo and a little vino.

Our wonderful host, Alexander. He was once the chef for the hotel as well, but has since retired. He still creates the menues for the restaurant and shraes little secrets like lemon sorbet with fresh basil to those guests who are willing to give it a try.

This little building was situated in a very small graveyard on the premises. Not sure who or why someone would stay here, but the old bed with it's rope woven support was fascinating to me.

Tomorrow we are off to Rome to turn in our car and catch a flight to Santorini, Greece! Ciao!