So... day three in Italy and I went back to the same enoteca for dinner that I had visited when I first arrived. Funny, because I had already had a big bbq lunch at a fiends villa in Vinci. That, however, had been a somewhat Bristish version of an italian lunch. Coleslaw and potato salad was wonderful, but it didn't fix my craving for pomodoro sauce.

I sat in the enoteca later that night and listened for what I could overhear....

the church bells marking the hour of 8:00; the pop of a champagne cork; the excitement of an italian boy openning presents; the string of a mandolin being tested; and the steady drip of rain. The tortelli pomodoro and torta de ricotta e ciocollata were delicious, but the sounds told me i was truly in Italy. It was perfe

It is made by my uncle.......

apparently there is something about Tuscany that forces you to write lyrically.... It may be the wine, or perhaps the moments of beauty, but whatever the reason, I apologize for my change in tone. It can't be helped.

Images of Sna Quirico d'Orcia
A garden, hidden by a stone tunnel. Voices and the clinking of silverware on plates. It is obviously a trattoria.I walk through the town; a dark church where a white ceramic statue of the madonna floats in front of gauzy silver fabric. She glows like an apparation.

My parking ticketn in Chianciano Terme put me off as I began my day, but now I have been put back together again. A store is open past 1:30; it is a miracle. Inside, linens fill shelves, frames and ceramics are everywhere, but my eye is caught by a small pillow, LE Mamme sono angeli in incognito.

A wide grassy area in a park makes me wonder why? There are bleachers... perhaps sports? No, it is for music of course. Today, though, all is quiet, only ghosts crowd around me.

I am drawn back to the trattoria. A table for one? I ask in english. Of course signora, he says. The menu has english translations... oh no! I have chosen wrong. How is it possible? The setting is perfect. A table under an awning, under a tree. A wisteria covered trellis. Everyone around me speaks Italian and smokes.

Wine? I am asked. Soft or hard? Old or new? Full bodied? Ah, this one, he says. I ask, where is it from. He tells me Montepulciano...It is made by his uncle. All is forgiven... I have chosen right after all.

So this is what panzanella looks like. It has more bread than i thought - and cucumber for crunch. I take a picture but its' essence is hidden in 'place'; this place.

Pici is a type of pasta from this area. It sounds like it should be small pieces of something but it is actually more like misformed spaghetti. With pecorino e pepe, it is as close as Italians might get to mac-n-cheese. All creamy and white, the pepper stands out as the queen of the dish.

Now I am done. Should I linger or continue on my journey? The perfect contrast between the dark pink red of the melon and the green of its' rind is compelling, but I think I will pass. A dark cloud is coming our way and I hope to find another place still today.

But no, not yet! First I meet Graciella and Guido as we wait to pay our bill. I take their picture and they take mine. Guido is very interested in my time here. It is a good place for Americans to see, he says. Yes, they should come here. They are from Torrino, it is too built up he thinks. This is what a holiday should be.

The cloud has passed.... probably I will now chase it to Montalcino