Gelato!

Gelato is an art form in Italy.  It's not just for the tourists, the Italians eat it, too -- a lot of it.  It's different from American ice cream in several ways: first, it's made with more eggs, so is more like custard than what we think of as American ice cream.  It's also more dense.  It's frozen at a lower temperature than American ice cream.  This adds to its creaminess, and it melts faster in the summer Italian heat.  We ate gelato every day while we were in Italy, and I'm so glad we did!  We have found only one place in Denver where the gelato tastes authentic: Parisi at 44th and Tennyson in northwest Denver.  Parisi also has EXCELLENT and authentic Tuscan food -- it's a restaurant and deli.

Wild Boar

Wild boar is a specialty of the Tuscany region, so you have to try it when you're there. It's usually served in a stew-like sauce. You can get it in restaurants, and you can also buy it in the form of salami. The word for wild boar in Italian is "Cinghiale."

Trattoria Latte di Luna - Pienza

This is THE place to eat in Pienza! Small and quaint, they serve authentic traditional Tuscan fare. Pienza is so small, this restaurant is easy to find at the end of main street. Do make reservations. We went back on the second night in Pienza, hadn't made reservations, and they were full.

http://www.portalepienza.it/Siti_commerciali/ristoranti_e_trattorie/Latte_di_luna/latte_di_luna.html

Hotel Relais - Il Chiostro di Pienza

Hotel Relais - Il Chiostro Di Pienza is the place to stay in Pienza! This is a picture of my husband Richard in the courtyard in the hotel. The staff is helpful, friendly and they speak English. The buffet breakfast is excellent, and they will even bring you a cappucino. We were there in June, so enjoyed breakfast in the garden overlooking the beautiful valley.

A Word About Road Conditions in Tuscany

During our bicycle trip through Tuscany this summer, we were mostly on secondary roads, 99% of which were in excellent condition. We had aluminim bicycles with carbon fiber forks and skinny race tires, and it was almost never "bumpy." So you really don't need a hybrid unless you're going to be riding on dirt roads.

Cicloposse

Cicloposse is the name of the family-owned Italian company we did our recent self-guided bicycle tour of Tuscany.

Two words about self-guided tours: they're great! Self-guided means that Cicloposse gave us maps, bicycles, hotel reservations and line-by-line directions. It was just my husband and I, not a full group. Especially for romantic Tuscany, a self-guided bicycle tour was the way to go.

About Cicloposse: a husband-and-wife team run the business and I would recommend them. The bicycles we received were aluminum with carbon fiber forks, so they were light and were geared low for the steep Tuscan hills. Giuliana and Marco were friendly and helpful. We didn't have any problems. If you're trying to decide which bicycle company to go with on your bicycle trip to Tuscany, we were very pleased with Cicloposse, based near Pienza.

May I Please Use the Toilet?

When you're on the road in Italy, whether on motorcycle, bicycle or on foot, going to the bathroom can be difficult. There are few public restrooms, and I don't think proprietors take kindly to non-customers using their facilities.

So we found ourselves buying an espresso, cappucino, water or snack so we could use the bathroom. Maybe others have had different experiences with this? The travel tip is this: if you buy an espresso and croissant, and eat it standing at the counter/bar, it's one price. If you sit down at a table and order, it's more expensive, and at times was up to double the price of standing at the bar. In less touristy areas they're more laid back about it, and may invite you to sit and enjoy your drink even though you ordered it at the counter, but generally, paying "counter" prices then sitting at a table is a no-no.

It was our experience that Italians are not fond of toilet seats. So, pardon the frankness, but you find yourself squatting a lot. In a few restrooms, the lights were hooked to a motion sensor. So I'm squatting and all of a sudden it's pitch black! Where's the light? Where's the toilet paper? Did the power go out? What do I do? More than once I found myself in the compromising position of squatting while waiving my arms to trip the motion sensor!

If you're on your bicycle or motorcycle, always have a small roll of toilet paper in your bag, because there are times you're going to have to find a tree and go by the side of the road.

And the bidet. In most European hotels, there's that bidet. No matter how small the room or bathroom, it's there. Generally they're used to clean, well, your privates, but I've heard of people using them to soak there feet and things like that. I guess it's considered more of a wash basin than anything else. Personally, as with most Americans is my guess, I've never used one.