it's been forever since i actually had to down time to update my blog...two weeks ago we packed our bags for a week of traveling throughout northern italy. our first destination was a tour of the gorgeous tuscan winery and estate Castiglion del Bosco. this place really began to get my interior design wheels turning. this summer i have to take my non-residential studio, or what most of us know it as the "bank" project. we pick the place for a bank we design basically from the ground up. after visiting Castiglion del Bosco, I made my mind up on a location...Napa Valley, California. i love the architecture, the color palette, materials, furniture, and overall ascetic appeal Tuscan design incorporates. in 2008 il Borgo was unveiled after painstaking restorations, offering 23 elegantly appointed guest Suites as well as a cooking school, two restaurants, a fitness center, a tasting room, an infinity pool, and other distinctive amenities within its historic buildings. the estate is part of auburn's own west paces hotel group. i don't know what i liked best about this sanctuary in tuscany but i'd have to say either the Canonica a.k.a. the "priest’s house" which is located at the center of Il Borgo and houses a cooking school where Members and Guests can watch or participate in the preparation of the region’s spectacular cuisine or the spectacular view of the country side from the workout room...stuff myself in the gorgeous kitchen and then run off the calories in a glass workout room overlooking Tuscany.
Montalcino was our next stop of the day. here we enjoyed lunch on our own before making it to our 3rd and final stop of the day, Siena.
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| Kitchen of the Castiglion del Bosco |
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| Pool Area of the Castiglion del Bosco |
{Montalcino}
1. Montalcino is a hill town and commune in Tuscany, Italy in the province of Sienna.
2. It is believed that the area where the town is located had been inhabited since the Etruscan times before the rule of the Romans in the area.
3. It is famous for its Brunello di Montalcino wine, which has grown the city economically, as well as agriculture and tourism.
4. The town takes its name from a variety of oak trees that once covered the terrain.
5. The top of the town offers stunning views over the Asso, Ombrone and Arbia valleys of Tuscany, and it’s dotted with silvery olive orchards, vineyards, fields and villages. The lower slopes of the Montalcino hill itself are highly productive vines and olive orchards.
6. Montalcino is divided, like most medieval Tuscan cities, into quarters called contrade.
7. The thirteenth-century church of San Francesco in the Castlevecchio contrada has undergone several renovations and some of the interior frescoes were done by Vincenzo Tamagni in the early sixteenth century.
8. Montalcino was first mentioned in a document of 9th century which mentions a church that was present here since then.
9. The population of the town grew when the natives of the nearby Roselle fled and took refuge in Montalcino.
10. The most famous Attractions in Montalcino are: the Fortress of Montalcino; Chiesa Di Sant’ Agostino, Musei Riuniti, The Duomo, Centro Storico, Palazzo Communale.
(via Susanna Foster)
hello Siena!
walking about two miles from the bus to the hotel pulling our not-so-small suitcases, wasn't the best start to Siena, but what can you do? that evening we had our first real wine tasting at Enoteca Italiana. after four wines on an empty stomach, it was time to celebrate Mary Cate Dukes birthday with dinner in the Piazza del Campo. whoever had the idea to eat outside was probably regretting the comment by the end of our meal the temperature quickly dropped along with rain, but as always the meal was fun with all 20 of us being together in one place. the following morning we checked our of our hotel and toured the gothic masterpiece of the il Duomo and museum, the Piccolomini library, and the Piazza del Campo. lunch and free time followed before our bus ride to Florence!
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| Wine Tasting in Siena at Enoteca Italiana |
1. called il campo
2. main historical square in siena
3. used for fairs and markets
4. shell shaped
5.famous for the Palio of the Contrada, a horse race twice a year on
July 2 and august 16. The 17 historic districts if Tuscany participate
in three laps around the piazza.
6. the town hall- Palazzo Comunale
7. at base of the palazzo is the chapel of the virgin built in 1348 at
the end if the plague
8. Torre del Mangia -the tower is 102 meters tall to the lighting rod.
9. It was built between 1537 and 1539 and the four corners are perfectly
orienated NS and EW
10. Fonte Gaia- fountain at one end.
11. inaugurated 1386
12. first public water source
13. by Jacopo della Queecia
(via Kacey Clark)
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| Piazza dei Campo (Leah, Me, Katie) |
1. Romanesque and gothic italian style
2. Dome completed in 1263 and the red padellaio or "apple"
3. Height 48 meters
4. Covered in greenish-black and white marble stripes, symbolic to Siena and linked to the coat of arms/founder's horses
5. Roman catholic church
6. Overseers were monks Nicola Pisano to decorated, created the first pulpit
Facade:
7. Built in 2 stages
8. Large circular stained-glass window, "the rose window"
9. 3 portals, with columns in between & richly decorated
Interior:
10. Bernini's gilded lantern
(via Brittany Buckelew)
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| view of Siena from the top of the Duomo museum |
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| Duomo: Siena |
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| the Piccolomini Library |
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| the Piccolomini Library |
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