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February 18, 2011 | Posted in Blog, Food, Life, Travel

Chianti Wine Tasting at Castello del Trebbio, Tuscany

The bus drove through the magnificent countryside of the Chianti wine region and stopped at winery estate called Castello del Trebbio. A remarkable story about this castle was told inside. The estate belongs to Pazzi family during the 12 century. The Pazzi family were against the Medici family (They are very powerful in Florence) so they planned a conspiracy to kill the Medici at the Trebbio castle. The plot fail so the Pazzi’s estate were confiscated and became Medici’s property and now home to the Baj-Macario family.

So after the remarkable story told by the guide, we made our way down to the old wine cellar in the basement and learned about the Chianti region and how the wine and olive oil are produced by the Baj-Macario family. The tour concludes with three wine tasting in the tasting room. The tasting was superb with delicious snacks such as cheese and bread that really makes it a perfect Tuscan experience. I definitely recommended the tour to anyone because it’s a great way to see Chianti and do wine tasting.

By the time we finished our tour, we head back to Florence and tried the famous Florentine Steak for dinner – We really enjoyed it and what a perfect dinner to end our Last night in Florence.

Note* : This is the 2nd part of the Chanti wine tour we booked through Viator Travel

(Outside the castle)

(Beautiful countryside of the Chianti wine region)

(Wine cellar)

(40 Years of history owned by the Baj-Macario family)

(Me holding my bottle – getting dizzy now)

(Us really enjoying the wine)

(Each person has their own snacks)

(Our Chianti wines)

(Love in Tuscany, photo shot by Akito)

(Magnificent countryside of the Chianti wine region)

(My best friend Akito on the right and my fiance Allen on the right)

(Salad that comes with the steaks

(Huge Florentine steak)

(Expresso)

(Candies shop in Florence at night)

Next florence, italy, Travel, tuscany

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February 10, 2011 | Posted in Blog, Life, Photography, Travel

Pontassieve, A Medieval Village in The Heart of Tuscany.

We departed from Florence to the Chanti wine region after the market. On our way there we had a stop-over at a really charming town called Pontassieve. It’s an old town in the Tuscany region, located east of Florence. We visited the church and the cave of Santa Brigida located in the village. It was a fun trip with beautiful scenery of Tuscany. Our guide was informative and told us the story of Santa Brigida who lives in the cave when her brother past away. She was so upset she only ate bread & water every day. The church was made and dedicated to her name. After leaving Pontassieve and passing along the olive trees on the hills we arrived at this mediaeval castle. My wine tasting tour will continue on my next post, stay tuned!

Note* : This is the 1st part of the Chanti wine tour we booked through Viator Travel

(Santa Brigida Church)

(Fresco paintings on Santa Brigida Church)

(Interior of Santa Brigida Church)

(Beautiful town and super small European style cars)

(Beautiful scenery of Tuscany

(The cave of Santa Brigida)

(Beautiful scenery with children playing)

(Olive trees everywhere)

(I want to live there, don’t you?)

(Beautiful woods with vines and olive trees)

(Stroll down the streets)

(Getting ready to go to our wine tasting)

Next florence, italy, photography, Travel, tuscany

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January 26, 2011 | Posted in Blog, Food, Life, Photography, Travel

Florence for Foodies: Inside San Lorenzo Market

Walking around Florence is such a delightful experience. We walked towards Piazza dell Mercato and came across the San Lorenzo Market. This lively street market is open from Tuesday to Saturday. You will see vendors selling everything from leather goods, Florentine papers to souvenirs and much more. This is a big outdoor market where the hawkers calling out to grab your attention. I bought a soft leather belt for 18 Euro which I bargained down from 20 Euro. You can tell that I’m not so good when it comes to bargaining.

As we walked a little bit more we passed by a large building called the central market, San Lorenzo Mercato Centrale. We saw a fascinating selection of produce of all kinds, from cheese, salami, wine and many other Tuscan products. We just wandered around and sampled few of the products. We left the market with the delicious Tartuff (which the owner had us sample), a bottle of Limoncello and some beautiful photos I took from the market.

(Many goods in the outdoor markets)

(So many leather products)

(My fiance just wander off)

(I’m picking out a belt for my father)

(Yummy olives)

(horse meat?)

(I regret that I didn’t brought more bottle of this)

(Yummy dry goods)

(Limocello)

(Real tuscan salami)

(Prosciutto, my favorite)

(More dry goodies)

(Cheese)

(cow stomachs and intestines)

(Pasta)

Next florence, food, italy, photography, Travel

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January 20, 2011 | Posted in Blog, Life, Photography, Travel

Day 2: Piazzale Michelangelo, Panoramic Views of Florence.

The second day in Florence, we took the Florence City Hop-on Hop-off Bus Tour that we have book through Viator Travel online. I know many places have these buses going around and I’ve always wanted to try the tour. It’s a good way to discover the city and the sights in a quick overview.When we’re in the bus we were given earphones and listen to a guide in the language we picked from the seat. The audio guide was pretty informative and tells you a little history on all the main sights.

My Florence trip isn’t complete without the magnificent panoramic view of Florence. So, we get off at the Piazalle Michelangiolo stop and the panoramic views from this piazza are absolutely breathtaking. It sits on a hill across the Arno river and you get to see the whole city of Florence. Another highlight is to see a bronze replica of Michelangelo’s David there. I did some souvenir shopping and enjoy the view that I see in many Florence painting. Next we visited San Lorenzo Market, another must-see and that will be my next photo essay post so stay tuned.

(Me and my fiance on the bus)

(Admiring the building from the top view)

(I can see the detail up so closely)

(This building use to be a prison for Florence, not anymore)

(Ponte Vecchio)

(Crossing the bridge to the other side of Florence)

(Ponte Vecchio)

(You see art everywhere)

(We have arrived)

(My other friend Akito)

(Breathtaking views)

(View of the Arno river)

(Romance)

(Michelangelo’s David)

(Venders everywhere)

(Shopping time)

(Pinocchio pencil souvenirs)

(Pinocchio toy souvenirs)

(Beautiful mask souvenirs)

(More souvenirs that looks fun)

Next arts, florence, italy, photography, Trave

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January 7, 2011 | Posted in Blog, Life, Photography, Travel

Day 1: Arrived in Florence, The City of Renaissance

As an art student, I grew up learning about Renaissance art along with many stories during that period. And from that experience I always wanted to visit Florence, a city of the Renaissance. After months of planning and saving, my fiance and I finally booked our trip to Italy. Our first time in Florence was incredible. My fiance and I arrived early on a Friday morning at 11am. We were so hungry and tired. The first thing we did after check in to our hotel was getting an Italian Pizza. We wandered into a nearby restaurant and it was quite delicious.

After our breakfast / lunch, we decided just to walk around the city with our map. We stopped by at The Basilica di Santa Croce located by Piazza di Santa Croce. It’s the largest Franciscan church in the world since 1294. After going through all the 16 chapels inside, we decided to move on to another place.

(Just arrived in Florence, Italy)

(Waiting for our pizza)

(The Basilica di Santa Croce)

(I love dogs, even when I’m in Italy)

(Beautiful architecture)

(Nice strolls through the streets)

Next stop was the Piazza del Duomo, a small piazza surrounded by Duomo, Baptistery and The Campanile bell tower. All the cathedrals were quite impressive and the biggest highlight was looking down from the dome’s observation deck. I think I have to give myself a “you did well” sticker because I’m afraid of staircases and heights. I managed to climb up 436 steps with my fiance and saw the most breath-taking city view of Florence in a 360 degree perspective. After enjoying our stunning views, we went back down the same way we came. We then headed to the Piazza della Signoria before we head off to Uffizi Gallery.

(At Piazza del Duomo)

(Inside the Duomo)

(We finally made it to the top after along climb)

(See, isn’t this view stunning?)

(Another view form the top)

(I finally catch my breath)

(Palazzo Vecchio)

The last stop before our dinner was the Ponte Vecchio, a famous bridge in Florence. It sat on top of Arno River and lined with many jewelry shops. There were musicians that play on the bridge at night and the lights of the water reflect it’s true beauty. We finished our day with a nice Italian dinner. That night we learned so much about Florence and I have to say the city of Florence is home to some of the most beautiful art in the world.

(You see love lock everywhere)