Our First Day

Well, we made it to Antica Vetreria, but it wasn't one of the easiest days. We flew to JFK to connect for our flight to Rome, and it was delayed several hours. That meant that we were sitting in the airport with a lot of other grumpy individuals, most of whom had also had their vacations delayed, some by as much as 48 hours. Even when they finally did board us, they had electrical issues and we were on the runway for another half hour. But we did get up in the air eventually. They served a quick meal around 10pm New York time and then put the lights out. Everyone was meant to go to sleep. We tried. We really did. But it's hard to sleep upright in uncomfortably tight seats and lots of action all around you. So I "rested" and I think everyone else did, and when the plane finally landed in Rome, we were all a bit out of sorts and grumpy.

Grumpy exploded into other things when we found that our car pick-up arrangements had been foibled by an overbooked agency, and a dead battery. We got to learn all about Italy's train system through trial and error. Mostly error. Enough said.

One good thing about the train, we did get a relaxing and revealing view of the countryside and I'm glad we were forced to get a glimpse of how the whole system works. Colleen and Tom, our gracious hosts, met us at Chiusi Train Station, about 20 minutes from the town of Piegaro, where Antica Vetreria is built into the fortress walls of the village. They gave us the full tour, and a lovely dinner at a favorite local restaurant, where we had samples of many amazing treats, including duck liver pate on toast, grilled mozerella, bruschetti, truffles tagliatelli, wild boar and for dessert, a few indulged in the gelato. We had great wine with our meal and came home to a refreshing (uh, freezing) dip in the pool. I'd have liked to dip my whole self, since I'd been up for well over 30 hours and was feeling the need for a soothing swim, but I could only manage up to my knees. Lori managed a bit further, but I can't really say we went swimming. Maybe tomorrow . . . And maybe tomorrow we'll have the presence of mind to take out cameras and take some pictures. Because words can't do justice to the serenity of this countryside.

Ardel