CASAMONTI

2012-01-22T09:01:00.001+01:00

Happy Sunday everyone - I hope the seas stay calm so that the rescue operations can continue on the Concordia Cruise ship. Tuscany

2012-01-15T10:03:00.001+01:00

Wonderful sunny Sunday here in Casamonti, in Tuscany. Great a day for a walk, though temps are pretty stiff and cold. Best to all of you!!

2012-01-08T09:37:00.001+01:00

Wishing everyone a great Sunday from Casamonti under an overcast slightly foggy Tuscany.

2012-01-06T09:11:00.001+01:00

Happy Epiphany to all of you! Buona Befana! Last holiday of the season here in Tuscany, Italy - On Monday everyone goes back to work again

2012-01-01T08:57:00.001+01:00

Happy Sunday everyone. It is now 2012 all over the world so I hope it's a great year for all of us. We all need it. Cheers-Ray from Tuscany

2011-12-31T11:24:00.001+01:00

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL. MAY 2012 BRING YOU PEACE, WEALTH AND HAPPINESS. Ray from Tuscany

2011-12-25T10:14:00.001+01:00

Wishing everyone a Merry Christmas and a great Sunday from sunny Tuscany. It's so warm today that it feels more like Spring than winter.

2011-12-18T09:06:00.001+01:00

Happy Sunday to everyone from a sunny but very cold Chianti Region. Tuscany is averaging 0° degrees centigrade today and tomorrow.

2011-12-11T08:24:00.001+01:00

Happy Sunday everyone. Lots of clouds here in the Chianti, so it looks like a wet Tuscan day for us. We really need rain now!!

2011-11-27T09:44:00.001+01:00

Wishing everyone a great Sunday from sunny warm Tuscany. I'm watching our Cinte Senesi eating acorns under the oak trees.

2011-11-24T11:03:00.001+01:00

Happy Thanksgiving to all my Friends, American or otherwise from here in Tuscany.

2011-11-20T08:43:00.001+01:00

Have a great Sunday everyone!! Sun is shining away here in Tuscany and it looks like a perfect day for a walk in the woods.

2011-11-06T08:30:00.001+01:00

Happy Sunday to everyone: wet ones and dry ones. Here in Tuscany it looks like we will be among the soaking wet ones.

2011-10-31T09:52:00.001+01:00

Happy Halloween to all those who celebrate this holiday. Remember to send me some candy here in Tuscany.

2011-10-30T09:59:00.001+01:00

So tonight is Halloween, then. BOO!!! Scared you didn't I. Please send me lots of candy. Thank you from Tuscany.

2011-10-30T09:11:00.001+01:00

Best of Sundays to everyone!! Sun is out here in Tuscany and I'm especially glad for the people in the flooded out areas who need it badly.

2011-10-23T10:51:00.001+02:00

Crisp, cold Sunday here in Tuscany. Nice day to roast chestnuts on the fire. Happy Sunday to all of you.

2011-10-16T10:05:00.001+02:00

Hope everyone has a great Sunday. Pretty cold here in Tuscany, but sun is shining away so it is still pleasant to go outside.

2011-10-09T10:30:00.001+02:00

I hope everyone has as great a Sunday as I am looking forward to with this mild sunny weather and light breeze in Tuscany, Italy

2011-10-02T10:14:00.001+02:00

Beautiful day here in Tuscany. Happy Sunday to everyone and good luck for whatever it is you are doing today.

2011-09-25T10:19:00.001+02:00

Somewhere the sun is shining and somewhere else it is raining. Whether you have sun or rain, Happy Sunday to you! Tuscany Italy

2011-09-23T16:10:00.001+02:00

Everyone's favorite Facebook Page on Italy? Find it here: http://on.fb.me/mdDaMP It's just a click away! With lots of updates on Tuscany

2011-09-18T09:52:00.001+02:00

Happy Sunday everyone! Weather forecast is for rain in Tuscany but the sun is shining happily away and there isn't a cloud in the sky.

2011-09-11T10:41:00.001+02:00

Happy Sunday to everyone. Sun is shining in Tuscany and it is a nice day in most of Italy. My prayers today go to those who died on 9/11.

2011-09-04T10:02:00.001+02:00

Happy Sunday to all, and best wishes to those who have the Labor day holiday tomorrow. Waiting for a storm here in the Chianti in Tuscany.

2011-08-28T09:06:00.001+02:00

Nice Sunday morning here in the Chianti Region of Tuscany. The heat wave has broken and the temps are normal again, hope we get some rain!!

2011-08-14T08:20:00.001+02:00

Happy Sunday to everyone from a sunny, mild Chianti Classico Region. The kind of day that reminds me why I live in Tuscany.

2011-08-07T09:01:00.001+02:00

Nice sunny Sunday with mild temperatures here in the Chianti. I hope it is the same wherever you are. Wishing everyone the best! Tuscany

2011-08-04T10:59:00.001+02:00

Unimpressed by Berlusconi's speech to Parliament and then to the Senate yesterday. Same old crap and no new ideas. Tuscany Italy

2011-07-31T09:08:00.001+02:00

Best wishes for a happy, peaceful Sunday to everyone from Ray at Casamonti on a sunny Chianti day. Tuscany (Where good things happen!)

2011-07-24T08:46:00.001+02:00

Happy Sunday to everyone. Weather in Chianti, Tuscany is pretty stormy today, but we do need the rain for agriculture right now.

2011-07-19T15:10:00.001+02:00

Looks like rain any second here in Chianti. Skies are really dark. I hope we don't get a thunderstorm. Tuscany

2011-07-17T09:06:00.001+02:00

Happy Sunday to everyone. Clouding over here in Casamonti. Some rain would be quite welcome. Ciao from Tuscany, Italy

2011-07-10T09:40:00.001+02:00

Really really hot today here in Casamonti. Happy Sunday to all of you. I think I will spend the day by the pool. Tuscany

2011-07-03T09:06:00.001+02:00

Happy Sunday to all from Casamonti on a sunny Chianti Classico day. Best wishes for a great 4th of July to all my American friends. Tuscany

2011-06-26T09:32:00.001+02:00

Happy Sunday to everyone. Today is a true summer day here in the Chianti Classico. Warm with a nice breeze: Cheers to all!! Tuscany Italy

2011-06-19T10:01:00.001+02:00

Happy Sunday and Happy Father's Day to all the dads out there. Ciao from Casamonti in Tuscany. Sun is shining this great morning.

2011-06-12T10:06:00.001+02:00

Doesn't look like much sunshine is going to come out today here in the Chianti. Oh well, Happy Sunday, all, from Casamonti here in Tuscany.

2011-06-05T10:37:00.001+02:00

Just waiting for the storm to hit: dark ominous clouds on the horizon and thunder in the distance. Happy Sunday from Casamonti in Tuscany.

2011-05-29T09:30:00.001+02:00

Very sunny day here in Casamonti in the heart of the Chianti Classico Region of Tuscany. I wish everyone a great Sunday!!

2011-05-22T10:31:00.001+02:00

Heavy thunderstorm last night in the Chianti. Sun is shining today and I wish everyone a great Sunday from Casamonti: Tuscany Italy

2011-05-15T10:34:00.001+02:00

Wishing everyone a Happy Sunday from Casamonti in Tuscany - Raining here so at least no watering the lawn and garden today ;))

2011-05-01T09:39:00.001+02:00

May 1st has labour day and Sanctification of Pope John Paul II - a big day for Rome and for the Catholic Church. Happy Sunday to all of you!

2011-05-01T09:28:00.001+02:00

Time to book your summer holidays, everyone. The best from Tuscan Enterprises Italy Tuscany Italy http://ping.fm/QIT1z

2011-04-30T11:43:00.001+02:00

Tomorrow is May 1st - Labor day in most of Europe. As usual weather predictions are for rain on the poor people parading. Tuscany

2011-04-25T10:57:00.001+02:00

Viva Pasquetta: Happy Easter Monday to everyone. Sun is out here in Tuscany and it looks like a nice day to go out and pick wild asparagus.

2011-04-24T09:27:00.001+02:00

Happy Easter to all of you. Raining but quiet here in Tuscany, so it will be a peaceful day for all.

2011-04-23T09:54:00.001+02:00

Happy Easter to everyone and remember: you eat the eggs, NOT the Easter Bunny!! Are we clear on this? Ciao Tuscany

2011-04-22T08:32:00.001+02:00

Happy Good Friday to everyone from all of us at Casamonti. Tuscany Italy

2011-04-15T11:54:00.001+02:00

Coming to Tuscany? Email tuscanray@gmail.com to book your tasting of Wines, Oil and Cinta Senese products: http://ping.fm/vugKp

2011-04-15T11:50:00.001+02:00

Holidays in Tuscany, Umbria, Lazio, Italy? Tuscan Enterprises brings you the best: http://bit.ly/7U5LQS

2011-04-10T09:57:00.001+02:00

Happy Sunday to all of you from Casamonti. Tuscany

2011-04-05T10:19:00.001+02:00

Casamonti: one of the nicest holiday destinations. Tuscan Enterprises - the best from Italy http://ping.fm/H68G9

2011-04-03T09:48:00.001+02:00

Casamonti Fiorentina Steak Dinners. How it should be done: Tuscany http://ping.fm/yMiES

2011-04-03T09:41:00.001+02:00

Sun is shining away here in the Chianti. Cheers to all. Have a great Sunday people!!! Ray from Tuscany

2011-03-30T12:30:00.001+02:00

It was so foggy this morning, I couldn't see my slippers near the bed. It was so foggy I couldn't see the coffee in my cup ;)) Tuscany

2011-03-29T16:46:00.001+02:00

Wondering where the line stands between bombing Libyan tanks and planes to protect the people and bombing Gheddafi's army outright?

2011-03-28T10:22:00.001+02:00

Coming to Tuscany? Email tuscanray@gmail.com to book your tasting of Wines, Oil and Cinta Senese products: http://ping.fm/vugKp

2011-03-27T10:28:00.001+02:00

Happy Sunday to everyone. So I got tossed out of bed an hour earlier and feel jetlagged already. Daylight savings time is not my friend.

2011-03-19T15:28:00.001+01:00

Just thinking that if the world decides to end, I'd like enough warning to eat a last plate of spaghetti with a glass of Casamonti wine.

2011-03-13T10:06:00.001+01:00

Happy Sunday to all of us. My heart goes out to the people of Japan and their ravished country. God Bless them.

2011-03-12T12:34:00.001+01:00

Great Residential Complex near Florence: www.tuscanenterprises.com/index.php?p=res_complex&l=eng&complex=0103&sec=1 The best from Tuscan Enterprises.

2011-03-11T11:46:00.001+01:00

For those interested, I have a pretty neat Facebook page at http://on.fb.me/aJ5eC1 Tuscany Italy Villa_rentals traveldeals

2011-03-11T11:23:00.001+01:00

Best of luck to all those living in Japan and the Pacific rim countries. Earthquakes and Tsunamis are devastating!!

2011-03-08T12:26:00.001+01:00

Best wishes to all the ladies I know for women's day, though I think it should be celebrated every day and not just once a year. Auguri!!

2011-03-06T10:24:00.001+01:00

Happy Sunny Sunday to everyone!! Sun is shining away brightly here in Casamonti, Tuscany. Looks like I get to go for a walk ;))

2011-03-04T11:16:00.001+01:00

Let me Yelp you Tweet your Facebook so it Stumbleupons your Tumblr: Orkut I can Buzz your Myspace to Linkedin. Ping that you twittelators!!

2011-02-27T09:54:00.001+01:00

Happy Sunday to everyone - just waiting to see if it decides to snow or not. Do I sleep or take a walk this afternoon? Tuscany

2011-02-25T15:48:00.001+01:00

I'm pretty sure that some kids are born under cabbages...I met a couple today who couldn't possibly have real parents ;))

2011-02-22T15:29:00.001+01:00

The new, revamped Tuscan Enterprises website is now online. Take a look and see if you like it: http://ping.fm/sdAFa Italy

2011-02-20T10:17:00.001+01:00

Happy Sunday to everyone from Tuscany Italy. And Happy President's day to all my US friends also!!
Cheers, everyone ;))

callaway.tuscan.food.tour.cnn.html from cnn.com - StumbleUpon

2011-02-15T10:39:00.000+01:00

callaway.tuscan.food.tour.cnn.html from cnn.com - StumbleUpon

2011-02-14T17:50:00.001+01:00

http://ping.fm/IN9zP and http://ping.fm/p0NVf - 2 of the nicest pieces ever written from "the legend of the pianist on the ocean"

2011-02-13T10:29:00.001+01:00

Raining in Tuscany Italy again after a good 10 days of sunshine. Good to be inside today to catch up on work left undone. Happy Sunday!!

2011-02-06T09:50:00.001+01:00

Happy Sunday to all. Beautiful day here in Tuscany with sunshine and mild temperatures. Peace to all!!

2011-01-30T10:28:00.001+01:00

Since it is raining here in Chianti Tuscany, today I am going to make "lesso rifatto con le cipolle". Great way to deal with leftovers.

2011-01-29T12:27:00.001+01:00

Hmm, if the world is my oyster, why can't I crack the shell on the darned thing? Tuscany Italy

2011-01-23T10:08:00.001+01:00

Happy Sunday everyone. Sun is shining but it is 3 degrees centigrade below zero here in Castellina. Tuscany Italy

2010-11-25T08:51:00.001+01:00

I wish all my American friends a truly Happy Thanksgiving and a nice day away from the stress of day to day living. Ciao from Italy.

2010-11-25T08:49:00.001+01:00

Something I am really thankful for this Thanksgiving is that I wasn't born a Turkey.

2010-11-02T11:55:00.001+01:00

The heavy rain and storm we had yesterday, has knocked a lot of olives off the trees. Too bad since we cannot pick them up once they fall

WEIRD IMPRESSIONS OF A NEW DIGITAL CAMERA.

2010-07-17T18:13:00.001+02:00

I love technology but I think we sometimes lose our creativity to it.

I have always taken all the photographs we put in the Tuscan Enterprises catalogue, (and then, later on, the ones used for the websites) since we started our Villa Rental business some 30 years ago. I remember my first camera was a simple Minolta and all settings were by hand – no TTL, no automation except an exposimeter, and all settings written down for use in similar situations. I still have a lot of those photographs and some are among the best ones we have ever used in the catalogue.

I admit that I did get some decent training in photography from my maternal grandfather, who was a professional photographer and had been apprenticed as a young boy to the famous Alinari Photographers in Florence. He had all the camera settings memorized in his brain and knew exactly what to do in whatever situation or condition. Speed and F-stops were his daily bread and we still have some great photos taken by him during the 10 year period when he was the official ship photographer for the Costa Cruise ship lines. We are going back a good 40 years here.

Anyway, as soon as the first semi-automatic Minolta came out, it was mine and then I spent a small fortune in buying flashes, lenses of all kinds and really learning the basics of modern photography. Mind you, nothing to do with portraits, but everything to do with landscapes, houses, interior decorations, and all those things so necessary to a Villa rental catalogue such as we produce.

In the course of the years, I bought three new SLR Minoltas – ending up with the 800SI DYNAX that, together with my trusty METZ flash has done very well by me and continues to hold a warm spot in my heart. But, as time progressed, I kept waiting for Minolta to follow Canon, Sony, Nikon, and the others and come out with its own Digital Camera. It never happened, as the company wound up on the verge of bankruptcy and was bought up by Sony.

I finally decided to buy a Digital Camera this year and was all set on a Canon 50D, and ready to dish out a small fortune for new lenses, but when I walked into the “Fotoamatore” shop in Siena, with a lens in one hand and a forlorn look on my face, the young shop manager told me to cheer up and to buy the Sony 550 Alpha because Sony had made sure that all the Minolta owners could switch to Sony and continue to use their expensive lenses on its models.

I think this was the greatest and nicest surprise of the year for me. So he packed up the little jewel, gave me a new Metz flash as mine was not compatible with the new camera, loaded me up with a couple of boxes of instructions, CD’s, battery packs and a complimentary lens and trundled me on my way, having spent about a third of what I had expected. So I was beaming when I took my new camera out of the box, assembled the pieces according to instructions, charged the battery pack and also the flash’s battery pack. I was ready to rumble.

I then made the mistake of picking up the instruction book. It is a small booklet, but super thick and almost totally incomprehensible. The camera has something like 150 different functions, each dial or wheel does a variety of things and you can practically make fresh coffee with it. But the reasoning behind it is really a bit daunting. So, I set the camera to automatic and took a few shots.

Hey, they were really great!! Then I attached the flash and wondered what settings I would have to put using the manual system, but decided to take a few internal shots just to see what came out and the camera whirred and made funny noises, flashed and the pictures were better than anything I ever did using my manual settings in the past.

So, the art of modern digital photography, apparently, is to put your camera on automatic and just point at stuff and click the button. The camera does the rest. Great for those who use it for work, like myself, and need to do a lot of photos quickly without having to do too much retouching with Photoshop on them afterwards, but….you know, I think it has taken away all the creativity that I remember my grandfather used to put into his work. It wasn’t just a photograph for him – it was the immortalization of a precise moment in time. I think his pictures will go on being appreciated forever; while my more consumeristic ones will last the short time they are really needed and then be forgotten.

The picture of the camera was taken with my Iphone. The other pictures are tests taken with the Sony itself.

WHAT ARE YOUR TRAVEL RIGHTS AND YOUR OBLIGATIONS?

2010-04-27T14:45:00.000+02:00

A few tips and considerations on holiday disasters.

In the course of 29 years of operation as Tour Operators, here at Tuscan Enterprises we have witnessed practically everything that the world can throw at travelers coming to Tuscany or Europe in general. From early 1990 terrorist attacks on trains and airports, to the cancellation of all flights right after the disaster of 9/11 and the Twin Towers, to the latest airport shutdown caused by the Icelandic Eyjafjallajokull (totally unpronounceable) volcano’s ash. Each time some major disaster takes place, I always wonder why it is so impossible for airport authorities and local administrations to handle the problems that present themselves, and which are, basically, always the same.

First off you have a series of people and families that are stranded. They were looking forward to a holiday and suddenly are faced with unfriendly airport lobbies and people who really do not know what to tell them or what advice to give. I have always strongly supported the view that there should be an organized task force ready to enter the situation and help people solve their immediate and urgent problems. This task force should be composed of airline experts, airport authorities (meaning those who run the airports – do not make the mistake of thinking that the airports are run by the airline companies because this is not the case), local administrations and especially staff from the tourist offices.

People need to be informed if the holdup is short or extended and if it will ruin their holiday and force them to postpone it. This is generally up to the airport authorities to tell them. If it is just a hiccup of the system and tied to something minor such as engine trouble or replacement of an airplane with another, or a question of overbooking or such similar problems (hassles, but not serious in the end), then they can be dealt with immediately by the airlines, which are responsible for rebooking and rescheduling the flights and putting up people in local hotels or other accommodations while solving the situation.

If the problem is more complicated, such as flights being cancelled because of some disaster (natural or otherwise), then the airport authorities and the local administrations need to step in and set up specific help desks to assist passengers. Assistance will span the gamut from rescheduling flights, to booking alternative travel via trains or rental cars or bus lines, to finding alternative accommodations for people who can expect to face an extended wait.

This was totally missing during the latest volcano disaster: if the associations that represent local Hotels and Bed and Breakfasts had been present with help desks in the airports, a lot of people would have found alternative accommodations instead of being taken in by hustlers and others who took advantage of them in such a despicable way. The airlines did what they could, but they too were overwhelmed as their responsibility was limited to rescheduling flights, reimbursing tickets, or booking single nights in local hotels. The brunt of the problems that rose was left entirely to them to handle and this is not fair.

Now, what should you do once you find out that you cannot have your flight rescheduled and will probably miss your holiday completely? The first thing is something you should have done when you made your booking if you were due to go to a hotel or to a Villa or similar accommodation: have taken out holiday cancellation insurance.

We suggest this on our website, tour operators suggest it to their clients and so do the travel agents. You can generally get a good deal from your own insurance company and it is worth the cost of 2 – 3% of your total holiday expense. If you do not have cancellation insurance, then the loss is totally yours, with exception of the cancelled flights which airlines will reschedule or reimburse, and if you are on an organized tour, then part of your tour package includes cancellation insurance.

The first thing to do is to notify your family at home and also the people waiting for you at your destination (hotel, villa key holder, agency office, etc) that you are not going to arrive and that they should not wait for you. If the Hotel manages to rebook your rooms, then they are likely to not charge you anything. A Villa or house owner, on the other hand, will probably not be able to find alternative guests on short notice and will not reimburse you as they have simply lost the booking. The nicer owners will let you reschedule a holiday at a later date at a discounted cost to help make up for your ruined holiday. But they are not responsible for your plight. If you have cancellation insurance, at least, asking the owner or the Travel Agent to write a declaration attesting that you were not present for your booked holiday, will put you in condition to claim the full reimbursement from the insurance company.

So, my final advice is really down to that one simple basic bit: purchase holiday cancellation insurance when you book your holiday. You will not be sorry you did so. And have patience when faced with this kind of a problem as there is very little that you can do directly to solve it. Be sure to ask advice from those who are in charge as they are the most updated on what is actually happening.

Photos courtesy of The Boston Globe and my compliments to the photographer.

WILD ASPARAGUS

2010-04-13T11:06:00.003+02:00

One of Mother Nature's tastiest gifts.

If you happen to be driving along the back roads of Tuscany (or Italy, in general) and you see people bent over in funny positions scrutinizing the ground up and down the slopes or tangled up in the thickets and underbrush, don’t think they are crazy lunatics or in that they are in trouble – they are probably looking for wild asparagus. This is the season and it is almost a religious experience to search for the elusive shoots.

There are two moments of the year when you see lots of locals out scouring the woodlands: the first is from mid-March to end of April when they are out trying to find the lacy ferns that indicate wild asparagus shoots, and the second is from September to mid October when it is wild Porcini mushroom season.

Wild asparagus are incredibly tasty and have little in common with the domestic varieties that so richly adorn everyone’s tables in this period. Wild asparagus are hard to find and almost impossible to buy because there are very few who will relinquish them after hours spent gathering them in the more impervious sections of the bramble and thistle undergrowth. They are a magnificent present to give to anyone and quite an honor to receive. The long stalks can reach over a meter in length and you usually only use the tender top 10 centimeters of the asparagus itself.

They break easily, so care needs to be taken when cleaning them and preparing them for use. In Tuscany, they are generally either sautéed with some onions and then eggs are added to make a wonderful Frittata, or they become the principal ingredient in a special risotto that you only make during this season. The taste is very intense and rich. There is a huge difference when compared to farmed asparagus.

I have seen attempts made to raise a varietal that imitates the wild version of the asparagus and this particular variety is sometimes seen in the open air markets, but it is a tame version of the true wild asparagus, which is so fantastic in its taste and which entails so much effort to be harvested. The two bunches in the featured picture took Anna Rita and I all morning and several kms of walking on our farm at Casamonti to pick.

SPRING IS IN THE AIR

2010-03-19T15:26:00.003+01:00

What Spring brings to Italian agriculture, holidays and town life.

Spring is in the air. You can feel it here in Tuscany and smell it. The daffodils are popping up their yellow heads all over the place and the almond trees are covered with tiny white flowers. At Tuscan Enterprises we are getting last minute requests for Easter and the April weeks, and on the farm at Casamonti, our first wine and Cinta Senese tastings are starting and you can tell that our guests have springtime and the sun on their minds. The dreariness of winter is finally behind us.

This is a very busy period for those working in tourism because all the last-minute arrangements are being done in the Villas, farmhouses and “agriturismi” – washing and cleaning of the covers for the beds and sofas, checking the kitchen inventories and replacing broken equipment with nice shiny new things. It is a really positive moment for all renters who look forward to the start of the season.

The farming estates are also busy after such a long winter with all the snow and rain that hit Italy this year. The final pruning and tying of the vines is now being completed – fertilization of the vineyards and olive groves is under way, and soon the first tilling of the vineyards and olive trees will take place. Gardens are being seeded and plants put in vases and in the flower beds.

There is a lot of activity going on also in the wine cellars because this is one of the periods during the year when wines are filtered and moved from the large steel containers into the wooden casks and barriques for aging. Blends of different wines are also being selected and will be ready to bottle soon, once the next moon wanes. The moon is important because it affects wine just as it affects tides, and bottling of wines is generally done during the days of the dying moon.

The gardens are also planted when the moon is waning. That way the plants will stay still and adapt to their new soil until the moon waxes down to nothing and then they will start to grow just as the moon starts its new cycle. The moon is very important to all those who work in agriculture and its cycles are followed carefully.

Spring also brings new life to the forests and you can see all the new budding vegetation if you take a walk through them. The grass is suddenly greener and everyone is generally in a more optimistic mood. The only thing we all gripe about is the daylight savings time with our clocks put forward an hour. But the complaining is not due to our loss of an hour of sleep and that we have to readapt our circadian cycles to the new time, but because those who raise and breed animals have to slowly retrain them to accepting that everything in their lives is happening an hour later. This is not so easy when you have cows or sheep or goats that are used to being milked at a specific time and you have to coax them into accepting that it has to be done an hour later. It takes a good month to get them adapted to the new cycle.

All in all, spring is one of the best times to visit the Chianti Classico region, Tuscany, and in Italy in general. The weather is still mild so you don’t have the cold of winter to fight against any longer and the heavy heat of summer is not yet pressing on you. I think it is one of the most enjoyable times to be here – far from the “madding crowds” so to speak and ideal for walking around and visiting all the little towns that Italy is so famous for. To me, this is the time to come if you want a leisurely holiday, so I hope to see a lot of interesting people from different lands visiting this fabulous country of ours.

HUNTING AND GUNS IN ITALY

2010-02-24T16:14:00.001+01:00

Who can and who can't carry guns in Italy and is all hunting bad?

Bang bang whammy shoot shoot kapow!! Every year come September, here at the Tuscan Enterprises office we get several phone calls from guests staying in one of our Villas wondering what all the early morning shooting is about: who is shooting? Who are they shooting at? Why are they shooting? And should we hide somewhere?

Not to worry, we reassure everyone – it is just the start of the very long Italian hunting season that runs from the first Sunday in September through to the end of February (and beyond for the wild boar hunts and deer culling). Italy has one of the highest percentages of hunters with respect to its population and they really do shoot at everything, and often even at each other: Dick Cheney style.

The hunters are a huge political lobby in Italy, and while they are fairly strong on the national level, with the backing of such companies as Beretta, (with its factories producing endless streams of rifles, shotguns and handguns and employing several thousand workers), it is really at the local small town level that they decide who gets elected to the town councils.

The small Italian Communes have to take them into account as they can sway the vote one way or the other. They are general not politically aligned with left, center or right, but with whoever is willing to let them do what they love the most: hunt. And hunting in Italy means the right to carry arms of different kinds.

They are allowed to enter any property, scale walls, jump over fences, and are only held back from the areas that are specifically fenced off for the breeding of rare animals, or for hunting reserves. The reserves are usually included in the lands of large estates and hunters pay to shoot game there.

Hunters have to take a pretty detailed and lengthy course in the use of weapons, recognition of all the wild animal species, conservation and handling of outdoor emergency situations, but once they have their permit, they can practically do what they want. A hunter is allowed to carry shotguns or rifles, according to the game he is hunting, and many of them spend small fortunes in highly trained dog breeds and equipment.

A hunter is the only person allowed to purchase a rifle or sidearm and bullets legally in Italy, after presenting his license to the gun shop. Those who are not hunters and inherit guns, rifles, etc… either have to go to the shooting range (as I did when I inherited my grandfather’s shotguns and paraphernalia) and take a day-long safety course, or they have to turn their guns in to the local Carabinieri and have them sealed in such a way that they can no longer be used. And they need to be kept either in a locked showcase or on a rack, with a chain and lock that keeps them from being used by anyone (see photo attached).

The only kinds of weapons that can be displayed are those that are used for decoration and are not efficient (see the photo of the crest with the extractible double swords).

Italian hunters are divided into three basic groups, with occasional crossovers: the pheasant, grouse and jackrabbit hunters with dogs; the specialized hunters who only hunt wild boar and cull deer and related species; and the bird hunters.

I do not much care for the first and last categories as they are up and around at indecent hours on Sundays shooting up the countryside and killing most everything that moves (squirrels, porcupines, chickens and other domestic animals included).

The bird hunters usually spend the summer building blinds so that the birds won’t see them and they also keep all kinds of caged birds which they force to sing to attract other passing or migratory species to within shooting distance of their blinds. I find this kind of hunting particularly despicable.

The hunters who shoot pheasants and jackrabbits are a bit more tolerable, although it is a bit of a joke. Since most wild animals have been shot out of existence, each spring, the local hunting associations “seed” the hunting areas and woodlands with pairs of pheasants, quails and rabbits that are bred in pens for that purpose. So you can imagine how “wild” these poor things will be come September…

The only hunting that I, owning a farm, do approve of is the selective culling of the huge amounts of wild boars that run through the land and destroy vineyards and other cultivations, causing a lot of money loss to those who raise crops. The deer and the roebuck also fall into this category.

They were dwindling in numbers years ago, so hunting was suspended. Now they have reproduced to such an extent that the land doesn’t provide enough food for them and with the disappearance of the wolf, they have no natural enemies. They destroy the sapling olive trees, eat the grapes from the vines, and the vine shoots in springtime, and wreak havoc also in the woods, where they graze on anything green.

I think the major problem is that to become a hunter specialized in culling, you have to have more training and it is a game of incredible patience with long hours spent just lying on the cold humid ground somewhere waiting for the animals to show. Not many hunters are willing to go through this kind of sacrifice.

All in all, hunting in Italy is more of a way of life than a hobby. It is slowly dying out as the new generations, which are more ecologically aware, do not like it and do not see it as a sport. It is becoming ever less popular and this had led to some serious reductive legislation. Next season, for example, the Italian government voted to reduce the hunting season from end of September to end of January. This is a step in the right direction, but still not enough to save some of the migratory bird species that are being wiped out.

So, what we tell our worried guests here at Tuscan Enterprises and on the farm at Casamonti, is to go ahead and take your morning walk, but keep to the trails and dirt tracks, making noise or singing when possible, to avoid the “Cheney” effect. And, in all fairness, do remember, when you are eating those fantastic noodles with wild boar sauce, that someone had to procure that boar and it wasn’t by petting him on his nose.

PASSPORTS, INTERNATIONAL DRIVING LICENSES AND OTHER GOODIES

2010-02-05T15:56:00.001+01:00

Tuscan Enterprises advice on documents you may need for your holidays.

In answer to questions posed from citizens of different countries, I thought that Tuscan Enterprises should address the need or lack of need of documents for visiting Italy (you can pretty much extend this to all of Europe). For European citizens, the requirements for tourism-related travel are all regulated by the famous Schengen Treaty of 1985. I am attaching a condensed version from Wikipedia below:

The Schengen Area comprises the territories of twenty-five European countries that have implemented the eponymous agreement signed in the town of Schengen, Luxembourg, in 1985. The Schengen Area operates very much like a single state for international travel purposes with border controls for travelers travelling in and out of the area, but with no internal border controls.

The Schengen rules were absorbed into European Union law by the Amsterdam Treaty in 1999, although the area includes three non-member states: Iceland, Norway, and Switzerland. All EU members except Ireland and the United Kingdom are required to implement Schengen and—with the exceptions of Bulgaria, Cyprus, and Romania—have done so. The Area currently covers a population of over 400 million people and an area of 4,312,099 square kilometers (1,664,911 sq mi).

Implementing the Schengen rules involves eliminating border controls with other Schengen members while simultaneously strengthening border controls with non-member states. The rules include provisions on common policy on the temporary entry of persons (including the Schengen visa), the harmonization of external border controls, and cross-border police and judicial co-operation.

A passport or an EU approved national identity card should be brought anyway when travelling, since identity checks can be done at places like airports and hotels and by the police. This depends on national rules and varies between countries. Occasionally, regular border controls are used between Schengen countries.

The Schengen Area currently consists of twenty-five states. Before 2007 there were fifteen Schengen countries: Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain and Sweden. Of these Iceland and Norway are not EU members but negotiated agreements with the EU in order to participate. Ireland and the United Kingdom are the only EU member states that are neither full members of nor committed to join the Schengen Area, having negotiated an opt-out from the Schengen acquis in the Treaty of Amsterdam.

However, the United Kingdom opted into the provisions related to police and judicial cooperation a few years later. The situation in Ireland is different: while Ireland requested and received permission to participate in the Schengen acquis in 2002, they have, As of February 2010, opted not to implement that permission. In 2007, nine countries—the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia, and Slovenia—that joined the EU three years previously joined the area.

Before joining the Schengen Area countries must upgrade their border controls with non-Schengen states so as to ensure the Area's integrity. Cyprus, which also joined the EU in 2004, did not meet the necessary criteria and thus has requested a delay for a year, while Romania and Bulgaria, which joined the EU in 2007, are still bringing their border controls up to the required standard. Schengen's newest member is Switzerland which joined the Area on 12 December 2008.

The situation is more complicated for citizens of non EU countries, such as the United States, Australia, Canada, etc. These tourists can stay in Italy for up to 90 days without need for a visa. For a stay of 90 days or longer, a visa is required, obtainable from an Italian consular office in your nation of origin.

Italian law also requires an international driver’s license obtainable from your local Automobile Club (AAA for example in the United States). You need to fill in an application, present two passport size photos and pay a minimal fee and you get the license. Some online services also offer this but they are more expensive. Citizens from China or Arab countries, some African States, and South American nations, all need visas to come to Italy (or Europe for that matter).

Last but not least, many people who travel have prescription medicines that they have to take with them. The best idea is to buy enough medications to last the holiday, and to make sure you get a written prescription from your doctor attesting that you must take these specific medications in case you are checked at an airport customs office. My own personal suggestion is that you make a list of the principal ingredients of any medication you take (for heart conditions or diabetes, etc..) so that if anything happens to your meds, you can always go to a pharmacy with the list and they will give you the Italian - or European – equivalency drugs in substitution for the ones you are out of.

These are all simple guidelines to follow, but once done, you can take your mind off these secondary concerns and allow yourself to enjoy your Tuscan Enterprises vacation in a Tuscan Villa or an Umbrian Farmhouse without a care in the world except what wine to put in your glass.

BEWARE THE DISCOUNT TRAPS. NOT ALL THAT GLITTERS IS GOLD.

2010-01-14T17:01:00.000+01:00

What you should know about the pros and cons of holiday discounts.

After 29 consecutive years working as a Tour Operator renting Villas, Farmhouses and Residential complexes through our Tuscan Enterprises Travel Agency, I believe that I have seen practically all the discount gimmicks and ploys that have been invented by operators in this competitive holiday rental business. With the recession, boundless amounts of creativity have bloomed and flourished.

The first company ever to apply discounts was Cuendet, Located here in the Chianti Classico and for years the undisputed leader of all types of vacation rentals. Their approach was straightforward already some 25 years ago: if you booked your holiday accommodation before December 31st, you got a 5% discount on the price – be it a small apartment in a dingy old farm or a magnificent independent Villa. It was 5% and that was that.

For many years, this system drew return clients to the company and it also made sure it was the first one out on the market with its printed catalogues. Do remember that when we and the other “historical” Tour Operators started the Villa rental business, the most we had to work with were basic computers, phones and the first fax machines. Forget the internet and websites. Tons of multilingual catalogues were produced by each of us and we vied to see who came up with the most original design and cover each year.

Today the rental war is up and running and several tricks are being used by some of the big operators. They will offer you a 7 day holiday at the price of 6 days. This is the most absurd kind of false discount as it is simply a total ruse: what they are doing is taking the normal weekly price and applying it to the 6 days, making the 7th day appear as an extra. That 7th day is then used again when they switch to false discounts, where they will offer reduced rates ranging from 10% to 20% if you book by a certain date.

Here, one of two things are done: the first is to start with a higher base price quoted on the Villa you are going to discount (which means that you are selling it at its real price anyway); the second is that famous 7th day cost being presented again as a discount. Simple calculation: if a Villa’s real price is 6000 euros per week, and it is offered at 7000 euros instead, then each day is worth 1000 euros. If you get 6 days at the price of 7, you are paying 6000 euros and the full Villa price. If, instead, you are getting, say, a 10% discount, it accounts for 700 euros, and the agent is ahead by 300 euros on the discount accorded to you. Win-win for the agent and owner, right? But it does give you the impression you are getting a good deal.

Recently, a new false discount, but offered in a more refined way, has been to include a dinner or a lunch for your party when you book a certain Villa. Consider that a normal meal for 8 persons served to you will probably not cost more than 250 euros. Again, this is added to the weekly fee by owners and agents when prices are drawn up. Conclusion? You are paying for that meal anyway.

There are only a very few discounts that you can consider honestly legitimate:

1) The first is when you are booking 3 or more weeks in a Villa. By all means do ask if a discount is available. Generally, both owners and agents will reduce prices and commissions because 3 or 4 week bookings mean having a full house without the hassle of searching for different clients for the same end result. Owners especially love long bookings, as you can naturally imagine. In many cases they will even throw in the free meal or a pizza party made putting their wood-burning ovens to good use. Long-term bookers are highly cherished clients.

2) A second honest discount can be asked if you are effecting a last-minute booking on a Villa. Booking less than a month prior to arrival can be a good way to get the owners and agents to offer a discount as the accommodation will probably remain empty anyway. I personally don’t advise waiting to do your bookings at the last minute, especially if you have to find plane tickets and organize car rentals because you are going to be left with whatever nobody else wants. Your tickets may cost more instead of less, and you risk having to rent a minivan when all you need is a small car. In the end, what you save on the Villa rental will just go to pay the other costs. Not worth it to go for a second-choice holiday which is probably going to be fairly expensive anyway.

3) A third good reason to ask for a discount is if you are a return client to a specific Villa. Agents and owners are always pleased to have guests returning as it means that their offer was satisfying.

Beware of discounts shouted in large promotional messages from websites as they are just rusing you. If a Villa needs to be discounted by 20% already in January or February, it means that either the original price was too high, or it is just forlorn and empty for other reasons which should lead you to wonder about it. Discounts offered a month or so prior to an arrival date are fair game. This means agents and owners are doing their best to fill in periods that are still empty.

My personal advice about a few things you should do when booking your Villa holiday are:

1) Book your tickets early once you know your holiday dates and try to get the best price possible. You can choose the Villa after you have the tickets in hand.

2) Make sure you rent a car from one of the major car rental companies. Even if they cost more, they will provide immediate assistance and replacement cars. The obscure really cheap rental agents may leave you stranded for days on end. We have seen this too many times in recent years and it totally ruins your vacation.

3) Ask your agents/Tour Operators if they carry liability insurance that will cover you and yours during your holiday. For example, we at Tuscan Enterprises have total client coverage for anything that may happen to your family and party during your stay.

4) Another question to ask your agents is if they actually know the houses and Villas that they are suggesting to you. Hands on knowledge will save a lot of guesswork.

5) The final but fundamental distinguishing feature to look for in choosing your rental agency is to know how long they have been operating in the Villa rental business.

These are simple guidelines, but if you follow them, you will see how useful they are in helping you organize a really enjoyable holiday.

Tree holding the sky

2010-01-01T09:50:00.000+01:00

Sometimes even a wisp of a tree

Holds out it skeletal arms

And taking a sudden stand

Cradles the sky in its hands

over following twitterers

2009-12-28T17:32:00.001+01:00

I agree that many times you see tweets from people who are trying to rack up numbers of followers and they are missing the point entirely. What I find difficult is not following nice people who decide to follow me but who tweet about things that just don't interest me or who are simply commercial endeavor tweeters. I always thank them for the follow, but then just don't follow back. Makes me feel guilty.

in riferimento a: Twitter / Home (visualizza su Google Sidewiki)

Snowstorm at Casamonti on 18/12/09

2009-12-19T10:19:00.001+01:00

These are the pictures of the incredible scenery we found this morning after a night of snowstorms. I can't remember this much snow in a long time.

Christmas Hampers Anna Rita made in the Casamonti shop.

2009-12-13T10:48:00.001+01:00

These are the really beautiful Christmas hampers that Anna Rita has been preparing for our clients using the products from the Casamonti shop. Worth looking at, I think. They show what an artist she is.

2010 Catalogue

2009-12-03T16:22:00.002+01:00

This is the catalogue cover for 2010. Tomorrow the final proofs and then we print.

2009-12-02T09:21:00.002+01:00

TUSCANRAY | Another hailstorm picture from yesterday in Chianti.

Posted using ShareThis

2009-12-01T14:53:00.000+01:00

This is the incredible hail storm that hit us at Casamonti just around 13.30. Everything turned white in the matter of minutes. I have never seen so much hail in this season. Usually if it hails, it does so in May and damages the vineyards. It is completely out of season now. I only feel sorry for those who still had olives to pick because the hail has ruined their harvest.

2009-11-25T11:18:00.000+01:00

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone from Casamonti.

2009-11-23T16:41:00.001+01:00

Amazing how dependent on electricity we are. Had nothing to do all morning waiting for the electric company to finish work. Now I'm back :))

2009-11-21T17:57:00.001+01:00

Ok - I just officially quit work for the weekend. And monday we are without electricity all morning so I will just sit around at home ;))

2009-11-21T12:28:00.001+01:00

MMMM Anna Rita just made nice ricotta tortelloni. Sage and butter and parmigiano. Helps after all this proofreading ;))

2009-11-19T17:02:00.001+01:00

Finished picking the olives and the guys had huge pans of water boiling to make buristo sausage and soppressata from cinta scraps and blood.