The belly button of Tuscany, Certaldo Italy 35k, 2hrs

I awake from the sun making warmth on my face. I rock slightly back and forth as the wind slightly touches my hamock.
I have to remember where I am. Centerno, Italy. Not Tennessee. Not Wyoming, but in a hamock in the afternoon awaking from a nap in the tuscan country side.

I awoke as I pleased and had no real agenda for the day except to be back from my ride at 11am. I am having my first tuscan cooking class that was arranged by the owners of the Fattoria Bassetto, my guest house for 3 day.

It is a picture-esk place that I have fallen in love with. I am told by the owners that portions of his home was first built as a monistary. There are multiple cobbled buildings with portions covered in patches of pastel coved plaster. The Bassetto was also at one time the 2nd largest winery in Italy, a tabacco farm, and now a guest house for travelers looking for a real tuscan holiday .

Multiple two stoy buildings with florescent colored shutters and tile layered roofs tell the stories from time before. The multiple gardend seem to tell the perfect tuscun tale with lemon trees, vines scaling every verticle structure, rainbow pots of flowers, and quant sitting areas placed strategically around the property.

Well about the cooking class......

GiuseppinmPizzalato, a professional chef and local Certaldoan (that is also going to be on David Letterman very soon), invites people into her home for a three hour cooking lesson for 30 euros. This includes wine tasting, sampling of her home made jams, cheese, and instruction (and some good eatin) on how to cook bruscetta, teramisu, and rissoto. Dressed to cook in our aprons and chef hats, myself and 6 other guests shared an intiment afternoon eating, drinking and sharing stories in english, with portions translated in Itallian.

Passionate about her profession, Giuseppina relates with enthusiasm about her home, her food, and her people. She shares the history of the famous Certaldo red onion that was made known by the midevil pilgrims that would treck from rome to notrthern spain.

As she cooks she smells and tasts the food as if it were the first time she has ever experienced these traditional tuscan dishes.Three hours go by quickly and I find that a nap in the tuscun countryside would be a perfect end to one of the best afternoons ever in my life.
Amore, K