Monday, January 26, 2015

Vacation Diary Part Two: Tuscany

Good morning and welcome back from the weekend!  Today I wanted to share the other half of our vacation that was spent in Tuscany.  

After Austria, we hopped on a short 2.5 hour flight and arrived in Florence.  We then rented a car and headed straight out to the Val d'Orcia region of Tuscany.  Many of you might remember that this is the area where we were married in 2013.  This region is my absolute favorite place on earth and I was SO excited to be spending my birthday here.  Little did Adam & I know that we had both picked up a bad case of food poisoning {airplane salads = no bueno} and spent our first two days holed up in our bed & breakfast sicker than dogs.  As I had previously mentioned in my Austria Vacation Diary post, I was already under the weather and adding this into the mix + taking care of my sick husband {why are men SO much weaker than us?!} definitely wasn't an ideal vacation.  But the sickness passed pretty quick, and we were able to get a couple quality days of exploring this gorgeous region.



If you have never been to this region of Tuscany, I highly, highly suggest you add this to your bucket list.  Picture rolling emerald hills, 1,000 year old sleepy Tuscan villages, and world class wine + cheese.



Our chic bed & breakfast, located in Pienza, was converted from a former monastery where nuns lived for over 500 years.  I love how the owners were respectful to the original structure {original stone walls & some beams} but still modernized the space.



The charming village of Pienza is exactly what you'd envision a small Tuscan town to look like.






Adam & I stood in front of this gate and took our engagement pictures with Jose Villa almost 2 years ago...it was such a treat to revisit this.



We also visited our olive tree that we purchased the day after our wedding.  It's nestled right next to the vineyards of our favorite winery, Il Palazzone.  Even though we were still feeling a little queasy, we still indulged in some wine tasting + catching up with our favorite sommelier, Laura.



Each year, they send us the olive oil from our tree :)






I've always been in love with the character found in old doors.  If we ever build a house from the ground up, I want a HUGE front door like we see everywhere in Italy.






Wearing: Vince sweater/tunic {available here} //  Hue faux leather leggings {here} //  Isabel Marant Andrew booties {here}




A local cheese shop with the freshest cheeses you have ever tasted.



I could wander through these little streets for hours.



On my birthday we said goodbye to these gorgeous views, and headed to Florence.  Btw, in my opinion the true test of a marriage is renting a car in a foreign country.  We managed to only get lost once which resulted in me getting out of the car and walking {I can be a bit dramatic when we argue} ;)



We checked into the Portrait Firenze which is owned by the Ferragamo family.  The hotel was over the top luxurious.



Check out our stunning bathroom which featured all Salvatore Ferragamo bath products.  And yes, I definitely took a long soak in that tub!



Who needs cake on your birthday when you can have two scoops of gelato!?!






I have wanted this bag forever!!! 



We have visited Florence several times, and views like this never get old.



Shoe shopping in Aquazzura's beautiful boutique.



S-T-U-N-N-I-N-G





Where We Stayed



Florence - Portrait Firenze



Have a great week, and for my East Coast readers STAY WARM & SAFE in this big upcoming storm!! Thanks for reading xx


10 comments:

  1. Oh WOW, how I loved this post (and knew I would:)) My partner and I have only visited Rome a few times, but from that alone I know we would fall in love with other parts of Italy, from you're pictures I know how very true that is, stunning.. Beauty everywhere, so so much history and the best Wine:) On our last visit to Rome, we got talking to one of the barmen in a pub and he told us if you must visit another part of Italy try Florence. I should look in to that... The olive tree is such a wonderful idea and so great you got to see it again. Now I am a tiny bit sad we changed our minds last minute on a trip to Rome, we chose London instead:) XX

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    1. Oh girl, you would LOVE Florence! It is so different from Rome :) If you ever end up going, let me know - I have some great restaurant recommendations for you. xx

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  2. Gorgeous pics! Definitely giving me a little wanderlust!

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  3. Florence is one of my favorite places! Tuscany is still on my bucket list though. Gorgeous pics, especially your birthday gelato ;) I love the olive tree idea. Do you have a link for more info?

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    1. Thanks Megan! If you click on the link above the picture that says "Il Palazzone" there should be a tab about the olive oil :)

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  4. you looked gorgeous in the sweater dress - so pretty! Loving all these photos, has me dreaming of a vacation!! xo, Biana - BlovedBoston

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    1. Thanks girl! Stay warm up in B Town. That storm looks pretty nasty : /

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  5. Looooooove all of your vacay pics, so gorgeous!!! LOL love that you got out of the car, I would totally pull a move like that ;). xx B

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    1. lol girl sometimes you just gotta prove your point :)

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