CASA DEL CASTAGNO
"A wonderful vacation"
Thank you so much for sharing Il Calcione with us. It was a wonderful vacation and definitely the best part of our eight weeks away from home. When we spoke on our last day, you mentioned that you would be interested in our listing highlights of our stay at Il Calcione and Tuscany:
The guesthouses are what you would expect of 18th Century renovated peasants cottages: solid with amazingly thick walls and shuttered windows; full of atmosphere and absolutely rustic. The art works that decorate the walls in our house were particularly interesting because they not only represent some of the ancestral Della Stufas but there are also prints of old Toscana which suit the antiquity of the house. The houses we saw are well and appropriately appointed for the tariff range. We found our accommodation which was in the moderate range very good and as we expected. We had everything we needed including a fireplace. Our house had well laden walnut trees and a pine-nut tree in the grounds, and the surrounding property and especially neighbouring areas had many patches of field mushrooms which provided us with breakfast and garnishings! A forager's delight! I just know there were the delicious and highly prized porcine mushrooms about but we didn't know what to look for and where. The guests' tennis court is excellent as are the swimming pools we saw. Perhaps because it was autumn, there was a surprising lack of nasty insects: no mosquitos to speak of, hardly any flies and the European wasps were also quite inconspicuous. Beautiful little lizards played along the stone walls. We saw pheasant, hare and deer quite commonly around the estate and some of our party claimed to have heard wild boar. There is a surprising lack of birds and the few we saw were extremely timid. Il Calcione's four horses are very friendly and love to be hand fed walnuts. From the castle we obtained very good quality and cheap wines, excellent honey and olive oil. We also arranged for a cook to come once a week - a Tunisian woman called Amel who is a wonderful cook and very reasonable. Among her many specialties: wild boar pasta, torte della nonna, the best tiramisu we have tasted, and some great Tunisian dishes. Nicoletta della Stufa who was mostly on call at the castle while we were there is most accommodating and helpful with general and local tourist advice.
The most startling surprise about Il Calcione was that it is set among not only farmed land (olive groves and grapevines) but extensive woodland. It is the most perfect setting for nature lovers who like to ramble along little used tracks with very little chance of running into other ramblers. Much of it is quite wild country as we experienced travelling back from Rapolano Terme. We turned off the gravel road onto a track to the left just before the road joins the sealed road again - drove as far as we could, then walked to the top of a hill where we had a view across extensive woodland to the distant castle. Near the residences are two lakes: one is dark and mysterious and the other is much larger, bare and visually less interesting.
Il Calcione is ideally suited for easy trips to the most beautiful country in southern Tuscany, including the Chianti region and to the most famous and extraordinary towns and cities, such as: Florence, Sienna, Montepulciano, Pienza, San Gimignano and further afield to Orvieto and Cortona and Lake Trasimene and other Umbrian tourist sites. Because there is so much to see and do in these places and on the way, we found it necessary to limit ourselves to one destination a day even though that might be only 50 to 70 kms away. Also the minor roads are very narrow and twisting and often only dirt tracks. For this reason it is also important to get hold of a detailed map (1:250,000 is ideal) which shows the scenic roads clearly marked and places of major interest well highlighted. One of our party had such a map which prompted us to take a selection of 'green' roads to wherever we were going which without fail would present us with unforgettable views and scenery - a photographer's paradise.
The siting of Il Calcione is excellent for another reason - access to major tourist cities. Tourists may be wonderful for the local economy but they are a curse for other tourists. We found it so difficult to get a park in Siena (in late September) that we decided to catch trains to such places in future because we noticed that railway stations were located close to city centers. Arezzo, about 30 mins easy drive from Il Calcione is where you catch express trains to almost any major destination. Opposite the station's rear (on the way in from Il Calcione) is a very good and cheap parking station. Best of all the trains are remarkably cheap, faster than a car and very reliable. You can get to Florence in an hour, Rome in an hour and a half and to Venice and Bologna in about two. It is important to pay the extra for reserved seating, however, if you want to be sure of a seat.
The local towns are well serviced with supermarkets, restaurants and anything else you need. There is an excellent range of good quality and reasonably priced local food and wine in the COOPs (supermarkets) located in most towns; we frequented the COOPS at Sinalunga and Monte San Savino. Spirits are very cheap. Most local towns also have a weekly market day where you can purchase fresh meats, vegetables and fruit and fish. Rapolano Terme had a small COOP, and was the most convenient for Internet services at the time we were there.
Finally the people. Helpful, friendly, very patient and so good humoured. We always felt very safe in Italian towns and cities, no matter what the hour.

Joan and John Dunn
Fraser, AUSTRALIA
email: jjdunn@bigpond.net.au