An Afternoon in San Gimignano

               While I have reliable internet access, I decided to make another quick post. My program ended a week ago, and I've spent my last week in Italy traveling with my mom. Yesterday we spent the day visiting a few different small Medieval towns in Tuscany.  Yesterday afternoon, we arrived in San Gimignano ready for lunch. While my guidebook has been a wonderful source for good and pocket-friendly restaurants, we decided to wing it and were pleasantly surprised. Unfortunately, I can't remember the name of the restaurant we chose but it was lovely. We shared some house white wine, a mix of bruschette, white beans, tomato onion and basil salad, and an awesome handmade pasta dish with eggplant, zucchini, mushrooms, and tomatoes. The pasta absolutely perfect. All of the veggies were cooked just right and worked really well with the fresh made pasta, and the sunny afternoon and Italian street life complemented our meal perfectly. 

Our Lovely Late Lunch

               After lunch, we strolled around town and took in sights like San Gimignano's many Medieval tower houses. Before heading on to Lucca, we stopped at Gelateria di Piazza, which I've been told has some of the best gelato in the world.  When I visited the same shop with a class, I tried their specialty Crema di Santa Fina: Orange cream gelato flavored with Bourbon, vanilla, saffron, and pine nuts. The flavor was creamy, but also bright and delicate. It was lovely, but for my second visit I decided to go with a fruitier combo of Raspberry flavored with Rosemary and Lemon.  I really loved the rosemary with the raspberry. The rosemary wasn't overpowering, but it added a nice fresh complexity to the intense raspberry flavor, while the pure lemon flavor added brightness.

Holding My Cone of Raspberry and Rosemary, and Lemon  Gelato

      All in all, we loved taking in all the sights and tastes of this Medieval gem. Until next time!