Off gallivanting again ....

.... we're just back from Italy - we were away for four days at a friend's wedding, and it was the most gob-stoppingly amazing weekend.  The location was a flippin' castle in Tuscany, if you please!!!  It was a small wedding, about 30 adults (plus assorted toddlers and babies) - nobody with older kids wanted to bring them!

We were staying in Cetona, the hill-top village that belonged to the castle.  We had a gorgeous room, with air con - that made me so happy.  I don't do heat very well, being a very pale-skinned Irish person, my comfort level usually peaks at about 25^oC and above that I go into a decline.  It was 33^oC at the hottest part of the day all weekend, but somehow it was OK - bit of a breeze, lots of shady areas, and the delightful air-con at night.  Happy me!!!  I'm going to overload you with pics now - have managed to cut hundreds down to eight!!

Here's a view from one of the streets up to "La Rocca", the castle/villa bit:

It was such a magnificent place, we were laughing about how unworthy we all felt to be there - it would have been no surprise if George Clooney or somebody of that ilk had come walking across the grass and told us to get off his land!!!  Here are the beautiful gardens looking up towards the castle:

The pool in another area of the garden:

The food was divine, both at the wedding and in the village for other meals.  We ate and ate and ate all weekend.   Table all set for dinner - bit dark as it was dusk but you get the idea. 

Here's where we stayed, just off the main piazza, lovely shady terrazza - and then a view of the old castle beside our place (that's me on the left with the whitest legs in the universe!).

Another view of the street heading from our place up to the town hall and thence the castle:

And here's our hire car - of course it had to be a Fiat 500!

We are lucky to have other friends who live about half way between Cetona, where the wedding was, and the airport in Rome, so we called in to see them on Sunday - had more lovely food, a refreshing dip in the pool and sit in the shade, and then we came home.

I came back with several impressive mozzy bites, no sunburn (hurrah!), and a feeling of wanting to be fed at least once every hour or so!!! Ho hum - back to reality!!!

Thanks for looking!!