The Rucksack Foodie

Often overlooked in most Italian itineraries, the ancient walled city of Lucca holds many fabulous secrets to discover & a relaxed Italian life-vibe we all need in our lives.
Its 2.62 mile Renaissance-era brick wall perfectly encircles the city's historic center. The fortification is remarkably massive & well-preserved. So massive in fact, it would accommodate a two lane road up top but instead it serves as one the most popular bike riding & strolling spots with it’s tree lined path hovering 40 feet above Luca’s much more ancient center. A center with gorgeous renaissance era churches, narrow lanes & even a much more ancient center where an old Roman Coloseum once stood now a perfectly enclosed medieval complex that is home to a circle of eateries, evening musicians & the occasional open air market.
An ancient city center that seems slower than most of Italy’s beloved spots. A pace that makes you feel like the clock may have stopped in the 1950s. Despite the main lanes with fashionable shops & obvious tourist eateries, you pass endless little shop still decked out with art nouveau facades, shops that specialize in one aspect of life, small family run eateries with hand chalked signs, workman’s studios with the master sipping their midmorning coffee while perched atop an old wooden box, delivery men with bike baskets containing stacked baked goods or a case of wine for delivery, & locals chatting on the stoops as they head out for their morning shopping. The history of Lucca is seen with every step, from its curved walls following outlines of older Roman walls to outlines of medieval tower houses merged with later build ons.
Everyone one of my Keyrow Tours guests remarked how much they would love to come back here for a few nights & just soak in this slow Italian life-vibe amongst the ancient bricked buildings.
And I agree, if I’m ever lost you might check a side street in Lucca. You might find me sipping a Negroni & nibbling a Cecina (a thin chickpea flour pancake baked in a wood-fired oven)

Originally an ancient Tuscan city, Lucca was founded by the Etruscans & established as a Roman colony in 180 BC. Renowned for its intact, tree-lined 16th-century Renaissance walls, it maintained independence as a republic for nearly 500 years and later gave birth to world-class composers like Giacomo Puccini. Look “up” when you wander the narrow streets of Lucca, as the architectural feature hold many beautiful surprises and ancient elements recycled over the last 2000 years!

AND we stopped in to visit the leaning town of Pisa, definitely a spot to go back to and explore the gorgeous cathedral and baptistery next door to it. Gorgeous mosaics and curious global influences in the different eras of construction can be seen across its exterior- my next visit to the area I will make time to explore the interiors as well!

Some places are just worth the effort…
📍Florence Italy is one of them!
Florence is a hot spot for tourists and can feel like an ancient stone oven in the summer heat but somehow despite these things, at the end of your visit you discover you still haven’t seen everything you wanted and now have a whole new list of places to visit the next time you come - because there is just so much to discover in Florence !
Evolving from a Roman military colony (Florentia) founded by Julius Caesar in 59 BC to the thriving, art-filled Republic that birthed and financed the Italian Renaissance, to a busy Italian tourism must-visit.
Between the crowded, global brand shopping, high streets… if you wander just a bit off into the side stone pathways, overshadowed by 1000 yr old “high rises”… you’ll discover “old” Florence still exsists. 100+ year old shops specializing in just buttons or just lampshades, dusty woodworker studios filled with antique scraps awaiting a repair job, the only surviving master workshop of the ancient art of mosaics and back street lampredotto windows ( a traditional sandwich of flavorful delicacy made with the abomasum, the fourth stomach of a cow, slow-cooked in a rich and savory broth).

On this journey over half of my Keyrow Tours guests had already previously enjoyed a fabulous walking tour with our amazing local guide .faust , but they each had a list of places to go explore on their own while Adri took me and the newbies on a history packed stroll to see some of her favorites: the David, the Duomo, the back passages with hidden hints of the Roman era, & of course the best historic wine window in the city!!
Later back at our private Tuscan Villa we all shared our days adventures while sipping Chianti & indulging on the Florentine classic dish, Bistecca alla fiorentina - 3 inch steaks on the bone , fresh from the village butcher nearby, cooked over an authentic charcoal fire on our back patio overlooking the Tuscan hills.
A Perfect ending to a fabulous day exploring Florence with these fabulous fellow travelers!!!!


📸 of yummy lampredoto from my guest 🫶🏻😋

The Tuscan hills greeted us with blue skies & rolling green fields as we ventured up to Montipulciano, looking across the Val d’Orcia grain fields to the west and the Val di Chiana vineyards & Olive orchards to the east. Since the Iron Age the indigenous Villanovan culture cultivated these valleys, the Eutruscans settling the limestone hilltop establishing its wealth as a Kingdom, the Romans turning the hilltop into a fortress overseeing the important trade and troop movements below and eventually the Medicis transforming it from a fiercely contested medieval hill town into a vibrant Renaissance outpost and supplying the most prominent family tables with Vino Noblis Montipulciano (Noble Wines of Montipulciano) . We wandered the steep village lanes, in awe of the stone architecture and its ancient beauty, shopping the local shops, sipping coffee with panforte, and then a very special lunch. Making our way to Gatavecchi Winery .poggioallasala for an amazing tasting lunch in a 800 yr old wine cantina started by monks, connect to a 12th century church that was built atop a 2000 yr old Eutruscan tomb. A meal that spoke to us in every bite of what Tuscan life is about.
Continuing the afternoon exploring the beautiful UNESCO protected village of Pienza. Once a simple Tuscan hilltop settlement originally called Corsiggnano, but in the 15th century was transformed into an “Ideal City” of the Renaissance by Pope Pius II. Born here, he had risen into power as the Pope and wanted to transform his home into some place “special” so he commissioned his little home village to be renovated based in the architectural philosophy of geometry, symmetry, and balance to create the most perfectly designed town for its time. AND it’s the pecorino cheese capital of Italy! (Which is enough reason alone for me to visit!)
A magical day in the postcard perfect Tuscany hills with my Keyrow Tours guests!
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Today we indulged in La Grassa!! Since the Middle Ages Bologna, nickname has been “La Grassa” (The Fat One), and for good reason. Being in the center of the most important cuisine region of Italy, Emilia-Romagna. Bologna & neighboring Modena are places where culinary traditions are not only part of daily life but are regulated under strict government oversight to ensure authenticity and excellence. Foods like Parmigiano Reggiano Cheese , Balsamic Vinegar of Modena, & Prosciutto di Modena.
The full region of Emilia-Romagna is home to 44 European protected agri-food products, the European record for most PDO (Protected Designation of Origin) and PGI (Protected Geographical Indication) certifications in a single region. Additionally, the region is home to over 200 traditional food products recognized by the ministerial register and 30protected wine classifications.
And today my Keyrow Tours Guests got to not only taste Italy’s finest but also learn from the families themselves who have been producing this traditional deliciousness for multiple generations!!
With an early start to our day guided by the lovely Chiara, she started us at a small but amazing Parmigiana Reggiano production where 44 rounds a day 365 days a year are hand made by Giorgio & his small team, with milk from cows in the neighboring field.
And then on to the private family home of Paolo Calvedoni, the head quarters for Moderna’s oldest Balsamic making family. Paolo greeted us warmly with a balsamic tasting as well as a full grazing table featuring various aged Parmesana Reggiano , fresh baked focaccia, and their very own Lambrusco! Here tradition dates back to 1835, with that original barrel still aging perfectly in the traditional batteria (attics full of small wooden barrels). The closely controlled production methods start from the vine, with the family’s grapes, then barrels crafted from local wood and iron, and then the legacy with the birth of a child and filled with portions from each direct family’s barrel, the family maintaining it until the child becomes an adult and is ready to take it home with them or leave it in the family batteria with Paolo looking over it.
Continuing on to the prosciutto factory, a surreal visit being surrounded by a staggering amount of pork dangling from steel racks. But an important visit as guests learn about the various curing techniques, sourcing of pigs and deciphering labels to know which pork is truly from this region when shopping the intricate markings .
And alllll that followed by a 16 dish meal & wine tasting full of laughter!

There are only two things on your plate: Parmigiano Reggiano and the passing of time."
— Massimo Bottura (referencing his famous dish, The Five Ages of Parmigiano Reggiano at Osteria Francescana)

When you can’t find your guests out on their passeggiata in Bologna and you concede to suffer through a refreshing Negroni on a quiet piazza where a “church” has stood since at least 1st century AD.
The wonder of it all in this ancient city of Bologna that may be my most favorite city in Italy.
I captured a quiet moment to reflect on how lovely these Keyrow Tours guests have been in their laughter and their curiosity of these places,, the memories they are making absorbing Italian culture, history and calories while on this most amazing journey and just how small our moment in history is when you compare it to all that came before us!

Passeggiata: when Italians take to the streets each evening between 5pm & 8pm to walk and socialize.

Monterosso in Cinque Terra has left a mark on the hearts of my wonderful Keyrow Tours group this past few days.. every single guest asked if we HAD to leave this morning. Their few days stay was one of tranquility in the shade and fun in the sun. Afternoons exploring the narrow passageways and streets, swimming in the cool Ligurian Sea , fresh focaccia wafting on the breeze, seeking out gelato, shopping the linen boutiques or local jewelers. Evenings under the chestnut tree shaded courtyard sipping Spritz’s. And dinners full of local food traditions like Baccala (fish stew), trofie pasta, fresh pesto mussel ripolini and Vermintino wines from the terraces climbing the steeps hills surrounding us.
Leading you to places like this & and moments that make memories on a is a lucky dream life…

“Here, by some miracle, the war of troubled passions calls a truce; here we poor too, receive our share of riches, which is the fragrance of the lemons…(and sight of the sea)
— Eugenio Montale (from his collection Ossi di seppia 1954)

Special evening is an understatement … Learning from Lake Como’s fabulous master of wine Norberto while dining on some Northern Italy’s finest offerings in a 300 year old snow cellar/enoteca tucked up a tiny path in Bellagio. And winding the night down with a ride across the lake home while watching the sunset over the mountains… just another typical day on a Keyrow Tours journey!

Thank you Norberto & Matteo & the lovely team there for another amazing line up of regional wines and tastes - always exquisite!!!!!!