Todd and Georgia Meet the Carabinieri!

Florence, April 20-24

World-wise senior diplomats, especially those who have spent 11 years of their lives in Europe, certainly shouldn’t fall prey to pickpockets, right? Right. However, in the words of our esteemed Secretary of Defense, “stuff happens” sometimes.

It happened to Todd at a bus stop near the Duomo in Florence, and at the end of our ride, he realized he was missing his wallet. We quickly canceled the credit cards, checked with the bus company, and then went to the Carabinieri to file a report. This visit turned out to be surprisingly pleasant, for we were received by Marco Piu, an English-speaking Carabinieri officer of intelligence, diligence, patience and tact, who had served as a peacekeeper in both Guatemala and Bosnia. Our report filed, we then began the surprisingly difficult process of obtaining new credit cards and informing our creditors to charge recurring bills to Georgia’s American Express card, rather than Todd’s. Incidentally, Todd now carries his wallet and other impedimenta in a sporty Florentine leather shoulder bag, a gift from Georgia.

Happily, the pleasant aspects of our days in Florence more than compensated for this incident. En route from Rome we stopped in Sienna and were duly impressed by the 12-13th century architecture, all the more so because Sienna did not have the museum-like feel of Assisi. The following photos show the Campo, the huge central square where the Palio horse race takes place, and the tower surmounting the city hall.


Siena: Piazza del Campo


Siena: Torre del Mangia


In Florence, we stayed with our friends Frank and Jane Simone at the apartment of Laura and Dick Ogden, which commands a great view of the city. The Simones had had the foresight to order Uffizi and Accademia tickets in advance so we were able to avoid the long queues of tourists who flooded nearly every site worthy of note in the Florence area. Most were Italian, but Germans and Americans were represented in fair numbers, along with other European nationalities and Japanese. In San Gimignano, with its medieval towers and magnificent views of the Tuscan countryside, the crush of people came close to recalling the claustrophobic feelings we experienced in Hong Kong. The sites were so magnificent, however, that one could hardly expect private showings, and we were surprised to find almost no one at the Santa Maria del Carmine, where we could enjoy the extraordinary Masaccio frescoes at our own pace.


Florence: Simones and Georgia on our balcony


Florence: Il Duomo from the Uffizi


Florence: Baptistry (Il Duomo) dome


Florence: Arno River


Florence: Ponte Vecchio


San Gimignano


San Gimignano


Tuscan countryside from San Gimignano


The manager of the wine shop the Simones patronize in Connecticut had urged them to visit La Ripa, a small winery south of Florence in San Donato, which is one of his important suppliers. We drove down in Valeriu on Sunday, expecting a Napa-like ambiance with a tasting room and hordes of tourists. Instead, we found La Ripa at the end of a gravel lane with in a building so unprepossessing that it appeared to be a private home. Entering the court with some trepidation, we found the owner, Sandro Caramelli, at work on his accounts. He quickly, and apparently gladly, abandoned this task in favor of spending the next two hours with us, directing our tasting of his superb Chianti Classico wines and sharing a series of fascinating insights on winemaking, business and politics in Italy. Afterwards, he booked a table for us at “La Toppa,” the excellent local trattoria, where we received wonderful treatment from its ebullient proprietor.


San Donato: Sandro Caramelli, owner of La Ripa


San Donato: La Toppa


Our last full day in Tuscany was spent in Lucca and Pisa. Lucca was spared the full brunt of the tourist onslaught that day so we were able to enjoy its interesting architecture without much jostling. Despite the crowds in Pisa, we were impressed, rather to our surprise, by the Leaning Tower and its neighboring cathedral, which we had not seen photographed together. Seen in this context, the tower is far more attractive than the hackneyed poses suggest.


Leaning Tower of Pisa