Panzano: Celebrity Butcher, Dario Cecchini

What is a celebrity butcher? I watched an episode of Anthony Bourdain's No Reservations on my ipod during the bus ride from Florence. His sarcastic description of Tuscany's treasures featured Dario Cecchini. Jack Nicholson proclaimed the best hamburger he has ever eaten was consumed here. Mario Batali counts Dario as a mentor.
He was described as an expert of traditional Italian cuisine, classic butchering techniques and a performer of Dante. The chefs of my B&B spoke mostly of his passion for food.
Upon visiting his shop in Panzano, we were welcomed with open arms and immediately offered a glass of house wine.

The best way to taste the results of his culinary passion is to visit his restaurants. There is a steakhouse and Antica Macelleria Cecchini. For 30E at Antica, one joins a tightly-seated communal table to taste dish upon dish of the freshest meats and vegetables you could hope for. This endless feast is accompanied by wine, ends with olive oil cake and then the party continues across the street at the shop for some grappa. A wonderful value, the servers and guests make the night with their enthusiasm and sense of humor.
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Panzano: Bespoke Shoes and Indie Fashion

One wouldn't think a small town like Panzano could be a shopping destination... Yes, it has made a name for itself as a pretty Tuscan village and for its celebrity butcher.

My mother treated herself to her most elaborate purchase, a pair of bespoke shoes. The Verso x Verso boutique offers classic and fashionable shoes in everything from suede, crocodile, lambskin to stingray. The handmade footwear has traditional colors, or can have super-bright colors to your wildest fashion whims. The prices, for a custom shoe, were quite reasonable, starting at round $350 (I recently interviewed Hungarian designer Ildiko Gal whose custom shoes ranged from $3000-$7000).

Also sharing the boutique space was Karina Wollinsky. She is a former economics professional who is now following her dream of fashion. Her sculpted pieces had beautiful workmanship and seaming.

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Florence: The Medici Legacy

Florence is a city known for it's art and architecture, mostly owing to the wealthy Medici family.
Hubby, Sis, Bro-In-Law and I started our brief afternoon parked outside of the city gates and walked through the Gardens of the Palazzo Pitti. The meticulously maintained gardens served as a lovely backdrop to the collection of sculptures.

Next, we strolled down the Ponte Vecchio, past the endless of supply of jewelry shops. Peeking in between the boutiques awarded you lovely views of the river and city. Just watch out for pickpockets and tourists zipping by on Segways...

Onward to the Piazza Del Duomo, where the elaborate Gothic architecture rose before us. The grand Cathedral had a long lines around the structure. We decided were content to admire the beauty from the exterior.

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Panzano: Tuscan Agro-Paradise at Fagiolari

Eco-sensitive agro-tourism bed and breakfast. As you can see, the views are gorgeous, the pool was a life-saver in the Tuscan heat. Owner Giulietta has scores of olive trees which are pressed to make the house olive oil. She makes her wine from her vineyard. The herbs and lemons on the property were used in a cooking class we took later.
http://www.fagiolari.it/

Bologna: La Dolce Vita

The train from Lausanne to Bologna was lovely. Watching the Swiss mountains go by in high-speed was beautiful. In First class, cute Italian girls strolled by offering a choice of newspaper. Complimentary drinks and snacks included Prosecco and chocolate biscuits.

We strolled by the Basilica San Domenico and Hubby treated himself to some shopping.

Our hotel, Il Capello Rosso was a contemporary design hotel. The rooms were luxurious, offered 8 choices on the pillow menu. The bathroom contained a fully-equipped bidet with its own set of parts-specific towels and separate 'intimates' cleansers. The staff was helpful, recommending a restaurant a few blocks away for dinner.

The restaurant was a tiny, rustic spot off of a side street. The prices were very reasonable, and it had played host to many a celebrity in its 67 years of business. Our waiter was incredibly helpful in suggesting dishes to try. He was spot-on for each one. I started with delicately fried zucchini blossoms with hints of egg and sea salt. My primi was a truffled pasta, Hubby had a spaghetti Bolognese (of course). Our secondi was a shared veal Bolognese, which was a large breaded piece of veal, covered in cream sauce and prosciutto. Too full for dessert, but we shared a rich tartufo.

I couldn't think of anything more romantic to end our first day in Italy than watching La Dolce Vita play on a giant screen in the Piazza Maggiore. An extra treat was Anita Ekbert came out personally to introduce the film. Not understanding Italian, Hubby and I initially thought she was rather schizophrenic in her speech, before realizing she was doing impressions of her director Federico Fellini and co-star Marcello Mastroianni.

Lausanne: Art & Lakeside Culture

It was a jolt leaving the vineyards and golden fields of Burgundy. A high-speed train ride brought us into Switzerland. Lausanne is home to the Olympic Museum and International money.
Hubby and I opted for the smaller, quirkier MUDAC museum, (see the bathroom sign above). It held a fantastic retrospective of comic icon ZEP. Tongue-in-cheek, naughty and thoroughly
entertaining.
The evening was spent at a tourist-trap restaurant at the Ouchy lakefront. While the view was spectacular, it was the only meal on this trip that was both overpriced and less than stellar quality.
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Anus: Making An Ass of Yourself

Yes, Hubby, our host and I are very immature. Driving around the beautiful Burgundy countryside, we came across a pretty little hamlet. The village name is pronounced "Ah-Noo". English-speakers know how we would pronounce the name of this town in our language.

The poor residents probably hate tourists. Their signs are likely stolen all the time...
I personally think they could improve community finances with a tourist shop. Imagine the creativity one could have with the merchandising!

Map (I love that it gives you a link to "Explore this area".

For haters...