The first time I stayed abroad properly, and I mean life-life, not vacation-life, was in Italy. Two weeks of keys, laundry, language lessons, confusing streets, and joy.
Naturally, somewhere in the middle of this brave little experiment, I got locked out of my own apartment. In a foreign country. As if that was not enough, the caretaker decided the solution was to jump from the staircase to the balcony like he was auditioning for an Italian remake of Mission Impossible. Sir??
I stood there watching a man risk his bones/life for house keys and thought, "This is it. This is how I end up in Italian jail."
Thankfully, he landed. No jail. Alive.
One unlocked apartment and some mild trauma later, I decided to unwind by booking a day trip to Tuscany for the very next day.
You may argue some people process stress by journaling. I'm unfortunately the not-some people.
Is it healthy? Debatable. Effective? Absolutely.
Multiple Channels?
The bus left Rome around 7 in the morning, which meant I was only partially alive when the guide started explaining the itinerary. God bless the man, but in my half sleep, I kept hearing that we'll visit "multiple channels."
What does that mean? Why were there so many channels?
When my brain started braining, and my body figured sleep is possible only after 15 hours, it decided to work. Then, I checked the itinerary, did it hit me.
He was saying Montepulciano. Not multiple channels. Yikes!
In my defense, self-deprecating humour is my thing, and I would hate to waste such a stupid little moment by not putting it on the internet.
If you smiled, thanks.
If you rolled your eyes, now you try humor, Chaplin. It's pretty hard, alright?
Val d'Orcia and a Vintage Fiat
Anyway, the view changed — rolling hills, cypress trees, soft light, tiny towns, the whole postcard business. Tuscany is here. We drove through Val d'Orcia, and fine, I understood the hype.
Our first stop was Montepulciano, which I can now say properly and with respect. Old stone streets, wine cellars, views, a cathedral, and a surprise plot twist: parts of Twilight: New Moon were filmed there.
So yes, I accidentally stood where Edward Cullen planned to step into the sun, shimmer dramatically, and get himself killed. I also take this moment to cringe hard at my teenage Edward Cullen era. At least some of you had this rite of passage too? Right?
I walked around, got pictures clicked, met a gorgeous Italian vintage car I know nothing about but emotionally respected, and listened to someone playing a banjo in the street.
Lunch, Wine, and One Single Spaghetto
A bunch of girls from the States gave me company, took my pictures, and sat with me for lunch and wine tasting. Single-day friends are one of my favorite travel genres. You do not know each other's full story, you don't need to. For a few hours you share photos, food, wine, and sometimes even things you otherwise can't say out loud.
Lunch was at a very old wine cellar, if I remember right, a small ancestral family-run place. There was a three-course meal, wine tasting, stories with strangers, and the pleasant kind of wine-tipsy where everyone gets funnier and pasta starts making emotional sense.
I also swirled and ate a spaghetto intact.
Yes, one single strand of spaghetti.
Yes, I am counting it.
I was very proud of not spilling red wine on my white dress, only to get chocolate gelato on it an hour later. Pride comes before laundry, apparently.
After lunch, we went to Pienza, a UNESCO-listed town with pretty streets, shops, valley views, and pecorino cheese quietly trying to ruin all future supermarket cheese.
By the time we headed back to Rome, I was tired, full, slightly marked by gelato, and very happy.
Tuscany gave me rolling hills, old villages, wine-tipsy strangers, Twilight trivia, banjo music, pasta, gelato stains, and proof that sometimes the best response to a tiny crisis is to get on a bus and let the countryside do its thing.
To more of figuring things out. ❤️
