Wow – what a busy week this was! This coming week we will keep the travel going as we are off to LaJolla, CA tomorrow to start filming season 3 of SKETCH! We will be filming a beautiful makeover just a block off the beach!
LaJolla Makeover coming too Season 3 of SKETCH
Then its off to Newport Beach for a three day management and strategic planning seminar I will be attending with my two new partners, Vivian Ayala, and Evelyn Jung! Our spouses will fly out on Friday and we will enjoy next weekend on the Coast.
Ok – well I got so busy when we returned from the June Candelaria Design Tour Italy that I never finished off the June trip…..so here we go – let’s flashback to June and our last day in Umbria. Here is where we left off:
Our farmhouse compound in Umbria
So I had five of my travelers taking off for Lake Como and another couple already in the Chianti region visiting friends so we were down to sever travelers left in Umbria. Friday is our free day so after our morning coffee we all received an invite by our farmhouse chef and writer, Elizabeth Wholey, for a tour of her private residence restoration. Very cool and it was so fun to see her pride which is definitely well deserved.
Here is the link to her book which I highly recommend:
Elisabeth Wholey in her Umbria Farmhouse restoration.
Gicela Dulcich, Elizabeth Wholey and Isabel
It was about noon now and so we all decided to head to the lake to do a little exploring. Lake Trasimeno is beautiful lies on the western edge of Umbria, not far from the border with Tuscany. In all my time in Umbria I just have never taken time to explore the villages along the lake so this was the year. Our choice this year was Castiglione de Lago on the west shore of the lake. Wow – what a surprise…..as is always the case in Italy….it’s endless. I cannot believe this lovely village, with a castle of course, had been sitting right under my nose for all of these years.
We wondered through the Porte Senese and then down the Via Vittorio Emanuele and found a fabulous restaurant, the La Cantina, http://www.ristorantecantina.it, and its lovely terrace where we enjoyed a fabulous lunch overlooking the lake. Our waiter was fabulous and so friendly as are most people in Italy. We took our time – which is easy to do in Italy – and just took in the lovely afternoon.
Martha, Philip and Rebecca at the Ristorante La Cantina at Castiglione de Lago, Umbria
Lake Trasimeno from La Cantina
From there we went and explored the town and the castle which was spectacular. We made our way back through town and stopped for a spritz and then made our way back to the Farmhouses.
Martha, Philip and Rebecca exploring the castle.
Lake Trasimeno from the castle in Castiglione de Lago
After a little regroup and some rest at the farmhouses it was time for dinner and again I wanted to explore a spot I have been wanting to go to for years. My good friend and past traveler, Larry Peery, had been telling me of a restaurant he and his girlfriend, Gloria had discovered on one of the free days on their trip, the Ristorante Simone Corsetti ai GIrasoli di Sant’Andrea! http://www.ristorantegirasoli.it Ok another gem – two in one day!
We dined al fresca on the terrace and watched the sun set for the last time on the hills of Umbria. The Ristorante Girasoli is a winery and restaurant and was absolutely divine. Definitely one of the best steaks I’ve had in Italy and definitely an add to our trip going forward and I know right when to work it into our trip!
And so we ended our time in Umbria and it was time to make the trek to Lake Como. I will cover Lake Como in another blog as there is so much to share!
Ciao!