Greve, Chianti and San Gimignano - May 23, 2015

Bonjourno! Today we visited Greve, Chianti and San Gimignano. I have to say, even a rainy day in Tuscany is gorgeous. We visited the local market in Greve, Chianti, which I would compare to a flea market. They sold everything from underwear to wine bottle openers. I bought some delicious fresh fruit, including strawberries, peaches, and also got a great price on some walnuts!

Weekly Market in Greve

Weekly Market in Greve

Weekly Market in Greve

We had yet another delicious meal at the market. Gigi ordered gnocchi with pesto and a caprese salad. Katie and I ordered Tuscan vegetable soup, and our new friend from Florida ordered spaghetti carbonara. We all split a side of fries…because even in Italy we cannot avoid delicious fried food. Gigi indulged in the chianti…because when in Chianti, why not?  Speaking of wine, there was also a beautiful wine tasting shop in the town. In order to taste the wines, we needed to put money on a “debit” card and swipe for each taste. The wines ranged from .60 euro a taste to 2,00 euro a taste. Neither Katie nor I tried the wines because we were busy shopping for fruit, but Gigi did and fell in love with a chianti and a brunello (which unfortunately broke on the hill at Casa Cares…wah wah. RIP yummy wine). 

Group Snapshot in the Wine Tasting Room in the Chianti Region

Cara, Katie, & Dr. Michel in the Chianti Region

After Greve, we all went back onto the bus and traveled to San Gimignano. San Gimignano had a grocery store that resembled Jewel-Osco, so we were finally able to stock up on shampoo and conditioner! That may not sound exciting, but believe us, it was! Katie was able to find a small wedding gift for her brother and his fiancée. 

Apparently San Gimignano has a knack for torture museums. Katie and I visited one and it was right out of The Addams Family. As we entered there was creepy music playing, and the entire museum was full of dimly lighted stone rooms that had a dampness to them. Basically the museum included replications of all of the old-time torturous ways they used to kill people who committed crimes. I would say the two most gruesome were flaying and death by animals. In flaying, the victim was pinned up by his/her hands and feet, and their limbs were flayed open. Death by animal is exactly what it sounds like. The victim was thrown into a cage with wild dogs or lions and eaten to death. It was only 10 euro to get in, and worth every euro! We spent the whole time either saying “ew” or “COOL”.  Here are some of the best photos from the museum.