We are incredibly grateful for our talented, frequent tour guest Khajha Rogers to give us permission to use her photos and perspective on our Tuscany Staycation in this Tuscany tour diary. Make sure you don’t miss reading all her captions! Hopefully you will enjoy the experience of the tour through her eyes as much as we have!
October 8th
Day 1 of our tour, the Adventures with Sarah Tuscany Staycation, was trains and automobiles and food and views!
Lunch and architecture in Monticchiello:












Next stop, the Etruscan museum in Chianciano. Roberto, our guide/host, brings so much to this stop. Never, ever underestimate having a guide during key points in your travels. A passionate guide will bring so much to your experience as you watch the subject matter spring to life which is especially helpful when talking about something like the Etruscans, who most of us never studied in school.



“Etruscan Museum of Chianciano Terme, in Tuscany. It had been found in 1986 by young people from the local archaeological association.”




My friends, we arrived at Roberto and Patti’s home/B&B outside of Asciano as the sun was setting and the view has absolutely blown my head off of my shoulders.




October 9th
Day 2 of our Adventures with Sarah Tuscany Staycation was SO GOOD.
Sunrise photos, a visit to Monte Oliveto Abbey, a short stop. In the incredibly cute village of Lucignano D’Asso, lunch in Chiusure, afternoon free, cooking dinner with a neighbor & our hosts’ son.
























This is the spot you go at the end of the day to gather and the sign is still there.











October 10th
On day 3 of our Adventures with Sarah Tuscany Staycation, we visited Siena and Madonna Bella winery, had a great walk and a lively dinner. Each day is better than the one before.
























“On the day of the solstice, the sun sets in the opening of the great stone window, creating a truly magical spectacle. The work is located in a quiet area, where art and nature meet, producing an incredible view across the crete senesi.”





October 11th
Day 4, Adventures with Sarah Tuscany Staycation and I’ve been on vacation long enough at this point that figuring out the day of the week is tough.
Today, we ventured into Florence (a return engagement for mom and I). So glad we did because, while the rest of the group wanted 2 hours to shop in the a.m., we wanted time to visit the Bargello Museum which we didn’t find time for last week on the other staycation.






As usual, lunch was a treat but not photographed. Roberto took us to a spot the locals go to where we ate outside, along the Arno river.






We had plenty of time to rest at the farmhouse in the late afternoon and I even got to do some laundry in an actual washing machine!
Dinner was amazing with the highlight for me being spinach ravioli in a butter sage sauce, made from scratch by Michele, Patti and Roberto’s son.

October 12th
Day 5 of this Adventures with Sarah Tuscany Staycation had some of the best moments so far!
We visited Villa Geggiano. It’s been in the Bandinelli family since the 1500s and we toured the home and garden with Andrea Alessandro Boscu Bianchi Bandinelli, who is quite charming – and very down to earth, for a Count.

















Next up, a lunch stop in San Donato in Poggio at La Toppa. A lovely spread provided by the owner of the restaurant, which has been operating for 50 years this year.






Quick stop in Castellina in Chianti to check out some of the town’s fortifications and a lovely drive back home to rest a bit before dinner.


Bonus night sky photos before bed time.


Bottom: a little pop
Sunsetting on our farmhouse.
October 13th
Day 6, our last full day of this most wonderful Adventures with Sarah Tuscany Staycation is in the books.



Up and out for a drive to Montepulciano with a short orientation walk and then a couple of free hours to explore.








In case you should run across this machine, there’s a wee button next to where it says frizzante that both starts AND STOPS the flow.



Next stop, the most delicious lunch. Then, we had a stroll around Pienza. After a couple of hours to rest at the farmhouse, we had amazing pizza and beers with Roberto and Patti and I think it was one of my favorite dinners!







October 14th






Final day of the Tuscany Staycation. We drove to the Tuscan coast (it has a coast?!) and visited the town of Talamone. Followed by lunch at a campground restaurant (you had to see it; it is beyond description) for the greatest seafood lunch.









Roberto delivered us to the door of our hotel late in the afternoon. The 4 of us (we’re still with our pals) reconvened for aperitivi. Afterwords, we took a night walk to the big sites and wrapped it all up with our favorite gelato.
(NOTE: this is not part of the Tuscany tour, but Roberto will drop you off in Rome, so you can choose to complete your trip with a tour of the monuments!)

It was hard to say goodbye to our hosts, but Rome is such a happy place for me that I can’t be too sad in this moment.







