Catching Fireflies...

This is the second book that pakdokter picked up and read before the upcoming Italian retreat.

Catching Fireflies is a true life-story of a Britist couple who gave up their job as a journalist and a tour operator to start an 'agriturismo' project ( something like a home-stay eco-tourism project that some people here in Malaysia carry out under our tourism programme) in Tuscany. The processes of buying an old dilapidated country villa, securing a bank loan to finance the project and organising the surveyor, architect and contractor to do up the place and finally getting the many many licences to operate the place make what people complain about our country seems nothing in comparison! The beaureaucracy and corruption in Italy in the 1990's were no different than in this part of the world. Pakdokter wonders if after joining the European Union, Italy has really moved on.....

Similar problems and difficulties arose when they started to plan and build their own winery using the old stable and garage. But finally, after all the hardship they now have a great country villa as well as a vineyard with enough grapes to produce a highly rated Chianti Classico.

Interesting read.

Reading about the vineyards and the olive orchards around Siena brought back memories of pakdokter's last visit to Tuscany in 2001. Our gang of 6 stayed at a hotel in the main square of Siena from where all the important tourist sites as well as the ristorantes and trattorias of the city were within walking distance. We also engaged a pleasant local taxi driver who drove us to Chianti, Montalcino, Montepulciano and San Gimiginano before finally driving us off to Florence. The lovely picture-perfect scenery was unforgettable. So were the Sunday morning market, the enoticas and of course the boutiques for clothes and shoes which Italy is famous for.

hilltop towns of Tuscany..






Sunday morning market for fresh vegetables,

meat and fish...bread and cheese and cookies...

olive oil, canned tomatos and beans in a village mini-market...

tasting the grape juice in Montepulciano...

Ten years ago Italian wines were just beginning to make their presence felt in the world market. Before that Italy was only known for affordable Chiantis whose bottles became common decorative candle holders in restaurant table tops. During our visit then, the SuperTuscan wines from Italy were just beginning to be recognised as matching the standards of the French bordeauxes. The Sassicaias, Ornelias, Solaias, Gajas, Tenutas and Tignanellos - amongst their top wines then were still retailing at around RM 200 or so which was expensive by the standard of those days. Today these labels retails at RM1000 or more. That's how far Italian wines have come to...

Pakdokter was introduced to wines during varsity days. Back then all we could occasionally afford were the cheap Italian Chiantis, the Blue Nuns and Black Towers( from Germany) and the Mateus Roses from Portugal. Some medical students and classmates were quite ingenious...if pakdokter remembers correctly Yahya Sofi and gang even brewed their own wine from pineapple. After all why bother to learn chemistry up to university level if one does not make an effort to apply this knowledge?