Tuscany 2004 - Day 1

Saturday, 19 June 2004

So today we're going to the promised land again - Tuscany . I'm actually looking forward to it, but on the other hand the weekend with my sweetheart is much, much too short. The evening before we also went to Margarita and Peter to deliver our wedding invitation and that lasted until 10 with Prosecco and good red wine from Iby and then we went to Daniela's Liberta party, where we got home sometime after 3 in the morning.

Saturday begins with a slight headache. But we have to be in town before 12 to see our painting - intended as a wedding present - in the Schafschetzy gallery. After all, Paul Flora made one especially for us. It is called "Masquerade" and is based on his previous work "Carnival Society". It is also signed - perfect. Then we have coffee and cake at the in-laws' and we set off towards the south at 2 o'clock pretty punctually. Planned travel time as always is 8 hours. That means in Miscianello at 10 - actually quite late. Let's see how quickly it goes this time.

As soon as I get on the motorway, the first drops of rain fall. The rain condenses into massive masses of water and, due to the incredible number of construction sites, I move on practically as quickly as I would on a Friday afternoon on the Vienna south-east tangent. If the rain isn't too heavy, I at least have time to call those at home. At the border crossing, bright flashes of lightning flash through the clouds and the Val Canale. The lowest temperature ever: +14°C .

Thankfully the Italians have a lot of tunnels here, all of which can be driven through quickly, and on the other side of the mountains the rain is less, the weather is getting better with every kilometer and the temperature is rising. The hit tip of the day is coming from the speakers - Phats & Small "Sun comes out" - and in Udine it is already 26°C. After Cessalto I need a pit stop.

"Un caffè, per favore. Grazie!"

And diesel for the Alfa. A quick stretch of the legs and then it's back on the asphalt. Traffic-wise there's practically nothing going on. Lots of Danes after the border, police before Venice (Alfa 156!), who drive obediently at 125 km/h, but no traffic jams and no Italian conditions. It's boring too. Venice - Padua - Bologna - Firenze. The kilometers drag on like strudel dough. The only variety comes from looking for good music from the airwaves and writing text messages to the people in front (Miscianello) and to the people behind (Graz).

There is a lot of construction going on on the autostrada between Florence and Siena. But it is necessary, the transverse grooves at the bridge crossings are criminal. So, off the conveyor belt at Siena and instead of the expected dirt road, on a now asphalted road to Ponte a Bozzone and on to Miscianello. Just under 6 ½ hours - I'm satisfied.

Bettina & Christian (my soon-to-be best man and his lovely wife) are also eagerly awaiting me. And then we eat a hearty meal (spaghetti with a fantastic meat sauce) and of course drink some wine. We're not going to the Chianti region for nothing, although the house wine "Terra di Siena" from 2001 is actually a Chianti, but is not labelled as such and is therefore much cheaper. That's fine with us.

Christian has already prepared an additional 12 bottles for my arrival. What kind of reputation do I actually have here? The first evening is all about the joy of seeing each other again, and that must be celebrated. So 3 bottles are only legitimate this evening. In keeping with tradition, I have also brought schnapps. This time no aiola grappa, but medlar schnapps made from medlars from Graz, distilled in Bavaria, drunk in Miscianello until 1 a.m.