Italy felt like my adopted home after seven years of leading trips there. In early 2020, I finally decided to make it my full-time year-round home. Suddenly, however, with the onset of the pandemic, the life I had built was quickly unraveling. Work in the travel industry dried up around the world and the return to la bella vita that I had known seemed uncertain.
From Backroads to Garden Rows
Rather than despair at the state of the world, I enrolled in a one-year graduate program in Agroecology & Food Sovereignty at the University of Gastronomic Sciences in Pollenzo, Italy.
The first farm I worked for is owned by an American couple – Francesca being the descendant of an Italian novelist who, in 1925, bought the farm as a writing retreat. At this farm, called Spannocchia, I worked in the organic garden harvesting spring crops like fava beans, peas and artichokes and planting summer crops like eggplants, zucchini and tomatoes.
The property encompasses a huge forest which helps sustain the heritage pig breed they raise, the cinta senese, with acorns and wild mushrooms. The cinta senese pig was a crucial part of the economy of the medieval city of Siena and its territories, but today it’s best known for the wonderful salumi products it makes, like prosciutto. At Spannochia they make the salumi right on the farm!
Growing Pecorino
My next assignment was at Podere il Casale. I worked with sheep and goats – milking and shepherding. I became intimately acquainted with Tuscany’s famous pecorino – from what the sheep eat to the aging process of the rounds. I rotated cheeses in the aging cave, chased down errant animals, and, of course, shoveled poop in the barn. Honestly, I loved it all. It was a transformative experience that gave me a deep appreciation for farming – but also for the farmers themselves who simultaneously keep the world fed and cultural traditions alive.
Back on Track
I am delighted to be leading trips with Backroads in Tuscany again. Our trips support local farms, just like the ones on which I worked! It’s a true pleasure to tell the backstory behind a seemingly simple cheese plate. I love to point out crops growing in the fields we cycle and hike by and again later in the day when they arrive on our plates and in our glasses. And, of course, every month has its seasonal highlights and delicacies – it’s always a good time to be in Tuscany. I hope to see you there!
