An Ancient Grove Beckons

  We walk. 

  We are always looking for some new place to just walk and enjoy the views.

  The other day, we were on a road out there...a road off the beaten track, just strolling along, when I spied a cluster of wild orchids under some olive trees.

The road less traveled...

Springtime means wild orchids here!

  I love seeing these beauties, and it seems they pop up overnight...

 

We've walked this road before, but never really ventured off the pavement. In order to get up close to the orchids, we had to go out into the grove a bit, so I could take the photo, above.
  I'm so glad we did, because we looked to the side and noticed a small grove of the oldest and largest olive trees we'd ever seen...

Olive trees or Forest Creatures From Beyond...Way Beyond...?
Stare too long and you'll see figures in there.

  These were ancient trees...it was as though we'd stepped into a fantasy movie set from a whole other world.

Huge, old, magical...where are the Unicorns, man?

The most magnificent olive trees I've seen in my life.
Honestly.

 


  These trees have stories to tell. Lots and lots of stories.
  As I got closer, I began to notice some interesting details. Someone has been playing in this grove, and I was in love instantly.

Stacked stones in several of the trees...

  Me thinks there are gnomes in this here olive grove! Olive Gnomes!

Playing with rocks and branches is a very grand thing.
Who are you?

  The grove of ancients consists of only a handful of trees...maybe six or seven really old ones, but they made such an impact on us.

  The artworks of stones and branches was just a bonus. 

Who are you, and when did you do this? Do you recreate each spring?
I want to meet you!

Each tree had some type of 'structure' in it's interior space.
So cool. So glad we stumbled on these.

We are all trying to 'balance'.

  

Then, just to make it so much more perfectly extraordinary, more entrancing, more mystic...I spotted this little character, and she sat still just long enough for me to 'get the shot'.

  

Drop. The. Mike.

  Yeah, it was a pretty good walk.

Day Trip Pienza

  Last week we went into Tuscany (they have a Mail Boxes Etc. we like to use), to ship out the tubes of rolled canvases that Johnny painted here this trip. Fourteen beautiful paintings that we can't wait to show back home in our gallery. All tucked in and ready to go.

  This show will be a different animal.

  Johnny usually paints smaller 'plein-air' landscapes in oil on panels when we are in Umbria, but this year he worked in his studio, creating large oil on canvas pieces. The focus is color and light. Big abstracts with a hint of the Umbrian landscape.

  I can't wait to see these gorgeous paintings on the wall.

  

Bye-bye, paintings! See you soon in California!

  Anyway, we had decided we might as well celebrate by driving the back roads over to Pienza for a slow lunch at a favorite spot. It was a beautiful day outside, and we weren't that far. Nice.


  The landscape in this area is lovely. Different from Umbria. We prefer the wildness of Umbria, but this area is more open fields, with lots of impact. I think Tuscany is beautiful, but we love our Umbria!

Classic Tuscan scenes...

  After stopping a couple of times along the way to enjoy the sunshine, we landed in Pienza and headed to lunch at Latte di Luna, a sweet little spot at the end of town. We like to sit outside, and the weather was perfect.
  We ordered a half litter of the house white and settled in...

We shared a caprese salad along with a plate of simple oil and garlic bruschetta.

A perfect combo on a warm day.
The bruschetta was so good! Lots of good Tuscan olive oil and almost
too much garlic. Mmmmmm!

Johnny had tagliatelle with pepper and cheese...

I went for the same pasta, but with a spicy red sauce.
The house made pasta here is really good

We also shared two side dishes...
This is a flan made with cardoon and pecorino. Yum...

Yes, yes, yes.

We also shared a plate of stewed artichoke hearts.
They were good...a little lemon zest and lots of garlic.

Instead of dessert, we opted for a walk all around town. I needed to walk after the long drive and big lunch.
  I'm glad we took our time to walk. It was a true spring day, and there were beautiful moments all around....

A cat after my own heart...
Relax, fella!

  We headed home, feeling proud of the work we have done here.
  It was good to get back to The Nut to enjoy the evening...

Johnny, Carlo and Nemo.