Bruce Almighty: Italy Day 4- Aviognessi and Castille del Lago

Friday, July 11, 2014

Italy Day 4- Aviognessi and Castille del Lago

We woke up early to enjoy a delicious breakfast at our hotel. The cantaloupe was delicious. We hiked up the hill in Cortona and saw stations of the cross along the way to a beautiful cathedral. As I was huffing and puffing it was very humbling to see those pictures of what Jesus went through. We went inside the church and found the body of Saint Margherita.
Next, we took a winery tour of the Avigonessi winery to learn about the local's favorite, vin santo. It was interesting to hear that there are water restrictions in the area so everything is dependent upon the natural rain. They also put cow manure into cow horns and bury them in the spring and then dig them back up to spread the compost mixture around. All organic here!
We then headed to the lake and enjoyed a salami sandwich with mozzarella cheese while enjoying the beautiful view. We went to Castiglione del Lago to check out the castle and eat dinner. One of the shops had a pork leg where the lady was cutting very thin slices of meat. It was delicious and we wished we would have taken a picture and bought some to take home. During our tour of the castle, we saw an old shell of a building where later I read that Phillip and Peter held church service. We ate at a restaurant with views of the lake and enjoyed a fish pasta that is famous to the area. Since it was still light outside at 9pm, we went back to our village in Cortona and enjoyed wine and cheese while watching the locals. Many gathered around a TV in a bar to watch the World Cup soccer tournament, smoking cigarettes, and drinking vin santo.