Bronco Babes Hit Chianti Country

Bronco Babes Hit Chianti Country

Accommodation

The farmstead of S. Margherita, built at the end of the nineteenth century and home of a riding center and farm.  It is situated in the Senese Chianti at the center of the Siena, Florence, Arezzo triangle.

The buildings have been recently renovated but without altering their original form.  Guests have at their disposition a large living room with an open fireplace, a kitchen, 4 bedrooms with private bathrooms and a self-contained apartment for two in a separate converted barn, restructured on two floors.  A clubhouse, a changing room and a laundry room complete the facilities. 

Our desire was to create a harmonious setting in 6000 square feet, for a limited number of guests who are looking to stay in a friendly, but at the same time discreet environment.  We are also a certified organic farm and we try to respect the environment in the way we run our farm holiday accommodation.  Castelnuovo Berendenga town council organizes cultural and social activities in the area and there are two well-known spa swimming pools ten minutes away.

Day 1:  Arrival at the riding center in the afternoon.  Around 7pm we will get together and offer you a welcome drink before we join you for dinner around 8:30.  Dinners are of a high standard, typical Tuscan cuisine served with table wine. 

Half of us arrive by train and are immediately warmly greeted by sadio.  We are whisked off to the Subaru to be taken to the farm.  The description for Hidden Trails sound lovely, but we've been on these trips before so I know we are collectively holding our breath and remaining cautiously optimistic.  What a delight to drive through the iron gate to the gorgeous stone farmhouse and stables.  Everything is clean and neat and screams that people who love their home live here.  Even thouh our travel day is gloomy the flowers and acacia trees are blooming and the air smells clean and fresh.  We know immediately that we have landed in a special place. 

 

After several more hours, Andrea and kathleen arrive with tales of their roadside adventures.  Getting lost, asking for directions several times that also included invitations for several glasses of wine and participation in a first communion celebration.  Andrea relays her embarrassment at having driven past the gate and when Sadio offers assistance to the entrance she blurts, " You look just like the David, has anyone ever told you that?!"  Once all the bags Sadio seem nervous ther might be a fight over the rooms. (Do we look like brawlers?)  We settle it with a lottery and low and behold I get the beautiful canopied room to myself ( the nest bed - so named because the mattress wraps around you like you are in a nest).  However, those of you that know my princess complex know I am thrilled with the canopy.  Andrea's feet hang over the bottom of her bed and Shannon has a family of owls living in the rafters with noisy hungry young.  Such is the life of the traveler.

As we settle in Donatella is teaching a riding lesson and Shannon and I can look out of our windows onto the vine covered riding arena.  After the lesson Donatella sits with us over a glass of wine and we hear about the week's itinerary.  This is always a tense time s we wait to hear what the guide has to say about the horses and the ride.  They in turn are sizing us up in terms of what they think our real riding ability is compared to what we described on the reservation.   They are probably trying to gauge how high maintenance we all might be.  After this we sit down for our first farmstyle meal.

Dinner: 

Vegetable lasagne with a bechemel sauce

Roast pork

Roasted potatoes with olive oil and rosemary

Saute` greens

Chianti table wine

Sadio will hear the first of our constant entreaties to tell us how everything is made.  Just like with Grandma's cooking, there are no recipes.  We want to know who prepared the delicious spread and first hear about Sadio and Roberta's cooking prowess.  It will keep us well sated for the week.  Of course who can forget when Bobbie spoke up and said we were not big eaters.  Andrea almost choked on her own spit and quickly countered with," Speak for yourself...I'm a big eater."  Even for the most bir-like eater this was going to be a week of feasting on fresh and fantastic food.  We trundle off to bed after dinner.  It was a long flight, a hectic couple of days in Florence and tomorrow is the first day meeting the horses.

Day 2:   A good breakfast awaits you in the morning.  Then we meed at the stables, assign the horses and start our first ride out around 10AM.  The trail leads us to the Romantic Abbey of Badia d'Ombrone.  We will be back at the center for lunch.  In the afternoon we drive to Siena to explore the medieval town.

We all meet at the stable (some sooner than others - sorry Andrea and kathleen, I just couldn't resist).  I am assigned Dacot and once he is tacked up I see that he has a snaffle with a shank bit, a curb chain and a running martingale.  I timidly, but trying to appear brave, ask Sadio if he is strong when hacking and he says, "Yes, yes can be very strong.  This may be too much but a snaffle is not enough."  I'm told he is very forward but also very responsive.  Soft hands are the rule of the day.  Before our first canter Donatella looks at me and says, "You, be careful!"  We all have a morning of figuring out our horses buttons and they are figuring us out as well.  We have to cross a couple of belly deep rivers that are very swift after a weekend of rain.  We pass beautifully renovated private homes, each time with an eagle eye looking for George Clooney or Leo Dicaprio.  Alas, we never did find them.  Through the woods and large stacked wood walls of cordwood waiting for sale.  The reported highlight for sightseeing this first day is the renovated Abbey and 1000 year old castle.  Very impressive for sure.  However, when we are descending through a field toward the highway Donatella announces and we shout down the line, " Watch out for the ditch on the right and poutons on the left. "  We think the message is misinterpreted as it was passed down the line but sure enough on the highway were two prostitutes.  It didn't seem like a very profitable spot but what do I know.  Somehow Steve Miller pops in to my head and all I can think of is, "Clowns to the left of me, poutons to the right, here I am stuck in the middle with you."  We head back to the farm for lunch and must recross the rushing rivers.  Shannon has the first, but certainly not the last, rodeo experience of the week as her horse leaps over a log in the middle of the river.  Bronco Babe Kozakiewicz keeps her seat and soldiers on.

 We are ready for lunch and are not disappointed.  Pasta carbonnera, salami, fresh cheese, fennel salad and wine.

Fennel salad:

Sliced fennel

Olive oil

Lemon

Salt/pepper

Off to Sienna for the afternoon.  Sienna is the best preserved walled medieval sity in Italy.  Steep steps, narrow and dark streets.  Great little shops and Gelati!  Newly discovered frescos in the crypt of a church tell the story of Christ.  So much ornate architecture it is hard to take it all in.  The sofit of one of the buidings (in the piazza with the suckling shewolf with Remus and Romulos) is lined with heads looking down at the passer-by.  Who are these observers of eternity?  After a few hours of shopping and sightseeing we head back to dinner. 

Dinner:

Gnocchi with a fresh sauce of tomato, thyme, oregano, basil and olive oil.

Braised beef with tomato sauce.

Roasted potatoes with parsley.

Cannoli beans with olive oil.

Tired and sated we head to bed with thoughts of our first full day ride the next day.