What do you really remember once you're back home?
Think about it!
One of the things I love most during a tour is that the most meaningful moments are never planned, almost by design.
During my last tour in Val d’Orcia in Tuscany, we had just finished lunch at cookbook author Pamela Sheldon Johns’ farmhouse. As we were about to say our goodbyes, the priest of the local church walked in. It is a tradition in Tuscany, especially in the countryside, that once a year the priest visits households to bless the home. I remember this very well from my own childhood. My grandmother’s house, the priest walking around with the incense censer, the sweet smell filling the air. Pamela was so happy to welcome him; it was the first time the priest was coming to her house since Covid, she told me.
As Pamela shared with me that day, I’m not Catholic… but the farmhouse is. I love that idea: a house belonging to its landscape, carrying stories and an identity that go far beyond its current owners.
The room grew quiet as everyone gathered around the priest in a moment of prayer. And it didn’t matter if you were religious or not. There are moments like this when you can feel something in the air, a sense of reverence and awe, where people move together in unison.
These are the moments that linger, long after you’re back home and settled into your routine.
When you think back to your last trip, what comes to mind first, the historical facts, or that one instant when you felt something larger than yourself?
I’d love to hear ! Hit reply and tell me what moments from your last trip stayed with you.
I remember that moment and that day, vividly, and have related, in great detail, the events of that experience from beginning to end many, many times. One of my favorite moments of that week was an interaction that I had with the house dog at our agritourismo. I can't remember the dog's name but he was usually observed when we returned after our day of touring and we were departing the bus. There he would be, lying atop the picnic table just outside the entrance, lazing in the sun. We soon discovered that he was doing this to rest up for his real job, which was to guard and protect the farm's chickens during the midnight hour and throughout the early morning darkness from anything that prowled around hidden by the cloak of darkness. One evening around midnight, I decided to go out and take some night sky photos. As I walked from the lighted courtyard to the darkness of the adjoining fields, I heard something approaching from behind and turned to see the house pooch following me into the darkness. He sat down about three feet from my camera tripod and sat there very quietly while I went about the business of photographing the star lit sky. When I finished and packed up my equipment, as I turned to walk back to the light of the courtyard, my new friend walked silently behind me until I reached the building. He then turned and ran into the darkness and I could hear him barking as he did his job! It was an amazing experience and one that I will never forget. Thanks for making it possible.