You might have assumed that this would be a holiday recap post, since Monday was the final day of the epically long Spanish holiday season, but no! Because Graham and I aren't even finished celebrating Christmas. Although it may seem like we're trying to out-Spanish the Spanish by waiting to open gifts until after Three Kings Day, really it's because it's taken until now for all of our packages to be delivered (with one still unaccounted for, ahh, the mysteries of the military postal system). So, our Christmas will be happening Friday night. Take that, tradition!
In the meantime, let's get back to Rome!
Our first two days in Rome were spent taking in the city to the fullest, since it was Graham's first time there. In exchange for being an enthusiastic second-time tourist, I wanted a day to do something outside of the city and hoped it would involve sipping wine in the countryside. The rest of our group was interested too, so the day also needed to be kid-friendly, which is not something I normally have to take into account, but it turned out there was a perfect solution.
After a bit of internetting, I came across the wine tour at the Old Minardi Farmhouse, which seemed to be just what we were looking for, but unfortunately wasn't open on Saturdays, the day that we had set aside for our excursion out of the city. I figured it was worth a quick email inquiry...and it most definitely was! I received a reply from Dominique, an American who had married into the Minardi family, and she was more than just accommodating, she was enthusiastic!
On our last full day in Italy, our big group, littles included, headed for the Alban Hills southeast of Rome. Our destination was the small town of Frascati, one of the Castelli Romani, the historic refuge and playground of well to-do Romans for centuries. And now ours for a day!
