Tuscany - My True Home Buon giorno! Thank you for inquiring about custom arrangements where perhaps I can help you make the most of your time in Toscana (Tuscany) with activities like cooking courses, wine tastings, day trips to Florence or Rome, food market tour, trips to Lucca, Pisa, San Gimignano and much more. Tuscany is where I feel most at home. I was born and raised in Australia, with a passionately Italian father (originally from Calabria). He was part of a distinctly Italian community in Perth and from the mid 60’s to the late 90’s he launched several successful Italian restaurants and

clubs. My mother, also of European descent, is a remarkable pastry chef and culinary expert. Naturally, we always spoke Italian at home. I developed a deep appreciation and longing for Italian culture. Years ago, I returned to Europe and settled in Italy - my “land of dreams” - where I have had many wonderful experiences and discoveries with travelers from around the world, and have shared these discoveries and memories with my Italian family. In all my travels, I can say that nowhere else is comparable to the beauty of Tuscany - a beauty that I have since grown to love. Toscana is now my true home.

Over the last five years, I have been leading walking tours through Florence, bike rides with groups of Canadians and Americans through Tuscany and Umbria as well as visits to wine estates/cellars, local sagre (food festivals), exquisite restaurants, Pecorino (sheep) cheese factories, cantine sociali (social wine cantinas) and so many other places. I recently completed the first level sommelier course in Tuscany with the A.I.S. (Association of Italian Sommeliers), which means I am studying to become a wine expert both in tasting and the wine making process. The A.I.S course is the premier accredited sommelier course in the world.