A Day in San Gimignano, Italy! 🇮🇹 San Gimignano Travel Guide and Walking Tour!
Today San Gimignano really blows us away no but like actually though the Tuscan town of towers is home to the world-famous Gelateria Dondoli otherwise known as the best gelato in the world like it literally won that award world champion school and we can’t help but embark on a
Very messy Endeavor to try as many flavors as possible like the one of a kind albeit confusing red wine gelato that’s kind of crazy and their signature flavor named after Michelle Obama’s refined sweet I don’t know what that is but this is by far our messiest episode we
Accidentally stumble across a castle Courtyard where we try the Vernaccia di San Gimignano a famous white wine that seems to transport us back in time nearly 700 years to meet Dante himself oh I’m intrigued we laugh we eat we drink coffee with sambuca and we climb the town’s tallest
Tower where it’s sweeping views give us the chance to see why everybody believes sanim minano is the most beautiful town in in Tuscany we’re Matteo and Micha and we’re currently on the world’s slowest Italian road trip traveling to all 20 regions of Italy subscribe to
Follow the [Music] adventure first time actually using a nonurban bus City to City coming now bus 130 [Music] wa it have activate your ticket feel like we’re going to Mello remember the bus to Mell bus system I do not advise using the app if you are not at least partially coherent in
Italian because it is I see the Italians don’t use that they literally go to the station and buy tickets because it’s that complex to use so I spend like 2 hours of my life figuring it out but it’s is just just a real you need like the whole
Tax code and itty and everything it’s just a it’s a process just buy the physical [Music] ticket wow we made it I’m exciting 19 minutes L yeah wow oh it’s windy made it oh it’s so windy it’s so windy but Sunny
This wind is just it’s just crazy right now but at least the sun’s [Applause] out okay that’s actually I literally can’t see through my okay it is it is windy up here we just got to San jimano little bit chilly in the wind it
Is currently 11:30 on a Friday let’s go let’s hit [Music] it [Music] I’m mat Teo spotted in the wild God I just found ice cream on my sleeve oh no this is an interesting site you’re never
Cold yes this wind is chilly I was going to wear shorts I need to go by a clip so excuse the wind and our hair just I mean I just have no control over this at this point but uh we just arrived
And we were walking down the main street through the gate and there’s so many lovely shops selling a lot of really cute things so this is a lovely entry way into the city lovely first impression well not first impression we’ve both been here but we’re very excited to be here we’re just
Stumbling over view after view I mean you’re just these Alleyways are incredible so both of us have actually been to Sun jimano before when we were both tour guards in Italy but to be honest we
Haven’t actually really explored the city we kind of just went to the one ice cream place I think that’s literally all I remember about it to be honest with you and the towers and the winery but that’s we stopped at wineries outside so it would be awesome to see it through different ODS
Today again should be exciting the views here are stunning but you can smell strong strong fire in the air so they’re probably going to be pretty Smoky today so we hope they clear up a little oh absolutely [Music] [Music] stunning all right
I don’t even know where to begin we’re going to go to a cafe if you can hear anything WR in the comments I can hear you through the wind if you can’t this is a voice over let’s go to the C I
Put on ChapStick and my hair just see getting stuck to my face what I’ve been trying to do is find Michelle a hair club but this town is known as one of the most touristic towns
In Tuscany and so there’s only shops set up for little souvenir and stuff this is a pretty cool Street look at this giant Ivy welcome to the town of towers San jimana and today the windiest city in Italy I love how every few steps you just seem to come across another alley
That looks like this funny enough this is the same alley that we need to go to our Cafe oh oh no look in front of us that looks like a great Cloud there is so much wind here that I’m not even scared for the gray clouds behind us these clouds won’t stay here
They’ll just be blown away like We Are if you’re blown away too like And subscribe at least we picked the sunny day are these homes yeah oh my goodness I feel like I’m in the Shire Matteo’s Italian travel tip of the day don’t forget to bring some non drowsy
Allergy medication with you at all times for days such as today if you look behind me this is enough to make anybody’s allergies flare up especially those who are prone to Allergy don’t forget your algra I think alra is any American so bring your country’s
Equivalent isn’t this for like horses the main middles for the drain but isn’t the side step for horses probably for you let me just have the horse Theory I forgot what we were doing for a second we’re going out of the center to go find
A nice little cafe on the side because as I said this is the most touristic place in Tuscany after to Florence like how we’re just like chilling over someone’s Garden we’re in two we found our Cafe it’s down there this is
Dangerous weather something can fly out of someone and hit you in the head those are so delightful looking oh they have a the Baba and saffon take one of oh that looks so yummy Cafe right [Music] now okay s sambuka and coffee well I guess it’s just it’s officially hit noon [Laughter] so
Um that was such an aggressive decision look at these cakes behind you yo those are the cutest little cake tart cheesecakes I’ve ever seen that one looks like it’s Snickers or peanut butter s for my friend so aggressive does it smell like bad decisions no because the coffee ODS that’s hilarious will we
Live to regret this I got the little Gins sing coffee so this is coffee but it’s got Gins sing in it so it’s it’s sweeter I absolutely love this combo we’ve gotten a saffron and uh lemon and I
Think he’s said almond as well this little slice of cake Mato got his Cafe C smell the samba I know it’s okay good it’s Friday so you’re fine are you really adding sugar to this I don’t know I
Should try it first try it and see no you know what just add the sugar just sug just just go packet oh that’s it’s so strong it’s a bold move cotton we’ll see if it works to be honest I’ve
Been reading up about a whole bunch of different coffees and snacks treats across Italy and I’m tired of just getting a normal espresso that’s fine un like our non filming days but I’ve got to try something new for you guys this is called the cafe coretto so what you’re saying is you’re
Taking one for the team today taking one for the team it’s an espresso with an alcohol today’s alcohol is sambuka if you’ve been following our YouTube channel for long enough you know that I used to work in an Irish pub in Florence and my first few nights working there as kind of
An initiation they used to make me down lots and lots of sambuka so this one’s a little throwback to then except this one has coffee in it I don’t know whether to Cheers or whether it is s I don’t know whether it to be happy or
Sad that is a conflicting flavor because you have your coffee come through and then the subtle it’s not subtle definitely not subtle sambuka but it seems to make the sambuka so much more palatable
I actually really like it and it’s midday right now this is going to get me off to a good start it’s warming my insides giving me a caffeine boost it is not terrible it’s definitely not
Light because I can smell the sambuka it’s so strong I can smell it from here what a weird concoction it just looks like a normal espresso but it’s not n you want to try it yeah okay I
Didn’t sign up for this bad decision today but when you’re married you become one so now the part part of this too going to give it a try just for a sip cuz I’ve never actually had one of these oo
Yeah that is like funny thing is I actually don’t mind sambuka I actually kind of like it so let’s [Music] see I see what you mean it is it tastes like sambuka but way more palatable coffee Infuse
That’s actually not bad I can actually sip this normally when I have sambuka I take it as a shot but I could actually sip this which is really saying something okay I can see why this is a thing that’s actually really good but um I’m not boarding the sambuka train right now
So I’m going to give that back to Matteo and just stick with my normal Jin sing coffee if you guys saw our day in the life video in our apartment on my second Channel you know that I
Actually try and make jinen coffee at home I make my normal coffee and and then I buy The Nest Cafe ginsing packet separately and add it to my coffee in the morning oh but at a cafe I mean they just really nail it on the head so happy we found it
Today that’s delicious if you ever get a chance go for the Gin sing if you like the sweeter coffees saffron is actually a huge thing here in sanjam minano from my understanding the hills of San jimano actually produce a lot of saffron and so
A lot of their meals dishes treats are all infused with it this is a lemon and saffron cake with almonds on the top it’s got a bit of a cheesec cakey consistency let’s taste it it’s good it’s not sweet but it’s not super like lemon this has its own unique
Flavor I don’t quite know how to actually describe it to be honest with you I might have to leave that one up to Michelle it doesn’t taste like anything we’ve tried ever that is so hard to explain I’m actually a little bit out of a loss how to explain this flavor this
Is why I LIF it up to you no now I don’t know the crunchiness of the almonds on top they’re almost like caramelized they add the crunchiness to the soft uh kind of gelatinous part of
The the cake and the crust underneath is also nice but that taste yeah I’m not getting an I don’t know if you’ve tried something like this if you’ve tried sound like help us out in the comments I don’t know I really
Don’t the cafe Coro doesn’t pay well with treats sweets snacks I think it’s like after dinner thing I think we’ve learned our lesson haven’t we yeah yeah sh that’s hectic that is hectic that was delightful yes and we’re back I feel a bit warmer now yeah they do have a lovely
Seating area out here but it was just way too windy for that does the cafe Corto PE nicely with the cake no do I recommend trying it 100% if you’re in Italy try a cafe Coro you’re not going
To find it somewhere else maybe after dinner though after dinner or lunch maybe not at noon you know what pays well with alcohol coffee water woo this is a steep City so just be for warned if you do want to go exploring
You are going to be climbing and descending and then climbing again is that sambuka starting to swirl in your tum sitting in not in the bad way just I want to go get drunk at the pub now oh okay so lethargic and let this be a forewarning kids this is
Why you don’t drink sambuka at noon I don’t think you’re supposed to do physical activity after it this is a sad sad state to see you in how’s that view though okay we’ve seem to have come across a winery of sorts in the middle of the city
You know what they say goes W with sanuka I know I’m actually going to get of to try and put me up but naturally sanano is Dean so the ra wat one of Italy is what oh this is so cute wa so cool look at this
View need hand your hair’s just going all over the place I don’t know what he’s talking about I just can’t see 5-year-old last section up all right we’re going to see the strangest thing we found in Italy so far around the corner I
Don’t know whether I should tell you what it is we’ll let you see what he is doing oh I’m intrigued that man standing on top of the worldall line he preaching in a Dante outfit a Dante out oh it’s the Divine Comedy he recites it from memory that’s crazy I’m going to
Go put some money in his box and then you can try and hear what he’s saying in the wind this is like your bread and butter you could do this yeah if I had a good memory That’s legitimately the coolest and weirdest thing see he’s reciting the Divine Comedy from memory man has a good memory oo these are some ancient steps I think we might have made it to the cross I think so look at how
Deep these steps are this is a little bit perilous we did did we that was the one tasting look behind you you can see I could live in a castle views like this this is incredible we made it to the top with this gorgeous view but it is even Winder up here
Believe it or not so uh this is the castle this is the castle I think we might go have a glass of wine downstairs before we continue on our journey maybe it’ll help us withstand the wind but this is a stunning View and the fact that this guy reciting Dante’s
Divine Comedy from memory just adds to the whole thing I’m absolutely loving it everything that the light touches is our kingdom oh but it also might be a PE Corner okay so let’s go never mind Simba this is not your kingdom all right and we’re
Back so is this how they dispense it so you just like select the size you want and that’s the amount you’re charged like vending machine I just want to stick my mouth on the end of
That pipe and Let It Go all right that’s what we want yeah just the basic one right yeah it’s the veracha fruit is so dry why don’t we do one in one okay okay so this is the dry one so there’s eight bottles in this one that are all different
Variations this is the dry one tastes like a dry white one say I had the fruit one taste the fruit one right oh wa that’s good I don’t know which one I prefer though they’re actually both really nice think about had to pick again I might do the fruit though what do you
Think I definitely wasn’t born to be a s that’s all I have to say do you have a preference or are they equal to you the same to me I’m a disgrace to my Origins tastes like what one there’s only one thing I hate more than rain it’s wind welcome to San
Jimana there’s going to be lots of drinking lots of shouting it’s windy today remind me to say that intro again later that’s a pretty good one genius found a closer table what does it taste like like they used the grapes that came from The Vineyards around this area wow what an
Astute observation but did you know that Sano was the first white one in Italy to be put on the doc list the denin orig control which is like a quality grading system in Tuscany so
That’s a fun fact I think that was like in 1976 one of the Decades just finished up at the Castle Winery on to the next adventure something smells incredibly delightful almost like a almond like marzipan or something all right we’ve decided that we are going to go inside the D mug is
It free to enter do we need to buy a ticket B is around the side ticket office one more entrance perfect we made it world’s smallest town okay oh you can download an audio guide for free so the all inclusive tickets there Mato Mato
C what wow Mato accidentally let go of our little map and it just I can’t do this wi I can’t do this one watching you chase it was the highlight of my day so far that was desperate I
Think this is the entrance for the D okay let’s go it’s going to be okay there’s no wind inside underneath [Music] yay there excuse me I’m not on my best form [Music] today [Music] you come out of the church get get a pretty cool view this dwell was beautiful but
Honestly the darkest church I think we’ve ever seen so far the only church I think that could rival it would be San manato alonte in Florence cuz that one was also extremely dark this is like on par with that but it was beautiful the interesting thing is that the altar is so it
Looks almost burnt like the inside of the church when you look it it’s not only dark it looks like maybe there was a fire I don’t know if that something like that has happened proba listen
To the audio God if you want the yeah little thing the only things that were really done up were the side Chapel there was like two or three side chaples that were painted beautifully um from like floor to ceiling beautifully ornamented but very dark it’s it looks like it almost
Is in need of restoration there were beautiful paintings I will say that it’s dark but at least everything’s painted inside with the walls and everything yeah it was just I don’t know what I was expecting that that wasn’t it though but it was I’m really happy we got to see it [Music] [Music] it’s so windy The Umbrellas are flying all over the place and actually breaking and that was a scary sound jalas dond has a school that where he teaches different levels of gelato making there like the beginner intermediate Advanced you can learn how
The process is actually made I think there’s one for children and one for adults this is the gelat here in Italy that keeps winning the world awards for the best flavored gelat which we’re going to try later hey look we’re on Matteo’s Street that’s you I’m also a saint
It’s very cute little shop and Time come on 550 cold that’s exactly get okay cool only 550 wow this man also has his one on tap here cool says they just the warm one oh dope nice theas
This man’s a legend he’s giving us plastic cups so this shop also has like salami snacks you can come make a whole little picnic here with your wine yay we found a cold bottle of [Music] white so this is V San right let’s see how much sandwiches are here oh that
Michelangelo one sounds good it’s gotona salami cream cheese Olive cream and fresh tomato you’re going to get Inferno I don’t know what Capa is that’s a new word Oh that is so warm looks amazing got you is another got the goods oh someone started with help me some days are more exciting than others sanano is a beautiful beautiful little town and it’s tow was and its atmosphere well the atmosphere is a bit touristy but the town
Is a beautiful place and we’ve been seeing such exciting stuff today’s a little bit more calm it’s harder to get amped up as we have because the town’s so small as well there laner church
Tower tato which we’ll still get you and wine and wine oh yeah and we got our wine so ticked off a few boxes so now that we’ve gotten these sandwiches oh they are so warm and they smell so
Good we are going to the little panoramic Lookout Point here cuz we love to get our food as takeaway and go sit and either a Piaza or overlooking a beautiful view and so we’re going to have our
Sandwiches and our Sano wine well we don’t know if there actually is a beautiful view it just beautiful view this way it said that there was so waste of time oh I don’t know it says P H I was
Right mat said the he’s like where did the sign go I said but it said it was over here so it says one we made it see I got us I don’t know we will find out watch it’s like nothing
Going take us all the way back to the top it’s going to take us to that I feel like we’re going on an adventure it’s like froto bagin in the sh okay wait is that no oh I
Think I mean take us all the way back to the top no it’s not this looks panoramic Mickey T like purp why are you starting without me oh oh this is someone’s house wow that’s a nice view yeah can we go sit in their Garden see look it was
Right trying to get my glasses [Laughter] down all right good job there we go I did it what about rock that sounds great my love this is just how we ended up today the M have truffle on it yeah is it good it is good this place is called vanal I think it’s
Like the not the antia van it’s just the van different Shop Good sandwiches though nice and big tastes good tastes like truffle ham good views and I you can’t remember what else was on the menu but it sounded good I thought m is supposed to be spicy tast
Like I haven’t had on Lona salami in so long and that just like hit the spot the bread is really soft it’s got a nice Golden Crisp on the outside but it’s still really soft and these ingredients are just amazing
Together that was an excellent Panino I got the Michelangelo are we just going to stand here and enjoy our sandwich one but def you can even hear what I’m saying this backdrop looks fake she going to have to be done strategically because
Michelle’s holding both our sandwiches the camera and if I put a cup down it’s just going to get blown away so I got to ah cup in the bag lastic off wind is not our friend today ising right thank you preparation [Laughter] is so today we have this 13001 from
2021 sinano Sano so you see we doing the Ws rot we have the rot W make sure it doesn’t blow over right noise yeah you hold on to that bad boy just take it one step at a time one cup one
C all right one cup at a time we should be good I’m I’m I have sandwich hands what do I do it’s exactly what we needed we’ve nailed it nailed the combo now we have to strategic lead so nothing blows over you playing a very perilous game my
Love Why Don’t We Just sh blowing that way why don’t we just share a there we go that’s what I was going to do oh okay now what now we just which one’s mine you have to you have to sip me the
Wine oh delightful that is nice that is an excellent white wine if you guys know us you know we don’t spend more than like three or four EUR on a bottle of wine this was eight but it was
Cold so I feel like maybe we got a Bonus there you can definitely taste the quality in this with the paninis with this literal fake looking backdrop I don’t think it gets much better than this the two sandwiches with two waters cost us 19 the bottle cost 8 the view is free and
This is why you should get takeaway and come see a beautiful spot oh just took an took a moment to appreciates the gorgeous views eat our delicious paninis honestly think that’s probably one of the best paninis I’ve had in Italy that’s bold I know that is a very bold statement for me
To say it Rivals the one at antio if anything I maybe a notch above now we’re going to go climb the tallest tower in the city the D it doesn’t have that name though well I’ve given
It story of the dwo I even still pretty windy it’s getting a little bit cold it’s 400 p.m. hopefully we can see a nice Golden Glow over the city now not going to lie these entrances are quite confusing I think this is the tower TOA down another Alleyway I don’t think the entrance
Is it what maybe it is it is wow well this is cool is that it there probably no that’s the Muse 15s around thato T I’m not sure did we just end it back on the street she said the
Entrance is next to the museum that’s the one we’re climbing but this is looking pretty cool I’m not going to lie to you this is going to be a museum no be a museum entrance I see it
Into the tower through the Museum oh cool that looks so cool I’m pretty sure I heard her say to get to the Tower through of the museum I could be wrong but I’m pretty sure that’s what she said
To okay so I was right so you have to come to the museum and then there’s a separate way to get up to the tower oh is there like little info points or is this the museum also interesting maybe it’s
Like a museum Tower experience I think it is a museum Tower definitely a lot of space in this one oh we got a turn look for the signs I’m not going to lie this is the most confusing entry
Situation we’ve had but that’s okay this is so steep I don’t know if you can tell but it does look like the stair the staircase just goes up 90° all right this is a bit hard after drinking
Half a bottle of wine each we’ve gone up like 10 steps Breathing heavily already okay Misha come give us some facts ah perfect so TOA is 54 M high it’s 218 steps to the top there’s no lift
Or elevator so if you have a mobility issue keep that in mind that’s it okay pretty wide metal stairwell here that’s a good sign this is some solid steel solid steel I’m feeling rather top heavy at present all right well since we’re on the way up this is the tallest tower
In the city of about 14 Towers there used to be 72 in the city back in the medieval days the towers were built by Rich Merchant families who were trying to compete with each other other the higher your Tower the more powerful and Wealthy you seem nowadays it’s
M measor with different Matrix did you get that that was funny there used to actually be a law in place that stopped them from building their towers over certain Heights that height was the height of the Town Hall I can’t tell facts what climbing stays seems to be this metal situation pretty
Continuously it’s a very dark climb but I do appreciate the newness of the steps is that wind is it wind probably we tried to escape the wind now I think it’s we’re going to the highest point in the city now it’s about to get a lot worse if you do need to take
A break though there are these nice little spots with Windows and gorgeous views so you can take a break whenever you want oh is that where we go seriously it’s this is a 90° incline what’s your oh this is a 90° incline you literally have to climb sideways oh baby it sounds so
Windy hold on to your glasses okay go ahead I’m not kidding I’m really not kidding this seems very aggressive careful my head you have to crawl out of here back you have to crawl out of here backpack give me your give it this is not a joke do not smack your head
Oh that was close again that’s insane we’re not going to say anything up yet okay you’re probably not going to be able to hear us this is crazy this is crazy yo even the Bell is in a cage man so that’s where we were earlier on loka where we saw the Dante speaker
This view is incredible we got like a two second break from the wind oh no it’s coming back I can feel it it’s coming back it’s coming back [Music] my my [Music] in St CL holding on for your Life oh my God it’s so windy my DG came on it’s so [Applause] windy oh it’s less windy over here wait I think it’s time to go down how do we get out you’re going to have to go backward no way it just looks like a straight draw okay
Ready you have to go backwards if you fall we are both dead okay watch out [Music] that is a straight 90° incline it’s very windy up there so just hold on to your glasses ridiculously would oh we made it
That is the most perilous thing I’ve ever done [Laughter] okay just hold on to your stuff okay we made it that was cool I uh I need another bottle of wine to recover from that yeah
Okay we can enjoy the views from the comfort of the windows down here oh hey look at that all I could see was hair incredibly awesome Tower to climb the city’s beautiful from above it’s worth
The climb but yeah that wasn’t very pleasant in the most windy day of the year but again beautiful rooftop City worth a climb if you can get up those little stairs so if you can’t actually
Make it to the top you can make it up to here on normal stairs in the last little bit is the hard part but you still get a nice view from here I mean this is you’re just behind a piece of
Glass okay there’s a lot of forehead Marks here soar if you notice this Tower is empty a lot of the towers were just built just for heart not actually for any purpose but to have a high
Tower that you couldn’t do anything with which is just a symbol of power and wealth which is quite I mean nothing’s changed over the last 600 years and people are still the same try not to compete one
Another I think I’ve tasted more of my Pantene garer fruti products more than I care to today so we’re going back down the tower and I think uh this calls for some gelski so we’re going to go to the the world famous gelato shop and try some very interesting gelato flavors
Now and gelato Jersey first a all right so bottle of wine Plus Tower was the right move that made me enjoy our day a tad bit more I mean there a little bit a bit too chill this
Morning like wasn’t too much to do it’s a very small town but now we are feeling better now we’re going to have some gelato I think in the near future but like near future I mean like 5
Minutes after I put my jersey on again Jersey in South Africa means sweater not a sports Jersey stop cut him off cut him off my laugh just echoed across the Piat up this guy hey
Look at that the wind has gone away the wind has died now we’re going to G the world’s most famous gelato he won the World Gelato competition in 2006 7 8 and on oh and this is a chair I watch when we
Were going to Sicily we watch all your videos and because of you we knew how to use the train in the in C so big fun amazing guys I’m I’m Thomas Thomas where are you from oh I’m from Poland
But we live in UK okay how many regions you have left this is Thomas and I’m a big fan of global exp thank you so much for saying hello that just made my day when you guys see us please say hello that literally just made our day okay back to mat’s ice cream
Flavors hey you got to pick which which combination you want I don’t know I want all of them I don’t like fruits can I just show you how much research we have done just even on popular just on the chant this is excessive but necessary
Chaotic is that a tomato there’s one called an Italian you have do no okay please can I have one Sant and yes that’s aive we got three ice creams this is just the most aggressive thing we’ve done in a minute this is ridiculous you’re going to feel disgusting on this you know that
It’s fine it’s for a CA okay even it when it’s wind called gelato still melts fast this is made with Sanji minano red wine that’s kind of crazy I mean it literally looks like red wine color-wise kind of smells like red wine this is going to be [Music] interesting
Wa that is so bizarre no cetes did we bring Sur we did not bring Cates guys this is crazy it’s literally red wine gelato what is this one I don’t even know that’s Michelle and and gra pink grapefruits I’m eating me as a
Galato I absolutely love whatever this is this one is definitely the Michelle because there’s orange bitters in it not going to lie not sad that it’s named same as me cuz that is delicious granted it’s not named after me it’s named after after Michelle Obama and I love that
That is actually delicious okay seriously while she’s there I need to actually look around that’s weird right it’s like I don’t like that so maso cheese in that’s why it’s mixed with the Sanam is mixed with masap so I don’t like that at all this is the messiest day we’ve had in a
Minute so this is a veracha and pink grapefruit gelato so there is Yo in this panicked state of eating gelato before it melts the red wine gelato was s o grapes San I am losing it at present this
Is the veracha the Sanji minano white wine gelato that is also mixed with pink grapefruit and as much as I do not like grapefruit because it is bitter this gelato is actually a winner so even if you don’t like grapefruit definitely give this a try because it’s actually the
Delicious oh that is so good sorry we in between this again wait which one is that one I don’t know what other ones did you order one of them is the award winner that’s the that’s good I
Don’t know what I can’t remember what’s in one baby what is that I like that but I wonder to have to walk these stairs down just to be a kind human being off this we just I don’t know what
That is but make guys okay can we just look at the situation this is by far our messiest episode and it’s actually like the coldest day that we have filmed so far this year the GLA X bat’s falling apart the Michelle’s got honey and almond bitters from my understanding so
That one is actually pretty delicious I love that orange bitters not almond bter sorry but grapefruit is actually damn good I like that a lot with the white wand really like a hot mes right the MCH is good we should have taken out our lobsters to be honest this is embarrassing
This is the most aggressive amount of I’m just going to have to drink this is amsr R for all of those that don’t know what ASMR is this this new strange thing on the internet where you listen to
People make funny noises and it does something through your senses or something I don’t know kidy days can we just talk about the fact that it’s running down your why is the green one we look like pigeons we have literally left like a bunch of droppings I’m going to have to WP
Down this entire don’t spill on this is why you travel with wet I like all of them except the the red the red wine except Michelle had to go and get us a full cup of red wine as well you know
I just committed you know that was a mistake in the moment what is this one I haven’t tried the award winning one yet but now that they’ve mushed together I don’t know what it is who who what the
Heck what is that I don’t know I can’t remember I have it written on oh that’s actually really good though it’s kind of weird at first but then it’s really good guys I feel like this was a
Hot mess Express gelato tasting experience but eat it fast try the wine ones and also try the signature flavor that’s all I have to say so now we get milkshakes as well okay this is why we we’re literally going to have to power wash this step you know honesty the ice cream is
Delicious I don’t maybe maybe like pick a flavor don’t mix your flavors they melt way too fast for you actually truly enjoy the flavors so just pick a flavor maybe let your spouse your child get another flavor you guys can try each other’s flavors that’s the best thing and don’t forget
Napkins for the love of all that’s Humane do not forget napkins agreed after devouring the other two cups and I got onto the red wine one it’s actually pretty good first tastes not very good
But after a while it actually grows on you it’s weird like a grap F tastes like a grape fine it’s good though what a good moral citizen hey hi hi I’m Michelle yeah I know youve been following your
Vide here andri from India subscribers thank you so much for saying hello can a picture oh twice in one day we’re very lucky two groups of subscribers two different subscribers than I was it just makes our day I was like dripping in sticky gelato and I just like totally put a smile
On my face so please say hello to us when you see us because really it just oh warms our hearts makes us happy the church bells are chiming it’s almost 6:00 p.m. and we need to catch our bus back
But we have had a very lovely and just chill day today out a bit slow but I think on yeah bye bye
Today San Gimignano really blows us away…no, but like actually though…😂🤣 The Tuscan Town of Towers is home to the world-famous Gelateria Dondoli – otherwise known as the best gelato in the world! 🍦 And we can’t help but embark on a very messy endeavor to try as many flavors as possible – Like the one-of-a-kind – confusing – red wine gelato (don’t try this at home kids) 🍷🍇 and their signature flavor named after Michelle Obama’s refined sweetness 🤗 We accidentally stumble across a castle courtyard, where we try Vernaccia di San Gimignano, a famous white wine that seems to transport us back in time nearly 700 years to meet Dante himself! 😅 We laugh, we eat, we drink coffee with sambuca, and we climb the town’s tallest tower, where its sweeping views give us the chance to see why everybody believes San Gimignano is the most beautiful town in Tuscany! 😍🇮🇹
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0:00 Intro to San Gimignano
1:19 Bus from Poggibonsi to San Gimignano
2:33 Arriving in San Gimignano and Walking through Town
8:19 Cafe Breakfast at il Criollo
15:36 La Rocca Winery and Castle with a Special Guest
22:54 San Gimignano Cathedral (Duomo di Santa Maria Assunta)
25:58 Streets of San Gimignano
26:58 Buying Wine and Food (Vernaccia di San Gimignano Wine & Vinaio di San Gimignano Panini)
28:48 Food and Wine with a View
34:51 Tower Climb and Museum
45:54 Gelato at the World Famous Gelateria Dondoli
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28 Comments
🍕If you're enjoying our content and would like to help fuel us on our adventure through Italy, you can buy us a small pizza! 😊🇮🇹 https://buymeacoffee.com/theglobalexpats
So happy. And one of the places on my bucket list. Hi there Michelle and Matteo. ❤️❤️
Nice experience guys! San Gimignano was a hoot for us some years ago. We need to "Get Back"
Missing Tuscany ❤️ San Gimignano is really beautiful. Ate gelato from that same store when I visited the place.
Have you guys ever been to Siena? the torre del mangia is twice as tall as the torre grossa, you'll enjoy climbing it!
I can hear you in the wind!
I was in San Gimignano last April, thank you for bringing me back ❤
Thank you for bringing back some fond memories from our last trip! We’ll be going back to this wonderful place when we return in the fall… can’t wait!! ❤ And we’d love to see more of Poggibonsi, our home-away-from-home (our favorite, sleepy little town!). If you happen to stop by Ape d’Oro (in Poggibonsi), please say hi to Antonio and Eleonora! 😊
Hi guys, Alex is here and can ear you through the wind… it's incrediiiible!
Putting Sambuca in coffee is a classic in italy . Once in a lifetime must be tried.
Personally it disgusts me 😛
Instead I don't disdain a little grappa in coffee.
Finally it's out, been waiting to watch before sleep hihii ❤❤
I can hear you through the wind
You're just teaching us how to live and enjoy Italy properly.
Congrats guys!
Good choice in the cake, lemon is always yummy
Inspite of the chaotic winds 🌬, it was a very serene and lovely vlog. Love how you guys find ways to enjoy every moment! Even joking about allergies and Allegra in the beginning.
The Duomo❤
That is some great gelato.
Nice vlog dears, thanks. Right now I'm travelling these places through both of you. I am feeling it. Italy is a beauty and has great cultural heritage like our India. Be happy and joyful always. Keep it up. Love ❤️ ❤️ from India. 🇮🇳👍🏻🙏🏻
🇮🇹The Origins between History and Legend
The foundation of San Gimignano dates back to ancient times. According to legend, in 63 B.C. two brothers, Muzio and Silvio, two young patricians escaping from Rome after their implication in the conspiracy of Catiline, sheltered in Valdelsa and built two castles: the Castle of Mucchio and the Castle of Silvia, which would develop in the future San Gimignano.
The first historical document mentioning the name of the town is dated 30th August 929, when Ugo di Provenza donated to the Bishop of Volterra the so-called Mount of the Tower "prope Sancto Geminiano adiacente" (next to San Gimignano). The name of San Gimignano probably comes from the bishop of Modena. According to legend, during the barbaric invasions the saint appeared miraculously on the city walls, and saved the town from Totila's threat.
The first settlements
The fascinating legends on the town are not more interesting than the long and complex history of San Gimignano.
The area of San Gimignano had his first inhabitants in prehistory, but the first relevant settlements date back to the archaic Etruscan period. At that time the area of Pugiano e.g. was already known as an important sacred site in the unspoilt valley of the torrent Riguardi.
Traces of settlements are more and more numerous during the Hellenistic period, when the hill of San Gimignano was probably inhabited, as some tombs discovered inside the historical centre would demonstrate. If during the Etruscan period inhabited areas were mainly limited to the top of the hills, with the Roman colonization the valley bottom was preferred, especially the areas next to streams, whose waters were often used as communication routes. To be noted as an example the Roman villa of Chiusi, in the vicinity of the torrent
Between High and Late Middle Ages
The constellation of small-sized rural villages of the Etruscan and Roman period that developed in the more important area of Volterra, by the end of High Middle Ages (tenth century) developed into the most ancient core of the current historical centre. In 998 San Gimignano was still a village along the Via Francigena. From a political point of view it belonged to the bishop of Volterra, who resided in a castle at Poggio della Torre.
San Gimignano mainly developed in the first three centuries of the Millennium, thanks to its favourable geographical position. In High Middle Ages the Via Francigena, first traced by the Lombards, became the route of pilgrims who travelled to Rome, mainly from France. The detour to the port of Pisa grafted in San Gimignano, and the town, settled around the hillside variation of the Via Francigena, became one of the most important transit and stopping sites for all travellers.
From Free Commune to the submission to Florence
In 1199 the town, that had increased considerably, declared itself a Free Commune. At first the government was in the hands of Consuls, then of a Podestà, who was periodically changed. For impartiality reasons the governor was always a "foreigner" and he remained in charge for six months.
Despite the bitter political dispute between the Guelfs, who supported the Pope, and the Ghibellines, sided with the emperor, the Commune developed and prospered in agricultural activities in particular thanks to the production of saffron, Greek wine, and Vernaccia, to the commerce of wool, and to money lending to wear. Around the first half of the fourteenth century the town consisted of 13.000 inhabitants and the historical centre was enclosed in the second circle of the city walls. The plague of 1348 decimated two thirds of the population and, since then, San Gimignano knew a long period of decline in the shadow of the dominant Florence.
From decline after the second half of the fourteenth century to nowadays
The economic, architectonic, and cultural boost of San Gimignano stopped around the first half of the fourteenth century, when the Commune submitted to Florence.
After 1348 San Gimignano would never attain again the economical and demographical previous levels. Drastic depopulation and economical decline, together with the loss of political autonomy, produced a clear breakdown: towers fell down, or they were cut off, the palaces got damaged, and due to the general decay no trendy events took place in San Gimignano for centuries. This is why the historical centre of the town remained unchanged and escaped the influences of the different styles that would follow till the end of the nineteenth century, when the "gothic renovation" took place. From the fifteenth century onward there were few urban additions: the Rocca di Montestaffoli, a fortress built by the Florentines with defensive purposes against Siena, a few buildings, some small churches, unimportant maintenance works.
Despite the decay, during the Quattrocento San Gimignano knew the prestigious intervention of important artists of the time such as Domenico Ghirlandaio, Benozzo Gozzoli, and Benedetto da Maiano, who renovated and enriched the cultural heritage of the previous centuries which already consisted of precious works of art by Coppo di Marcovaldo, Memmo di Filippuccio, Simone Martini, Lippo Memmi, Bartolo di Fredi, Taddeo di Bartolo, and Jacopo della Quercia. Later on, the seventeenth century would be the all-time low in the history of the town. After the plague of 1631, San Gimignano became one of the poorest centres in the Grand Dukedom of Tuscany, with a population reduced to 3.000 inhabitants.
The reforms of the eighteenth century brought some advantage to San Gimignano as well. Agriculture, with the typical Tuscan mixed cultivation system, started to increase again and population raised up to 10.000 inhabitants, as registered in 1948. The historical centre knew an incredible revival: first with the rediscovering of Middle Ages around the first half of the nineteenth century, when several buildings were repaired and renovated, then, one hundred years later, with the exponential growth of cultural tourism, which still brings million of visitors a year to the town of the towers.
Today the Commune of San Gimignano numbers 8.000 inhabitants and lives on agriculture, thanks to a prestigious production of D.O.C.G. Vernaccia wine, and a flourishing activity of agritourism, besides small local factories in the framework of the Valdelsa industrial area. Every year the historical centre, registered in UNESCO's World Cultural Heritage, attract millions of tourists from all over the world, who comes to admire the intact medieval atmosphere preserved by centuries and decay and protected today by national law and strict local rules.
The Tower as a Symbol of Power
San Gimignano rises on top of a hill 334m above sea level, clearly visible in the distance with its many towers. Today 13 towers remain of the 72 towers of the fourteenth century, when every well off family built a tower to show its economical power (many of them are still visible in the buildings, even if they were cut off).
The first towers rose wide apart in a rarefied urban fabric looking very different from the nowadays compact centre. Towers were used in a different way. Rooms were very narrow, generally 1x2m; there were a few openings, and the walls, about 2m thick, assured cool temperature in summer and hot in winter. Almost all the towers were built next to other buildings in perishable materials such as wood and earth. In medieval times the tower was the higher symbol of power, mainly because the building process was not simple or cheap at all. Materials needed to be dug and transferred to town, and the building site arranged. Only the richest families of merchants and moneylenders could afford the works of construction.
The house occupied just part of the tower. The ground floor consisted of workshops, the first floor of bedrooms, and the higher level of the kitchen. The destination of each room followed the simplest security rules. The kitchen, where a fire was usually lighted, was located on the highest live-in room, to escape in case of accidental fire.
Towers change
During the twelfth century the changes in the buildings were mainly directed to improve the daily life. The need of larger inside spaces and of wider openings brought to new building models, which mainly involved the towers.
The reference model for the towers built between the first half of the twelfth century and the first half of the thirteenth century is the so-called Pisa model, exported from the famous Tuscan maritime town. According to this style, buildings had one or more high and narrow openings on lower levels, which cross the tower from side to side. The openings that stretched for several levels were shared inside by wooden floors, which corresponded to outside full-wide wooden balconies. With these balconies inner spaces were expanded outside the walls of the buildings.
From towers to palaces
From the end of the twelfth century, the towers built according the same model were sided by other buildings of lower height that may be already defined palazzi. From the second half of the twelfth century, bricks appeared, and they were used in total or in part to erect buildings.
Since the first half of the thirteenth century towers were not built anymore, whilst palaces were built according to the most up-to-date and fashionable trends of that time. Since the first half of Duecento, the major Tuscan art towns such as Florence, Pisa, Lucca, and Siena developed some peculiar architectonical features, different for each town. This is not the case for San Gimignano, where architecture developed according to eclectic features, merging different styles and influences from different towns the Commune had come in touch with. The outcome is a very original and peculiar architecture.
Great video as usual! Thanks.. Watching vlogs like this, seeing Ukrainian flags on these Italian buildings in Tuscany, and having no opportunity to leave Ukraine is painful. The biggest dream is to visit Tuscany once again.
Big Mike Obama. I am never getting that one.
I loved this so much, thank you very much, your sence of humor keeps me smiling the entire video!!
I love the sights you shiw and the information as always is awesome!! I also really like seeing inside the shops and the merchandise they have!!! ❤❤❤ thank you until next time 😊
We went here on our first European cruise in 2006 for our retirement. Loved it. Too bad it was so windy for you. Love your facial expressions when you taste something. Those desserts looked so good! Those sandwiches were huge. So much fun climbing the tower. How did you decide which Gelato flavor? There were so many to choose from Didn’t see any kitties? When are you going back to film? TFS.
I visited Sam Gimignano in the fall of 2021. We were staying outside of Volterra. The rainy day and the time of year plus just coming out of Covid, made the town almost deserted. I just walked into the church and didn't have to pay. As you said, it was surprisingly dark. I enjoyed visiting with you on this brighter somewhat warmer day.
Did I just hear 'joh' in an American/Canadian accent 😂 well done
Wow so much to explore. When we were there it was on a multi city tour and we barely had time to walk to the top of the town, get gelato and then leave. Can’t wait to go back to see all these sites!
Lovely episode.. And I hope you're going to Val d'Orchia coz I'm planning to go there but confused on how to get there, coz I heard that there's no public transport but I can't drive
Another fantastic episode guys! San Geminiano is one of those Tuscan gems you know is kind of a tourist trap but so beautiful you just cannot not go.