Sadly, we are wrapping up our time in Sicily. We tearfully said good-bye to the Canicatti family and headed to an agriturismo to spend our final few days before flying home to the USA.  We needed a few days just to rest! Not only had we hosted Frank’s son and family from Maryland for 10 days, but in the last week, we had stayed out to well past 1 am at all the family dinners. (These dinners start around 9 and go into the wee hours.) We had had amazing and fun time, but needed to re-charge.

And it turned out that Bagio di Pianetto was the perfect place. Italy has these agriturismos all over. They are working farms that also offer rooms. They get a stipend from the government if they can show they truly are a farm, which helps the farms stay in business. They range from an extra room in the farmhouse to full-blown inns.

Baglio di Pianetto is a working vineyard that measures 88 hectares (220 acres). It is 30 miles from Palermo and in the middle of nowhere. We thought it would be fun to take backroads to get there and travel through Corleone (of “Godfather” fame). It was scenic, but soon we were lost and going in circles – this is uncharted territory on the GPS. (The guidebook also called it “Bandit Country,” which made us a little nervous – we weren’t exactly sure what that meant.)

But we finally found the place. And what a place it was! It turns out the “farmer” here is a count whose family owns the Valentino and Hugo Boss fashion labels. This is not your average agriturismo. They have about 15 spacious rooms with king-sized beds and Frette linens and a 33 meter pool, complete with a pool boy, Alfredo, who will bring you grapes on ice and wine. Wow.

We are here for 3 days and plan to do (almost) nothing but relax and think back on the wonderful memories we’ve made in Italy.

Next Up: Sicilian Cooking Class!