Via Francigena- Day 5

Scheduled Rest Day

Today was a planned rest day during our hike; but, we still walked 4 miles in & around San Gimignano.

Today’s highlight was gelato…lots of gelato!
We visited Gelateria Dondoli which is known as the world’s best gelateria.

Gelato originated 2,500 years ago in Ancient Rome when Romans would gather snow & ice in the mountains & mix it with fruit or other flavorings to make a sweet dessert.
This, the word “gelato” comes from the Latin word “gelatus” which means “frozen”.

During the Middle Ages, Arab traders introduced “sharabat” (sherbet) to Sicily.
This cultural exchange brought new techniques for preserving ice with different flavors & creating frozen drinks which was a precursor to gelato.

The real turning point for creating gelato as we know it came in the 16th Century during the Renaissance in Florence with the Medici family.

Catherine de Medici, future wife of King Henry II of France, worked with Florentine Bernardo Bountalenti to create a creamy dessert for a Medici family celebration.
in 1565 they created a frozen dessert with milk, honey, egg yolk, & wine which is considered to be the first gelato.

After Catherine married Henry II bringing gelato with her to France, gelato mania started.

Gelato has more milk than ice cream & uses lower quantities of fat than ice cream. Because gelato has less air in the base, it is denser & packed with more flavor than ice cream.

Master gelato maker Sergio Dondoli’s gelato won the World Cup prize.
He participated in the Gelato World Cup on the Italian team, which won the 2006/07 and 2008/09 competitions.
Who knew there was a World Cup competition for gelato!?

Located in San Gimignano’s Piazza della Cisterna, this small shop is very easy to find… just look for the perpetually long line.
Here was what the line looked like when we arrived in town at 1PM yesterday.

Needless to say, we didn’t wait in line; but, we returned early today when it opened at 9AM before the hordes from all the tour buses from Florence & Sienna arrived.

With so many tempting creations at this gelateria, we did some research to pick the award winning flavors before trying others.

Here are the top Signature & Award Winning flavors which we can attest lived up to their status:

Amedi Chua- it was awarded the Oscar in London as the best chocolate in the world for five years.
Having tasted it, I would give it an Oscar too!

Champelmo: a refreshing, tangy sorbet made with pink grapefruit & sparkling Vernaccia wine.

Crema di Santa Fina: a rich cream infused with local organic saffron & pine nuts.

Dolceamaro: A sophisticated blend featuring blackberry & lavender honey.

Michelle: A unique combination of almonds, orange zest, honey, & saffron (Named after Michelle Obama).

Rosemary Baby: Vibrant mix of fresh raspberries & aromatic rosemary.

Besides Champelmo & Rosemary Baby, I also tried the Limone di Siracusa & Mango featured on their sign as their Summer Specialties flavors.

We went there several times & between us tried about half their flavors.
Gina’s favorite flavor is Michelle followed by Rosemary Baby.
Because I am a chocolate freak, my favorite flavor is Amedi Chua chocolate followed by Champelmo.

If you can’t make it here to taste this delicious gelato, then, if you are ever in Paris, you can visit its location in Paris in the Galleria Continua.

Along with multiple visits to the gelateria, we went up in
the Torre Grossa which is the tallest tower in San Gimignano (hence its name the “Big Tower”).

Its construction started on 21 August 1300 & it was finished in 1311.
It is 177 feet (54 metres) high.
The tower’s walls are two meters thick and made of stone carved in regular bricks.

City authorities wanted to enrich San Gimignano with a tower that would become the city’s symbol as well as be functional. The tower fulfilled a military objective serving as an observation point & a civil use as a bell tower.

After climbing the tower’s 218 steps, we got a bird’s eye view over the city along with panoramic views of the beautiful Tuscan countryside.