Ai Lecci in Centro has been a real surprise to me… and one of the best experiences of mycorneroftuscany tour. As I said many time, the real difference can be mad by people. And Bruno made all the difference. He was kind, easy going and discreet. But I had already imagined that. Since he answered my e-mail, I understood immediately that he was my kind of man 🙂 funny and polite. Furthermore, if I may, he is also handsome… he reminded me of actor Franco Nero. We found out that he performed the military service in Padova!
The B&B is actually a 50s villa, completely renovated with a special attention to the environment: hot water, air conditioning and heating are provided thanks to geothermal energy, the garden watering system is obtained with rainwater harvesting and the lights are all LED.
Tip to arrive: When you reach piazza Bargagli, turn left right after the San Francesco church, and park the car in front of the gate at the right of the church. That is the entrance of the bed-and-breakfast. The land in which the B&B is located was once, in fact, the area of the vegetables and medicinal herbs garden of the adjacent convent.
Our stay at Ai Lecci in Centro
This B&B is, in my opinion, the explanation of the term “contrast”: it is located just outside the medieval/renaissance burg of Sarteano, in a 1950’s villa (quite rigorous geometrical style). The garden, with some ancient holm oaks (ie the lecci of the B&B name), includes the adjacent church side and its bricks wall (which grants you total privacy by the way). It is very unique to have a church as a side of the garden, isn’t it? Ah, regarding the church, the bell never rang during the night, so no disturb at all.
The rooms and the common areas of Ai Lecci in Centro are pure colour and brightness: red, green, yellow. You just can’t feel sad. At all. It was wonderful to be surrounded by colours. And it made perfect sense for that place It was not an historical, medieval palazzo. But a 50′ villa. And I think that such a décor reflects perfectly the spirit of the place. So: Middle Ages, Fifties, Colours and Modernity all in one.
The terrace room
Our room was modern, “very blue” (for its colour) and spacious. In addition it had a private terrace overlooking the garden. The super feature of the room, apart from the terrace, was the shower. Huge. I’ve always dreamt of a “matrimonial shower”. Even if I like to take rather cold (not cold cold but not too warm) showers and Matteo takes (for my standards) too hot showers, so we couldn’t have it together. But neverthelesss, a big shower, where you can move easily without elbowing on the walls 😉 , would be great. And that shower was so big to host even 4 people I guess!
Another pro was all the space in the bathroom for my stuff. There are many B&Bs and hotels where you feel lost: there’s no place to put your beauty case, no place for your medicines. I have asthma and other likeable health issues. I must always travel with pills, puffs, sprays, ect so I need space. Plus Wi-Fi worked perfectly.
After the car travel to reach Tuscany and the first visits of the tour, relaxing and then swimming in the piscina [pee-SHEE-nah], pool, with a view of the medieval Fortress was the cherry on top of our experience.
Breakfast
Another big thumb up was breakfast. I love food and I love to eat. I am like Julia Child. And I especially love breakfast. Almost everything was home made by Bruno’s mother, except for the juices and the cold cuts: a cake, different kinds of cookies, apricots and plums jam, bread (io amo il pane, I love bread). Everything was delicious. I have a sweet tooth so to me the cookies were a scrumptious surprise. Moreover we had breakfast in the garden, which is always a pleasure in summer.
Since Sarteano is very close to the highway, it is also a convenient place to visit Tuscany: easy to reach, out of the crowds but near the main attractions of the area, such as Montepulciano and Pienza (the latter part of mycorneroftuscany tour), but also 1 hour away from cities like Siena and Perugia (Umbria). Therefore it is a great accommodation to visit that part of Tuscany.
Grazie, Bruno, per la tua gentilezza, ospitalità, simpatia e per i consigli!
Ai Lecci in centro
www.aileccincentro.it
Piazza Bargagli, 4 – Sarteano (Siena)
