Actually there was one minor problem with the cooking school:  They just wouldn't stop feeding us!

From the moment we arrived to the hour we left, Chef Claudio was pressing us to eat the most wonderful cheeses and meats and breads and vegetables and wines and cheeses and cheeses and cheeses....  Here's Cindy in the outdoor sitting room just after we arrived.  Very nice.

Cindy is certainly enjoying this small repast.

Bill's ready to dig in too.

This was our breakfast spread each morning.  Because we were Americans, Chef Claudio kept offering eggs for breakfast.  "Do Italians eat eggs for breakfast, Chef Claudio?"  "Oh no, we don't eat anything like all this.  Just coffee and a croissant, maybe.  That's all we eat."  I guess he knows Americans like their breakfast.

Feed me!

One of the highlights of the cooking school is a wine tasting conducted by Chef Claudio.  We tried various Chiantis and they were very nice, but really, Chef Claudio -- We're FULL!

Posing with a few bottles of wine.

Chef Claudio asked if I'd ever seen any of the bottles before, and as a matter of fact I had seen some of his Ruffino Chianti. 

Oh boy, cheese!  That little pot held some wonderful sweet chutney-like jam that was fantastic on the cheese.  Most of those cheeses are pecorino at various stages of aging.  Every one was delicious.

Oh boy!  Breakfast again!  I should have had one of those blood oranges.  I always meant to have one, but I think I didn't even have any blood orange juice on this trip.  It was one of my favorite discoveries on my first trip to Italy.

Cindy and Patty said Bill did this the entire trip.  I don't know what they're talking about.

Some dessert.  A sweet wine into which we dipped slices of the biscotti we'd made.  Very nice. 

If Bill had stayed at Relais Torre Guelfa one more day that button would have just given up.