• Home
  • About Carol
  • About us

Luxury Travel Magazine

An unpretentious guide to luxury travel, culture and adventure

  • About Luxury travel
  • Destinations
  • Spas
    • The Spa and Spa Travel
    • Hot Springs Spas and Thermal Baths: Why You Should Visit One
    • Spa Towns in Europe – 8 Reasons You Should Visit
  • Popular Articles
    • Things to Do in Canada
    • Top European Destinations
    • Things to Do in the South of France
    • Travel and Art: Artistic Cities, Art Fairs and Painting Holidays
  • Privacy Policy
  • Contact
Luxury travel blog » Places » Europe » Italy » Travel hassles: eating alone

Travel hassles: eating alone

November 26, 2010 by Carol Perehudoff 5 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links.

I’m just glad I brought a suitcase full of heels and skirts because spas in Italy – at least the ones I’ve been visiting – go by a drowned-rat-in-a-bathrobe look for day and Italian glam by night. (And if this post sounds like I’m bragging about my wonderful spa life, wait for my next installment – trust me, it ain’t all roses.)

Travel hassles, eating alone in Tuscany

Fresh produce! Yum!

Eating alone on a spa vacation

But back to travel hassles. Eating alone can be a big pain when you’re travelling solo. So far I’ve managed to avoid the dreaded alone-at-swanky-restaurant issue opting for sandwiches at a bar – but it finally happened, on my second night at a Tuscan spa called Fonteverde, Italian spa retreat to the stars (not that I’d know an Italian star if I saw one unless her name was Sophia Loren) – I was on my own for a four-course meal. At a former Medici palace no less. Apparently the Medicis liked their spa waters just as much as we do, though I bet not a single Medici ever had to eat here alone.

Travel hassles, eating alone in Italy Fonteverde

Home away from home

How to embrace dining alone

Drink: But whatever. Instead of worrying about my solo status, I decided to embrace it. This was made much easier because of a friendly waiter and a glass of red wine from Montepulciano (the waiter told me that Nobile Grandi Annate is one of the best, but it only came by the bottle so I had a smooth glass of Insoglio instead.)

Spy: I also enjoyed myself by spying on the other diners: a seriously gorgeous Italian couple, a few merely sensationally attractive Italian couples, one unattractive scowling couple, two women – language unrecognized – and a trio of who I believe were Russians, though I could be wrong.

Eat local: I sampled the estate’s latest production of olive oil –quite peppery – ate a salad (everything local, of course – this is Tuscany), had a bowl of zucchini soup and feasted on braised veal cooked with spring onions and red wine, served with a chestnut  polenta.

Document: I even, though this took bravery, asked the waiter to take my photo.

Travel hassles, eating alone on holiday

No friends? So what? I’m in a palace!

 

I’m sorry the waiter didn’t capture the veal and the wine in the picture. I wanted to make him redo it, but felt stupid enough asking for a shot in the first place. Hopefully the photo captures the festive I-don’t-care-if-I’m-eating-alone spirit.

Travel hassles, eating alone at luxury spa Fonteverde

Just a casual little palace

 

The evening would have been complete if only I could have stayed for desert: a Puff Pastry with Cinnamon, Egg-nog and Orange Sauce perhaps, or Raspberries and Strawberries Tart with Star Anice Sorbet, but I was getting sleepy and truthfully, the conversation I was having with myself just wasn’t riveting enough to keep me awake. Next time I promise I’ll be more entertaining, because I think I’ve successfully learned how to overcome one of the solo traveller’s major travel hassles: eating alone.

Read more about going to The Spa and Spa Travel

Filed Under: Italy, Solo Travel, Spas Tagged With: Tuscany

About Carol Perehudoff

A former freelance travel columnist for the Toronto Star, Carol has won more than 20 writing and blogging awards and honours. A spa and luxury travel expert, she's written for top travel publications around the globe.

Comments

  1. senthil kumar says

    December 10, 2010 at 10:50 am

    travel alone , eating along, going to movies alone should become the norm in 10-20 years.. i hope so..

    going with friends is fine but so is doign things alone…….

  2. senthil kumar says

    December 10, 2010 at 10:49 am

    good on you to travel alone.

    man these social customs drive me insane. Not many times you will get people to go with you or they wont be interested in the same things as you….

    Like my case i dont have anything in common with the ppl i meet. So i waited waited for someone to go along. Now i am sick and tired…. of waiting. Gee i should have travelled alone and made merry…

  3. MacGregrrrr the Terrier-ist says

    December 10, 2010 at 7:08 am

    Hmmm … on the other hand, at least you didn’t have guys hitting on you … (another drawback to dining alone – oddly enough, only seems to happen to you attractive young ladies – for some bizarre reason, they leave us old geezers alone … ha!)

  4. Rebecca Minton says

    December 5, 2010 at 7:25 pm

    Great outfit though.
    Rebecca

  5. Michele Peterson says

    December 1, 2010 at 10:12 am

    The only thing more awkward than eating alone is having someone watch you while you eat.

Talk to me! Leave a comment Cancel reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Search

Subscribe and you won't miss an article!

About Wandering Carol

circle profileIn my 10+ years as a travel writer and columnist I've seen the best of what the world has to offer and written for some top publications around the globe - and now my goal is to bring this expertise to you. For more blah blah blah, visit my
About page.

Connect with me online

  • Facebook
  • Google+
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter
Carol Perehudoff published in top media, logos for newspapers and magazines

Categories

How to use this adventure and luxury travel site

  • Click on the ‘DESTINATIONS TO TRAVEL TO’ tab on the menu bar to go to my destinations page.
  • The CATEGORIES drop down menu above will point you to locations and travel themes such as hotels, outdoor adventure and tours.
  • SUBSCRIBE to keep up with the latest articles and get tips to make your next journey inspiring.

Recent Posts

  • A (Lost) Love for Travel on Valentine’s Day
  • Best Beach Resorts in South Africa: Top 9 Luxury Stays for 2021
  • A Chocolate Christmas in Switzerland
  • Best Place to Live in South Africa | Cheapest, Safest and Best on Offer
  • Romantic Budapest

Recent Comments

  • Carol Perehudoff on A Tropical Island Cocktail Cure at Paradisus Palma Real
  • chrisrochfort on Who worked at the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel?
  • brittshedhappens on My shamanic healing in the Amazon, Peru
  • Christa McKinney on A Tropical Island Cocktail Cure at Paradisus Palma Real
  • Ruth Reynolds on Bad Kreuznach – the German Spa Town You Probably Never Heard of

Terms of Use

Terms of Use

Copyright @2020 WanderingCarol.com Luxury Travel Blog