The heart and soul of Montalcino is the people.  We’ve been fortunate to get to know a few of them during our visits to the area.  They work long hours, usually not closing shop until 8:00 PM.  A few of the people who stand out are “La Tita”(Mario Marconi), the older gentleman who maintains the village garden always dressed in a white dress shirt and tie.  He is a proud and dignified man working in a noble manner.  We were happy to see him again on this recent trip.  He seemed well and healthy.  Renata, the owner of a fabric store making table clothes and napkins.  Amy has purchased table clothes in the past and this year Renata made some custom sized napkins for us.  Her craftsmanship is beautiful.  Once again we visited a leather shop owner in Pienza where he polished a previously purchased coin purse and we discussed a shared interest in a photographer by the name of Vivian Maier.  We had a great dinner at Il Giglio which is family owned and operated.  The family works hard and after we had a truly amazing dinner we said goodbye to the family who at 10:00 PM were finally sitting down to eat their own dinner.