Lovely accommodation near Lucca

Warm atmosphere, old time charm and all kinds of modern comforts characterize this Villa near Lucca, restored with personal touch. For sure one of the best places to spend few days if you wish to visit Lucca and the north of Tuscany. The foundations of this ancient Villa date back to the 18th century
The Villa belonged to Mr. Bonuccelli that bought it from Washington since his family had emigrated to America, and the villa would allow his family left back in Italy, to live in it. In fact they lived in it, as it was, until 1945. Thankfully the bombings of WWII did not destroy this villa.

The Villa is located near Camaiore that is a town which extends from the fascinating summits of the Apuanian Alps to the Tyrrhenian Sea, in the heart of Versilia.

We really enjoyed our stay at the villa. A relaxing and refreshing experience in a lovely restructured and authentic Tuscan villa near Lucca.

Castagneto Carducci and Bolgheri

The Castle of Bolgheri has been known of since the 8th century, and it too belonged to the family of the Counts della Gherardesca. The original structure had a different location: the castle we can admire today is the result of a reconstruction after the arrival in Bolgheri of the army of Emperor Maximilian in 1496. In the beginning of the 20th century, the castle of Bolgheri was the center of the properties of the noble Gherardesca family ; the countess Franca Spalletti Trivelli (a Gherardesca), wife of the earl Clemente Zileri (who owned the Fattoria Poggio a Poppiano near Florence) inherited this estate of 130 ha (among which 50 ha of vineyards) from her mother.




If you are looking to take a quick trip here from the north, then head south direction south Grosseto, exit La California and continue towards south for 5 Km. Here begin on your left the cypress road. If you are heading over from Siena follow the road that leads to Massa Marittima (another goregous little stop) and then proceed towards Castegneto Carducci.


Perhaps one of the most distinctive aspects of this town is the 4.3 km of road wich stretch between the castel itself and the old roman road of Aurelian is the long and pictureqsue viale of cypress trees (more than 2000 trees), well known through the Tuscany region and often associated with the Tuscan landscape.

Between 1838 and 1848, in the famous Italian Poet named Carducci, lived in Bolgheri and with his poem Davanti San Guido, he immortalised the "Viale" that led to the small village from the antique Roman thoroughfare to the chapel of St Vitus, built in 1703.




"Cipressi che a Bolgheri alti e schietti / van da San Guido in duplice filar, / quasi in corsa giganti giovinetti / mi balzarono incontro e mi guardar"

(The cypresses trees that go from Bolgheri, high and sincere in a double line, almost as young giants run towards me and looked at me).



Comfortably small and very walkable, this quaint little village is the perfect place to stop off and have a bite to eat - or get that after lunch cafe while admiring the Italian architecture in the many times restructured castle.

Discover Pitigliano in Tuscany

Pitigliano lies in the green Etruscan hills of the Maremma, the most southern part of Tuscany. The historic center stands on a protruding tuff rock and still demostrates remains of an aquaduct. The history of the town stretches back to the Etruscans in pre-Roman times and even today Etruscan graves and pathways carved into the tuff beneath the town point to these ancient peoples.


The of Pitigilano, in southern Tuscany, town is situated on a steep tuff rock (a hardened type of volcanic magma), 313 metres above sea-level. Not far from Pitigliano and its vacation rentals is Lake Bolsena, a huge water-filled crater and the largest Italian lake.


Southern Tuscany, a beautiful place to look for a vacation rental villa, was once one of the most important centres of the Etruscans. There are numerous cave-tombs of that period around Pitigliano, caves cut deep into the tuff, that are today used as cellars and sheds. Of further interest is the Jewish history of Pitigliano.


In the 30`s the situation of the Jews deteriorated. By luck and good fortune as well as the assistance of some Italians, who risked their lives, apparently all the Jews of Pitigliano survived. Today there is no Jewish community any more, but the cultural heritage is maintained. You can visit a small museum in the old ghetto area of the town. Not only does it offer a glimsp of the Jewish livestyle, but also a great opportunity to see the catinas carved in Tuff.



The mostly volcanic mountainous area is called "Alta Maremma" (Upper Maremma). Most of this area is covered by tuff (in italian: tufo), a volcanic material, that was discharged from volcanoes in prehistoric times. Tuff can be worked quite easily as long as it has had no contact with air that hardens it. Tuff has been used by people living in the area from early times. Today most of the old buildings are gone, and most of the remains are made from hollowed out tuff.
As a well known archaeologist once said: There is nothing that lasts longer than a hole in the ground.

Archeological digs in Fiesole

Not far from Florence the historical digs of Fiesole can be found. There are two excellent musems and the ruins themselves which can be visited. In the winter the hours are from 9,30 in the morning to 5 in the evening and in the summer to 7 in the evening - continuous hours with no lunch break! This is a perfect place to come and see some of the ruins left by past cultures in a relaxing and comfortable setting. You will find parking for the cars - or if you want you can catch an orange ATAF bus from Florence, look for line number 7 to Fiesole.



The so-called �Fiesole stelae� date back as far as the late 6th century B.C. However finds from the Villanovan culture of the early iron age and the age of copper and of bronze have also been unearthed. The Etruscan settlement of Fiesole was probably the center of a zone where settlements were scattered over the hillsides which overlook the Florentine basin.



The entire floor rested on piers of bricks which drew hot air from an adjacent furnace (see photo). The walls also were interfaced with hollow terra cotta tiles on all sides to draw the heat through. Frequently the bath had a plug so the water could be emptied, maybe twice, maybe once, or not at all during the day. The pipes might either be lead or, more typically, tiles buried in the ground. Usually planted a foot or more under a very solid concrete floor, they were built to last.


A bathroom of the wealthy literally was a room with a pool of water filling up the entire floor, in essence a small swimming pool in present-day terms. The walls were lined with marble and complemented the three or four marble steps leading down to the submerged concrete floor.