Routes around Tuscany (North)

Dear Friends,

Today I�m publishing a recommended route for those visiting the North of Tuscany.

 

Day 1- Lucca and Pisa. Obviously in Pisa you can�t miss the Leaning Tower and the Piazza dei Miracoli (�Square of miracles�), monuments considered to be some of the great wonders of the world. Besides the splendid Square of Miacles, Pisa does not have a huge amount to show visitors so you can easily devote a morning to Pisa and the afternoon to Lucca. Lucca is an enchanting city. I suggest a walk around the city�s great walls and a visit to the main square. 

I don�t have any particular restaurants to recommend to you in Pisa but in Lucca I know one very good one called la Bocca di San Antonio in the city centre on Via della Cervia n3.


Day 2. Vinci and Firenze

Vinciis the birthtown of the famous Leonardo da Vinci and this little town does not have a particular interest but it does have a museum where many of the Master�s works and drawings are kept.

Making the most of the nearness to Florence, in the afternoon you can go to the city and start to savour it in all it�s splendor. For dinner in Florence I highly recommend you try the restaurant Finisterrae(open the link for more info) found in Santa Croce square. It is a Mediterranean restaurant, exquisitely decorated with a delightful internal terrace. You can enjoy classic and innovative Mediterranean dishes but also excellent pizzas. 

Day 3- Florence

Florence deserves at the very least a whole day, it is a city with so many things to see but we will follow up with another article covering those sites you really cannot miss.

To eat I suggest you go to Trattoria da Mario, a true paradise for the taste buds with a menu based on Tuscan home cooking and the freshest ingredients.  

Below you will find Google Maps for the routes discussed:

Day 1- Lucca and Pisa

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Day 2- Vinci and Florence

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Have a good trip! As always feel free to ask any questions or share your thoughts in the comments.

How to get around in Florence

Dear Friends,

Today�s article will hopefully be of use for everyone taking Florence as the base for their holiday in Tuscany, or for those that simply want to spend a day or two in Florence while they explore the delights of the region from a countryside location.

The first thing you should take into consideration if you travel to Florence by car is the numerous restricted traffic zones in the historic centre. Driving through one of these zones will lead directly to a fine. So be careful!

As a result, if you plan to come to Florence by car or to hire a vehicle once you have arrived, I would suggest first of all that you look for a car park outside of these restricted traffic zones and leave your car there.

Florence does not have many car parks. However, the local government has produced a website on which all the main car parks in Florence and their locations are listed- definitely worth a look. If your hotel is in the centre of the city it might have its own car park. Only after your hotel has given your car�s number plate to the local police can you drive through the restricted traffic zones

Bicycle or scooter rental are also interesting options to get to know Florence and travel around the cities and other places in the wider area. There are a huge number of companies which offer rentals. I direct you to this website for example, where you can find both motorbikes and bicycles to rent. http://www.alinarirental.com/

Public transport such as the buses are another good alternative. The company that manages them is the ATAF and fortunately has a website in English. You will find information on timetables, routes and fares here.

You can also take taxis to get around Florence. Nevertheless, due to the fact that this sector is restricted, there are relatively few taxis in the city. To find them you almost always need to go to the designated ranks or call one by phone. This is of course a rather expensive way to travel.

The last option is to get around on foot. Considering that the city centre is not very big and especially that every corner of Florence deserves to be seen, this is probably the best choice.

As always we hope that this information might be of some use for your holidays in Florence and Tuscany.

Please leave any questions, suggestions or thoughts in the comments. 

What to do in Tuscany: Events in July-August 2011

Dear Friends,
Today I want to highlight some interesting shows and events taking place this summer in Tuscany, geared to both adults and children, especially for those who are just about to set off on their holidays in the coming weeks.

- The first event I�d like to mention is the classical music concerts taking place in Siena in the beautiful Accademia Chigiana in one of the most beautiful theatres of the Italian Renaissance. For the concert program see the following link: http://www.chigiana.it/

- Another popular event in Tuscany is the prestigious Festival de la M�sica de Radicondoli which begins on the 29th of July and continues until the 7th August. Here you will be able to enjoy pleasant evenings with music. Please visit the following site for more information: http://www.radicondoliarte.org/


- Another interesting festival is the Teatro Povero di Montichiello, where actors and musicians improvise to create a typically Tuscan scene. See the official website: http://www.teatropovero.it/

- I�d also like to recommend another interesting music festival, at San Galgano (see the above photo), an impressive roofless church situated in a spectacular enclave in Tuscany. Over the next weeks in this unique place various musical performances and operas will take place. A couple which particularly stand out are Carmina Burana and Swan Lake. For more information you can see the following webpage: http://www.festivalopera.it

- For something a bit different, from the 24th of July up until the 7th of August, in Siena, the jazz concerts are taking place. The Jazz school of Siena is one of the most important in the whole of Italy. For more information and the concert program visit the official website: http://www.sienajazz.it/


- Other notable musical events include: the Music festival of the Valdorcia (1st-16th August), the festival of the Crete Senesi from the 14th to the 22nd August and the Sarteano Jazz Festival from the 24th to the 26th August.

There are also events not exclusively devoted to music and particularly appropriate for children as well as adults.

- The Pontassieve: Summer in the Park festival overflowing with concerts, cinema, musical theatre, children�s events and dance takes place from 26th July until 13th September (Florence Province). See the following link: http://www.estatealparco.it/default.asp

- Finally, a 10 day festival of music, food, dance, markets, entertainment and shows to celebrate the Patron Saint of Borgo, San Lorenzo, will take place in the Borgo itself (Florence Province) from the 7th to the 15th August. Tel: 055 845 6230 / 84966229.

As always, I hope that this information is useful to those planning their upcoming holidays and that you enjoy any of the events you go to.

Emma.

One day excursion to Florence

As many of you who travel to Tuscany have only a few days to explore the area, I�d like to suggest an itinerary so you won�t miss the most important and outstanding places in a one day excursion to Florence.

Our first piece of advice is to reach the city by coach or train (there are many, and with high frequency from almost every town in Tuscany) so as not to waste any of your precious time as parking in Florence is not easy at all, I can assure you.

Arriving in the morning at the station you�ll find yourself practically in the city center.
The first stop could be the stunning Basilic of Santa Maria Novella. 10 to 15 minutes should be enough to get an overall view of the church. Then you could head directly to the Cathedral (or Duomo, as we call them in Italy) better known as Santa Maria in Fiore, which is only 5 minutes� walk from the basilic.


The visit to the Cathedral obviously demands more time due to both its beauty and magnitude. Those who have the courage can go up Brunelleschi�s grandiose dome, from which, after a few minutes� climb up a narrow stairway, you�ll be overwhelmed by one of the most beautiful and spectacular sights in Florence.( advice: not for claustrophobics)

Once the visit to the Duomo is over, you have two options: either to visit the Galleria degli Uffizi or the Galleria dell�Accademia. Going to both of them in one day could be really stressing, so I recommend choosing just one of them. The former is home to Michelangelo�s David, among other works, while the latter hosts the best Renaissance works of art in the world.

The next stop, I suggest should be lunch at Mario (for further information you can click the link), a very good and very cheap restaurant I never get tired of mentioning in this blog. This eating spot is not more than 15 minutes� walk from any of the two sights you have just visited.

After eating and drinking a good Tuscan wine, it�s worth spending some time at the San Lorenzo Market (which is next to the restaurant), a typical city market, which is open every day and is a typical place in the city.

Following our itinerary, you should go back to the center, along Via Tornabuoni (with its extremely exclusive stores) as far as the river Arno. On the left, you�ll find the stunning Ponte Vecchio, where Jew Jewelers have been exhibiting their precious works for centuries.

Passing the Ponte Vecchio, and walking straight on for 200 meters is the famous Palazzo Pitti (Pitti Palace) with its wonderful Boboli Gardens. The visit to the gardens demands quite a lot of time and that will depend on you and the energy you�ve got left. As many of you will have just a few hours left to catch your train or bus back from the outing, my advice is you should go back on your steps towards the amazing Piazza della Signoria and keep on going heading for Santa Croce Church, right behind it. In my opinion, the church demands time to visit as it keeps the sepulchers of many illustrious protagonists in the history of Florence and the World such as: Galileo Galilei, Michelangelo, Maquiavelo, as well as unmatchable works of art by Giotto, Donatello and Cimabue.

After the visit you�ll have the exact time to get back to the bus or train� So you know� Dart to Santa Maria Novella. (20 minutes� walk.)

Well, friends, I hope you�ll find all this information useful when planning your trip.

For more information about Florence I recommend this free guide I have found in the Internet, which you can find in the following link: Florence

Regards,

Giovanni.

THE LEGEND OF THE REVERSED BALCONY

Florence, like all the medieval towns have a lot of legends about curious and strange events that have occurred in the past times.
Florence, like all the historical towns, has many charming and unknown little corners.
Sometimes those little corners are the subject of the ancient legends, like in the case of the legend of The Reversed Balcony, that show the irriverent character of the Florentines and the Tuscany people in general.
In the centre of Florence in via Borgo Ognissanti number 12 there is a balcony, at the first floor, that was built with all the classical elements, the supporting corbels, the volutes and the balustrades ... that are assembled all counter wise.
The building with this balcony is dated to the 16th century, and seems to have been built in that curious way on a request of the stable's builder, for a revenge with the Duke Alessandro De' Medici. Seems, in fact, that the Duke at the moment of the project proposal, rejected the project cause of the prominents of the balcony, at the time there was a law that forbade the contruction of balconies all over the city. It is said that the builder presented the project more times with only few things modified between one time to another, leaving the balcony almost unchanged, and it is said that at least the Duke wrote on one of his responses: "yes on the contrary". The builder, it is said, applying the answer of the Duke, ordered to his architect to build the balcony upside down. Finally when the Duke saw the balcony, it is said, would liked to punish the constructor .... but as Florentine .... probably .... apprecciated and approved his presence of mind ....