Pisa in one Day

Pisa is a jewel of Tuscany and one made famous to many foreign travellers for its Leaning Tower, however this beautiful city has much more to offer the traveller than a classic tourist destination, whether it is getting lost in the many wondrous streets or taking in the magnificent history.
Whether you arrive by plane (Pisa�s airport is the biggest in Tuscany) or train, the centrally located railway station is a perfect starting point to begin your travels around the city centre of Pisa.
Taking the train station as a starting point we follow the Viale Gramsci until we arrive at Corso Italia; the renowned shopping street in Pisa.  Visitors can enjoy browsing or shopping for stylish Italian fashion, or sit down, relax and have a coffee in one of the many cafes; delight in the atmosphere and hussle and bussle on one of Pisa�s busy streets.

Once refreshed visitors can continue down Corso Italia until they get to Ponte di Mezzo on the river Arno; one of the emblematic places in the city, made famous for the annual festival (which takes place on the last Saturday in June) where the two neighbourhoods divided by the river Arno compete in a tournament. The tradition la Batalla del Puente started in the 1200 AD and involves rival teams pushing a long cart while trying to get on the bridge.

After crossing the bridge continue along Borgo Stretto, another street well known for its wide variety of couture shops and stylish bars: which as you can guess from its name, is a medieval alley with arcades and narrow streets, perfect for walking browsing and window shopping. At the end of Borgo Stretto turn left on Via Dini, to reach the beautiful Piazza dei Cavalieri.

This square was the ancient centre of the city, and is now home ancient artifacts with a wonderful historical value and interest: besides the Knights Palace, home of the Scuola Normale Superiore (one of the most prestigious universities in Italy) in the square there is also the Palazzo dell'Orologio which is linked to a curious legend: The Palazzo was built on the remains of the "Tower of Fame" (tower of hunger) famous as being the place of imprisonment of Count Ugolino della Gherardesca. As narrated by the "Divine Comedy", Count Ugolino was imprisoned in the Tower where he starved himself to death with his children and grandchildren, and near the end of his agony, children begged him to eat them and the Count, and the crazy prisoner, fed on their descendants.
Passing under the arch of the Palazzo dell'Orologio, turn right on Via Santa Maria, home to several universities, and then down to the very famous Piazza dei Miracoli.

Piazza dei Miracoli
This complex momument includes the Duomo (the door that connects many of decorative elements including a lizard, is considered by all the "Pisan" the charm of the city and is also thought to bring good luck to those who touch it), the impressive baptistery, the monumental cemetery and the famous Tower of Pisa, which owes its notorious inclination to land subsidence occurred during the start of construction.

Santa Maria della Spina
To conclude your daytrip you can go walk back along Via Santa Maria and you will be heading back towards the Arno, from the other side of the river you can admire the unique profile of the church of Santa Maria della Spina, the origin of the name is due to fact that in ancient church retained a thorn believed to have belonged to the crown of Christ.

We walked back along the banks of the Arno towards the Ponte di Mezzo, but just before the bridge turn left into Via San Frediano, then pass the Law School, where you will find the Piazza Dante , one of the favourite venues of college students for its bars and benches in the shade. This place is the ideal spot to get lost in the narrow streets of the medieval town, with plenty of restaurants and shops offering typical Tuscan cuisine; while The Piazza delle Vettovaglie, which hosts a popular fruit and veg market in the day transforms into a wondrous sight at night, and it has to be seen to be believed!!

Discovering the corners of Montepulciano

Montepulciano is one of the most enchanting towns of Tuscany. It lies to the south of the region between the agricultural region of Valdichiana and the ravishing and wilder Valdorcia (Unesco World Heritage). The town was built on the highest point of a 500-metre hill and enjoys spectacular sights that take in Umbria and Lake Trasimeno. Montepulciano�s style is typically medieval with dramatic walls surrounding the town and historical buildings, mainly medieval, but also of Renaissance architecture turning this spot into one of the best preserved jewels of the artistic heritage of Tuscany.

As it is a medieval town, Montepulciano has no easy access. Therefore, from the parking area located outside the walls, the visitor has to go up along the little medieval lanes of town to get to the pretty cathedral and its "Plaza Grande"(main square).

It is important to take into account that the ascent to the highest point of town though tiring it may be, it is filled with beautiful corners and seducing historic palaces abounding in charm, such as for example the famous Caffe Poliziano very frequently visited in by the celebrated Italian director Federico Fellini in his time. Another charming spot found while going up towards the cathedral is the celebrated Piazza San Francesco, from whose vantage point it is possible to relish the ravishing Valdorcia (World Heritage by Unesco).

Around the Piazza San Francesco you should stop at the Caff� "Lucevan le Stelle" which serves an interesting selection of local wines in an atmosphere of jazz offering live performances throughout the summer.

The ascent towards the beautiful square of the cathedral will also provide travellers with many spots with lovely views to the right of the enchanting Valdichiana and Lake Trasimeno, to finish in the Redi cellars which are an obligatory stop for wine and art lovers. The cellars are impressive and very well preserved in a charming medieval palace. They are a one-of-a-kind free-of-charge outing which cannot be missed in a visit to Montepulciano.

The ascent ends in the pretty Piazza Grande where the marvellous cathedral is.

Here is a web offering an interesting guide to Montepulciano and a video of some scenes of the famed Twilight, whose sequel was filmed in Montepulciano last summer.

Pitigliano- off the beaten beauty

Pitigliano is no doubt one of the most interesting towns in Tuscany for its history and its beauty.

As you reach Pitigliano by car you will immediately see its great beauty.

The town is totally perched on top of an abrupt tuff butte and is surrounded by green vegetation and the typical Maremma�s intense brown.

The whole town is constructed on a hill of "Tufo" (that is the name of this special rock which is typical of many areas of Tuscany and Lacio) and gives the impression that its walls and houses are a continuation of the same hill.

From the historic point of view there is no doubt that Pitigliano was inhabited by the Etruscans (500 AC), taking into account its many grottos that the archaeologists have found in town, although its present aspect is more medieval. Called the little Jerusalem, Pitigliano is one of the few towns of Tuscany which keeps a Jewish quarter with its synagogue.

Pitigliano is perfect to discover on foot and an hour is enough to get lost in its little narrow lanes, see the Jewish quarter and the synagogue. Pitigliano�s white wine is also famed. It is called Bianco de Pitigliano. So if you stop to eat in the village ask for the local white and more importantly, do not miss one of the best restaurants of the area: el "Tufo Allegro", located very near the synagogue.

A visit to Pitigliano can be combined with other two very pretty places which are off it: Sovana, and the Termas de Saturnia which are probably the prettiest thermal baths in Tuscany (see last photo).

Volterra

Dear readers,

Today we�re going to talk about Volterra, the precious medieval architecture jewel, set in the south of Tuscany, a few kilometers away from Siena and San Gimignano, and about the beautiful coast of Tuscany.

Volterra arouses admiration because it has 2000 years of history, which you can enjoy when visiting our city. The city originated in the VII century BC and turned into an important Etruscan capital in III century BC, reaching a population of 25000 inhabitants.

Then it became a Roman city. In the V century AC, the first church is built under the domain of the Tuscan Marquisate, which amazingly boosts its economic, social, religious and legal development.

In the Middle Ages Volterra continues playing an important role in the struggles between Siena and Florencia and beautiful walls are erected, which can still be admired nowadays.

Besides the marvelous walls, when visiting Volterra you can�t miss a stroll through its narrow streets and through the historical city center, where houses and palaces intermingle, in a city with 2000 thousand years of history.

Other landmarks you can�t miss are the Etruscan Museum, the Roman Theater and the Archeological center.

I am uploading a video of Volterra, which though in Italian, I think you will manage to understand.

Florence and the Hystoric soccer: The "King of Sports" is Born

Costumed Football was originally played during the military campaigns in ancient Greece, both as entertainment and training for soldiers. They had fun and in the meantime they exercised their muscles before the battle. The game arrived later to the Italic Peninsula, specifically to Florence in 59 b.c, and became immediately popular among the Roman Soldiers that dominated the city. They followed the same rules as the Greek game, just changing the Greek name from �Episciro� into the Latin name �Haspastum�

During the Renaissance the game greatly entertains the Florentine aristocrats, still playing with the same rules from the ancient Greeks. Initially the playing field is a giant sand pit of 80 x 50 meters. Piazza Santa Croce was the football field, covered with sand, where the two teams composed of athletic young men used to play the game. The players, �calc�anti,� were 27 per team, so there were 54 men playing a match using both their hands and feet in a sort of greco-roman fight that later on would become what nowadays we know as football and rugby.


In 1580 the Florentine count Giovanni Bardi published the official rules of calcio, in order to give proper form to that game that was absolutely integrated in Florentine�s life. By then, matches were 50 minutes long, and as it happens today the winner team was the one able to score more �caccie� (goals) during the game time.

The last match of �calcio fiorentino� was celebrated in 1739, ceasing the tradition until 1898. In 1898 when English football begins to succeed , the city of Florence decided to revive the traditional �calcio storico� , and they kept the tradition until the present days. Some centuries later we are able to see the recreation of those shows, mixing game and sports competition, so loved by the Renaissance Florentines aristocrats. Both the aesthetics and rules of the game didn't change through time, and in the XXI Century there are four teams playing each match, representing the historical quarters of the city (San Giovanni, Santa Croce, Santa Maria Novella, Santo Spirito)



Enjoying one of this matches in Piazza Santa Croce is a fascinating event that you shouldn�t miss, if you are so lucky of being in Florence next June. The most important matches are played the 24th. The colorful parade with characters dressed as the nobles players of the XVI Century also characterizes this tradition. The meeting point is at 04.00 p.m in Piazza Santa Maria Novella where the parade begins in direction to Piazza Santa Croce surrounded by fanfares and drumbeats.

For more information about it i would like also to post a link of a good travel guide for Italy and Tuscany Italy Travel Guide

Hystorical backgrounds of the town of Arezzo

The acropolis of San Cornelio, one of the hills of Arezzo, was fortified by the Etruscans. Etruscan walls, the Poggio del Sole necropolis, and the "Minerva" and the "Chimera of Arezzo", now in Florence, testify the Etruscan past of Arezzo. Trades with Greece allowed for fine Greek pottery, finer than the Etruscan, to be imported.
A piece of pottery from Roman-times Arezzo was found in India at Arikamedu. This is evidence that Arezzo vested an important exporting role during Roman times with was then called Persia.

In the Augustan period Arretium continued to flourish as Arretium Vetus (The Old Arezzo) and was the third largest city in Italy. This period saw Arezzo getting famous for its pottery manufactures, the well-known red, and black Bucchero clay vases and pottery.

The 3rd and 4th centuries saw Arezzo became throned by the Roman church bishops. These bishops used to be feudal lords of the city during the Middle Ages.
Unfortunately the Roman Arretium was demolished during the barbaric invasions and parly by the people of the city itself to reuse the stones to fortify the city. The only construction that still stands is the Amphitheater.

Between 1098 until 1384 Arezzo kept its status of independent city-state. The affiliation with Siena's Ghibelline made Arezzo an opposer of Guelph Florence. The year 1252 saw the university of Arezzo, the Studium, being founded. In 1289 the fortunes of the city started to decrease as in 1384 the city became a Guelph city, making of the city an appendix of Florence, inheriting its politics, history and culture with a consequent loss of identity. The Medicean family ruled over Arezzo. However, it was during this period of Medicean art patronage that Piero della Francesca created his beautiful frescoes in the church of San Francesco di Arezzo. The frescoes have been recently restored and represent Arezzo's most representative works; soon afterwards Arezzo began a cultural and economical decline, which somehow helped preserving the medieval center of the city.

Pisa events and the Folkloric Tuscany

Many important folkloric events take place in Pisa along the year, like: the Luminara di San Ranieri (the night of 16th June, the whole town is illuminated to celebrate the patron saint of Pisa




The Day after you can see the Palio di San Ranieri ( 4 teams race a regatta on the Arno, representing historical events). The Regatta of the Old Seafaring Republics (takes place on May and June, preceded by a parade that represents the four Republics: Pisa, Genoa, Venice and Amalfi).




But certainly the one that is more in the heart of Pisans is the Gioco del Ponte. It is a curious game between two teams � which means that the city of Pisa is divided in two rival parts: Tramontana and Mezzogiorno. It consists in two different parts.
First, there is a parade along the Arno river simulating a military procession. Then, there is a battle that takes place in the Ponte di Mezzo. During this battle both teams must give proof of their physical strength, reason why there is a hypotheses that this game has its origins on the classical antiquity.



The first known edition of the Gioco del Ponte more or less as it is now comes from the 1568. Ponte del Mezzo is the seat of the battle and the aim is to conquer a part or the entire half of the bridge occupied by the �enemies�. There are actually many teams of 20 men representing each faction, Tramontana and Mezzogiorno, and they fight in turn.




The fighting is represented by a cart in the middle of the bridge that must be pushed from both sides, till all the opponents are moved back to the end of the sliding rail. The winner is the faction that conquers more number of matches. It is interesting to observe that the cart didn�t exist before 1935, when the pushing was made with physical contact.

July 2007 is the Palio of Sienna on the 2nd

The Palio of Siena of July 2, 2007 has been a continued sequence of spectacular events. Jokeys to the ground, horses running counterways, and an unforgettable head to head finish feat that brought havok in Siena.
Do Enjoy it, the Palio of Siena of July 2, 2007, here it is for you!

Towns: Sorano in Tuscany

The Masso Leopoldino represents one of the most striking features of this incredible town.

The Rocca - as it is called in italian - has been appreciated for its strategical qualities since the Middle Ages and was probably fotified by additional structures before the 9th century.



Taking a drive in the south of Tuscany during your vacation, you will find a special little town. Park your car in the outside parking space and prepare to walk up hill into a fantasy world.




The buildings both historic and the modern day rental vacation villas are made from the particular type of material called tuff. It is unique in color, and malability. The Tuscan vacation rentals farmhouses in the southern part of Italy are made of tuff.



Visit the incredible fortress, which is without cars and intervention of modern day activity. You will feel as if you have walked back in time. The large sandy colored blocks are testaments to the local activity.

The town of Anghiari in Tuscany

The most important period in the history of the town is connected with the Battle of Anghiari which was fought in the year 1440 between the Visconti armies from Milan and those of Florence which were allied with the Pope. Machiavelli spoke about the battle in his Historiae fiorentinae and Leonardo da Vinci did a huge (short lived) fresco painting of it in Florence. The position on a dominant hillside in the middle of a vast plain made Anghiari an important strategic point.




You will find a great little outside bar where you can sit have a drink while admiring a one of a kind landscape. The classic dish of Anghiari is bringoli: thick spaghetti handmade from just water and flour by the village housewives, covered with a sauce made from porcini mushrooms gathered in the woods of the Tiber Valley, or else with a chianina meat sauce. Right across from the bar, In the heart of the old town, you can see signs of its past history, arched windows, a large fresco and a multitude of coats of arms in both stone and terracotta.



The old watch route was the road found at the northern section of the city walls. Since 1444 this stretch of the circuit of walls has undergone a number of reconstruction works in order to make the village impenetrable in the event of an artillery attack.


Together with the ancient Cassero, the bell or clock tower is one of the tallest points on the Anghiari skyline. The tower was built in the thirteenth century being completed in 1323 and then destroyed by Vitellozzi Vitelli on the 24th June 1502.





MAY 2005: LA SCAMPANATA (MORNING BELL): This is an event that occurs once every five years and lasts for the whole month of May. The members of the "Societ� della Scampanata" (virtually the entire town) make a date to be in the main square at 6 o'clock every morning. Anyone who is late is dragged out of bed, given a more or less "fair" trial and then hoisted up onto a special carriage and pulled around the town while everyone else throws everything they can think of at him until he is completely covered and entirely unrecognisable.

JULY/AUGUST: MUSIC, THEATRE AND SPECIAL EVENTS AROUND THE OLD WALLS : Special shows and events that enliven the centre of Anghiari all summer. A mixture of concerts, guided tours, dinners and shows scattered through the natural backdrop of the little squares and corners that are the real centre of gravity.

FROM 10 TO 18 AUGUST: "TOVAGLIA A QUADRI" (THE CHECKED TABLECLOTH) - 1TH Year : A traditional Tuscan open-air dinner entwined together with a musical play performed across four courses. This entertainment has achieved a prominent position amongst the best of all the events of the summer in Tuscany. It takes place in the natural "stage" of the little piazzetta del "Poggiolino" in the heart of the old town centre and is created by the Pro Loco and the Teatro Stabile di Anghiari.

Discover beautiful Tuscany

Tuscany it is really an incredible place with a lot of towns and villages to discover like Sorano

The Masso Leopoldino represents one of the most striking features of this incredible town.



The Rocca - as it is called in italian - has been appreciated for its strategical qualities since the Middle Ages and was probably fotified by additional structures before the 9th century.




Taking a drive in the south of Tuscany during your vacation, you will find a special little town. Park your car in the outside parking space and prepare to walk up hill into a fantasy world. You will first follow the path up to the fortress which has stood here for years - get a ticket and visit the underground museum.






The buildings both historic and the modern day rental vacation villas are made from the particular type of material called tuff. It is unique in color, and malability. The Tuscan vacation rentals farmhouses in the southern part of Italy are made of tuff.




Visit the incredible fortress, which is without cars and intervention of modern day activity. You will feel as if you have walked back in time. The large sandy colored blocks are testaments to the local activity.

Waging war and tasting food in Angiari

During the middle Ages, Anghiari was under the dominion of the Lords of Galbino subsequently passing into the Camaldolesi�s power.

Florentine�s State army was conducted by Giampaolo Orsini and Micheletto Attendolo and Milan�s army by Niccol� Piccinino.
The victory of the Florence State was such as decisive as to consent them to stay over the control of central Italy.
According to Machiavelli�s writes, the battle was held in about 20 hours and, nevertheless the hard combating, only one soldier died, felling off his horse, as faithfully represented in the mural �The Battle of Anghiari� which Florence, many years later, entrusted to Leonardo da Vinci to commemorate the epic achievement.
Leonardo started the work on cartoons transferring them to an internal wall of Palazzo Vecchio in Florence. While he was working on the mural several main artists were coming to the capital to watch the painting and to learn about Leonardo�s innovative technique.
Peter Paul Rubens made a copy of �The Battle of Anghiari� hosts in the Louvre and Biagio di Antonio, from Paolo Uccello�s school, made another one kept in Dublin, in the National Art Gallery of Ireland.
The mural was unfinished and definitively lost during the drying process in Florence. However, it was substituted in Palazzo Vecchio by a same object Giorgio Vasari�s mural.

What to visit in Anghiano:

- The Fortress: an imposing defensive structure completed in the 14th century, further destroyed and rebuilt in different periods. Together with the ancient castle the fortress is keeping the clock tower coming back from the 17th century.
- Palazzo Marzocco: built up in the 15th century, it was the residence of the aristocratic Angelieri family. Nowadays is hosting �The Battle of Anghiari Documentation Centre�.
- Palazzo Taglieschi: a beautiful Renaissance building with an elaborated fa�ade, houses the National Museum of Arts and Popular Tradition hosting an interesting collection of paintings, frescoes, terracotta, statues, sacred furnishing and instruments coming back from different artistic periods. Its masterpiece is the wooden sculpture by Jacopo della Quercia representing �The Madonna and Child�.
- The Church of Santa Maria delle Grazie: it was built up between the 17th and the 18th century and hosts a wonderful glazed terracotta named �Madonna delle Grazie� by Della Robbia�s family.

The heart of Chianti is Montefioralle

The town was originally called Monteficalle. It is situated on a hilltop facing the Greve valley, surrounded by vineyards, olive groves and cypresses. Parts of the ancient walls are still visible, while the small streets are marked by old homes, a donjon, and several towers.



The ancient village and castle of Montefioralle were an important stronghold during the wars between Florence and Siena. A house in the circular main street of Montefioralle is pointed out as the birth-place of Amerigo Vespucci. The doorway is identified by the wasp ("vespa") and V of the Vespucci family.




In 1250 it became the headquarters of the League of the Greve Valley. The town was once endowed with two sets of walls. It had an octagonal shape with four gates. With the fall of the Sienese Republic, Montefioralle lost its prior importance and most of its inhabitants moved to Greve. We advise you to visit the church of Santo Stefano and the parish church of Montefioralle.




It is an easy 20 minute up-hill walk from Greve and provides you with lots of picture spots, silence and landscape typical of this area. From Montefioralle, there is an interesting hike along the back roads to Panzano. Situated in the hills above Greve in Chianti, it is noted for the one street that completely encircles the church of S. Stefano (inside an interesting 13th century Madonna and 14th and 16th century Florentine paintings): a simple building is traditionally indicated as the house of Amerigo Vespucci. The church of S. Cresci can also be visited close by.

Montefioralle, which originally belonged to the Buondelmonti and Ricasoli families, began life as a fortification that could have hosted a sizable garrison (as well as refugees from the surrounding countryside in times of war), with a central keep and thick walls that now contain houses.

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.

Town of Seggiano in Valdorcia

Seggiano, located just south of Bagno Vignoe and San Quirico d'Orcia

is a quaint little town set in the the rural setting of Monte Amiata with many little towns with medieval characteristics.
Stone walls, gently sloping hillsides, olive groves and huge forests of beech and chestnut rich with a wild life that can be tasty on the table such as wild boar and deer.




You won't find much written about it in the tour guide books but it makes up a line of pleasant little stops along the way to visit the summit of Monte Amiata where you can picnic or simply enjoy hiking in one of the highest points of southern Tuscany. This imposing mount can be seen from distances as far away as Montepulciano.



This is a lazy little setting, and you will enjoy walking the streets and admiring the views. They are not geared up for tourism at all, so you won't find a lot of quaint little boutiques or fancy enoteca's with the latest in wine and cheese just simple good food in a typical Tuscan environment.



Though picturesque, they could have better planned the parking lot around the Renaissance church of Madonna della Carit�, which literally creates an asphalt garden in the middle of the olive groves.