Articles in Tuscany
Pope Pius II Piccolomini visited his hometown of Corsignano in 1459 and found out that he’d grown up in a bit of a dump. He promoted it to the level of city-state, imposed upon it …
With warm thanks to Betty and Salvatore at the Azienda Agricola La Torraccia (Regello, FI).
And to Toni Lydecker for organizing our fun outing in the context of research for her next book. (Her new book, …
The pilgrimage church of The Madonna of San Biagio lies just outside of the town of Montepulciano. Its symmetrical greek-cross plan reflects the High Renaissance drive towards perfection in a combination of squares and circles.
The …
How often do you associate eco-tourism or sustainable travel with the great art cities of Italy? Perhaps not as often as you would with, say, the Amazonian rainforest, a natural area that clearly needs to …
The hot new American pop star Arturo in Letto [sic!], aka A.J. (Douglas) Weiss, has chosen Cortona, Italy as the inspiration behind and set for his latest video “Ciao Marco”, which is exploding to the …
Here is a common kitchen appliance from Etruscan and Roman times that has gone the way of the dodo bird… the GHIRARIUM. Etruscan finds in many areas, including in Cortona and Chiusi, have revealed the …
At just about any time of any day of the week, you can walk into Cocoa on via Guelfa in Cortona and find Alessio Burroni with his hands in some chocolate or dough. You enter …
On February 14th 2009, Cortona’s sbandieratori, or historical flagthrowers, put on a great show for a chilly crowd (it was around the freezing mark). At noon, their new medieval costumes were unveiled by the designer …
The detached fresco fragments of the massive fresco cycle depicting the Triumph of Death and Last Judgement are on display in a special room off the Camposanto in Pisa (part of the Piazza dei Miracoli …
The city of Lucca has made international headlines by banning new ethnic and fast food restaurants within the city walls (in January 2009). The kebab restaurants are taking the brunt of this decision. My friends …
The following is a list of outlet stores in or around Florence. As shopping in the city has gotten more and more expensive, and always less exciting, I’ve taken to frequenting these places for wardrobe updates. Addresses, …
Today we were privileged to have the best kind of guide to the city of Lucca: a local. Or, failing that, try this: Authentic Tuscany (Touring Club Guide). On a cold winter’s day, we managed to …
