It used to be that British and the French perpetuated the myth that the Italians were peasants, living in filth. Read books and essays published in the early 20th century and after WWII in England. Listen to the French, today, as they cross the border in Liguria. Nothing could be further from the truth. Wall-to-wall […]
Carbonifera! Baratti! Campiglia! How many tourists to Italy or even, Italians, know these places? Already the names are evocative. They are all part of Maremma, the seaside region south of Livorno, but north of Grosseto, where the sea is especially beautiful and clean, and the food is as good as it can be – Acquacotta
“What the …? Doesn’t that old lady know the viale is dangerous and this tunnel is worse? Get on the sidewalk, vecchietta.” Francesca yelled out the window as she swerved around the bicyclist, almost hitting a Vespa in the second lane of the ring road around Florence. The scooter, in turn, darted in front of
“Have a nice day and watch your step!” I ride buses when I am in the U.S. and pretty much everywhere else. Every single time I cannot help but notice how nice and customer friendly the bus drivers in the States are. One morning, for example, we were on our way to the Washington, DC
Italy is famous for its shoes and rightly so. There are, however, rules for which pair of shoes is appropriate for each occasion and location. The short and unchanging list: 1) shoes and sandals for townwear (be it a village or city); 2) sport shoes for participating in sporting events; 3) flip-flops or rubber sandals
One sunny autumn day Francesca and I were walking through a narrow medieval street downstream from the Ponte Vecchio. “Anarchy,” said Francesca, “I like it.” “What are you talking about?” “Look up there,” she said, pointing to the top floor of a medieval building in the center of Florence. “I don’t see anything anarchical.” “The
It had been a while since I had gone out for a cocktail, but my friend Ollie had been telling me about this place near Piazza Goldoni that had the best mixed drinks in Florence, perhaps the best in Tuscany, maybe the best in Italy. So when Ollie came to town he finally succeeded in
Firenze Card vs. Amici degli Uffizi Pass Revisited Attention: Effective as of June 15, 2015, the Regional Secretary of the former Superintendency of the State Museums of Florence stipulated that Amici deli Uffizi members, holding valid membership and ID cards, are eligible for the free entrance and the priority pass to the Uffizi Gallery only.
Florence is a living museum, a museum that reminds us that not everything changes even in this age of Google and smart phones. The early Renaissance orphanage Ospedale degli Innocenti in Piazza SS. Annunziata had a foundling wheel known as culla per la vita (life cradle) where unwanted newborns could be left anonymously to save
The very sad reason why the Forte Belvedere was closed for so long was that two people died, Luca in 2006 and Veronica in 2008. They both miscalculated the height of the walls thinking on the other side there would be grass and not a gorge many meters deep between the fortress walls (not enough