Follow me on a journey through one of Italy's most amazing regions, Tuscany. Experience hundreds of years of culture, breathtaking views, ancient cities and the incomparable Italian way of living.
After my recent Italian holiday, I am writing this article with my heart and mind a little bit still left behind in Tuscany. It is such a magical place! Once you visit it, a part of your soul remains there forever. After so many cheesy American movies, I was truly amazed how much this place has to offer. Let me share with you my favourite travel experiences.
We arrived to the Pisa international airport with my husband, where we rented a posh small Fiat Panda, a perfect car for the small narrow Tuscan roads. Our accommodation was directly in the middle of nowhere, in the Florence-San Gimignano-Chianti triangle. I've long dreamt of a small rustic country house with a vineyard, and that is exactly what we had found. Close to the city of Certaldo — where the famous Italian writer and poet Boccaccio was born —, we spent some beautiful days, making day trips to the surrounding cities and small villages.
If you plan to visit more of Tuscany's cities and villages, you will definitely need a car. Luckily all these cities are relatively close, sometimes just 15 minutes distance from one another. We started our first day trip directly with the famous city of San Gimignano, called the "medieval Manhattan" thanks to its skyscraper-like towers. By visiting the city before noon, we skipped the tourist flow and wandered on the narrow streets of this amazing small gem.
I simply loved the small boutiques and artisan shops full of good quality Tuscan food, wines and souvenirs. The most typical gifts, you can bring home from this region are hand painted ceramics, stationery products, colourful table cloths and of course wine and pecorino cheese. Food and wines are so amazing in Tuscany, that I will tell you about my foody experiences in a separate article.
Don't forget to visit the world champion ice cream shop on the main square of San Gimignano, Gelateria Dondoli.
Our sunny day continued to the hilltop medieval city of Colle di Val d'Elsa.
We avoiding the highways, not simply because it was the cheaper choice, but we really wanted to enjoy the rural Tuscan landscapes. In the medieval city of Volterra we had a lovely meal and a refreshing Aperol Spritz, the beloved cocktail of the Italians. As a finish of our day, we climbed up to the small village of Certaldo, birthplace of Giovanni Boccaccio, the famous 14th century Italian poet and writer.
Living in the countryside allowed us to enjoy the evenings with a glass of fantastic Tuscan wine and watching the sun setting behind the vineyards. Truly unforgettable view!
One of my favourite cities in Tuscany is definitely Siena. We started this day's trip with the magnificent Siena Cathedral (Italian: Duomo di Siena). The façade of the Cathedral is one of the most fascinating in all of Italy and certainly one of the most impressive features in Siena.
We visited Sienna just one day before the famous Sienese horse race, Il Palio. This truly traditional event is organized two times a year on Siena's main square, Piazza del Campo, where ten horses and riders, bareback and dressed in the appropriate colours representing ten of the seventeen contrade, or city wards. When we were there, the piazza was just being prepared for the race and the city was already decorated with thousands of colourful flags, representing the local families.
Being in Tuscany means of course drinking wine, so we finished our day in Greve in Chianti — the "capital" of the Chianti wine region — where we drank exquisite Chianti Classico red wine!
On the next stunningly sunny day, we continued our discovery in Northern Tuscany. We made a perfect one day roundtrip to the cities of Montaione, San Miniato, Montecatini Terme and the marvelous city of Pistoia.
Montecatini Terme is famous for its thermal waters and can be considered one of the biggest “spa towns” in Italy.
At the turn of the 20th century, the number of hotels suddenly increased and so did the need to combine the thermal bathing with fun, relaxing and sport. A host of trendy restaurants, theatres, night clubs opened, as well as a casino, and a lot of celebrities began to visit the city. In fact, it was not too difficult to bump into people like the big Italian opera composer Giuseppe Verdi, Pietro Mascagni or Ruggero Leoncavallo in the city centre and around the thermal parks. One of my favourite places in the city is the famous spa, Terme Tettuccio and its marvelous fountains. If you are there, don't forget to drink from the several healing mineral waters. They taste quite funny!
Pistoia's main sight is undoubtedly the Cathedral (Italian: Duomo di Pistoia), found in the Piazza del Duomo, in the centre of the city. With its striped façade, the cathedral and the baptistery are fabulous showcases of the power of church and faith in Italy.
We left the highlight of the trip for the end: the breathtaking Val d´Orcia. Known from many movies and postcards, this perfectly beautiful valley is situated in Southern Tuscany. Beside the country landscapes, the Val d'Orcia region is worth your visit, because of its picture-perfect small medieval towns: Montalcino, Montepulciano, Pienza and of course the Abbey of Sant'Antimo.
Our first stop was Abbazia Sant'Antimo, a former Benedictine monastery in the commune of Montalcino. The name of the abbey may refer to Saint Anthimus of Rome, whose relics were supposedly moved here during the late 8th century. As we entered the church through the main portal, richly decorated with animal and vegetable motifs, a true voyage started, taking us back to the middle ages. Inside the abbey Gregorian music is softly being played from a recording; it was so peaceful in the background, that I immediately felt captivated by the solemn atmosphere of the place. I even felt the presence of the Benedictine monks, as if they were just praying and chanting Gregorian music there. Behind the monastery, there is mesmerising lavender garden and a small shop, where you can buy hand made items, soaps, essential oils, spices and wines, all the monastery's own products.
After maundering the old streets and climbing up to the fortress of Montalcino, we continued our journey to Montepulciano. One of the Twilight movies was shot in the city's main square, so I could not miss the opportunity to take some photos of "my Edward" standing in the town hall door. :))
No wonder, the American producers chose this city to depict the on-screen vampire city of Volterra. With its narrow streets and picturesque surroundings Montepulciano is one of my favourite small towns in the region. We were truly lucky, because despite the afternoon "siesta" time, we still found a romantic small Tuscan restaurant with a charming terrace, where we enjoyed a wonderful traditional meal accompanied by savoury Tuscan wines.
A big surprise was for me the city of Pienza, in the heart of Val d'Orcia valley. The narrow cobble-stoned streets are full of flowers, that transform the city into a living Mediterranean paradise.
If you think about Tuscany, I am quite sure what you see in your mind are golden hills, fields of sunflowers and idealistic country cottages. I have to admit, that all these views really exist, and that they are even more beautiful in reality than you can ever imagine. We stopped at the famous Chapel of Vitaleta (Italian: Cappella della Madonna di Vitaleta) known from many postcards, to make some photos and unforgettable memories.
Are you dreaming to visit Tuscany?
Well, don't call it a dream, call it a plan!
