Tuscany offers an ideal scenario for cycling enthusiasts of all levels, from amateur cyclists to anyone just wishing to pedal calmly while enjoying the beauty of the region. For your adventure on two wheels, choose from a variety of itineraries. On paved road for anyone who loves racing bikes or off road on mountain bikes to get away from traffic and be surrounded by nature. Every area in Tuscany offers routes rich in interesting places to visit and see as well as extraordinary panoramas.

Tuscany is mostly a hilly territory, with plains concentrated mostly along the rivers and the coast. For cycling fans, this means putting yourself to the test on the same hills and slopes many cycling legends trained, including Bartali, Cipollini and Bettini. Tuscany is in fact a land of cyclists and wherever you choose to go pedal you’re likely to cross paths with many other two-wheel aficionados. Many of them will greet you with a smile or head motion, especially if you’re a cycle-tourist laden with bags. Devoted cycling enthusiasts are a community without borders and if you find yourself in trouble along the road, you can count on the solidarity of other cyclists.

The best months for cycling or touring Tuscany on bike are from March to June and from September to October. July and August are hot months and outdoor sports are limited to early mornings or late afternoons, or mainly for mountain bike outings at night. Other months can be cold or rainy, and during winter it is best to avoid mountain passes.

In truth, Tuscany is great all year round for cycling aficionados!

Good biking in Tuscany!

Colonnata is an old village located on a rocky spur carefully placed at the feet of the Apuan Alps, near Carrara famous in the entire world for its “lardo”, …

Pontremoli is a well-preserved medieval town in a scenic setting. Above the town is a restored castle with a museum of prehistoric stele statues.

Originally posted 2008-11-04 16:08:23.

Ferrari on Wednesday unveiled its new F12 Berlinetta, the fastest road car ever to come out of Maranello and the first of a new generation of V12-powered vehicles from the iconic Italian company.

The new car, which replaces the successful 599 model, was presented to the public on Ferrari’s website and it will make its official debut at the upcoming Geneva International Motor Show.

Ferrari said that its unprecedented performance was thanks to an exceptional new 12-cylinder engine and an innovative design that ”redefines classic themes along with extreme aerodynamics”.

According to Ferrari, the new engine is ”incredibly efficient – in terms of mechanical, combustion and fluid-dynamics efficiency – which, together with advanced vehicle architecture, aerodynamics, components and electronic controls, guarantee unsurpassed driving involvement whatever the road or track”.

In tune with the times, Ferrari said it had been able to reduce fuel consumption by 30%, while its CO2 emission was only 350 g/km ”which put the F12 Berlinetta at the top of the high-performance league. These results have been obtained by extensive research and development which focused on efficiencies of the whole vehicle: engine, aerodynamics, tires and weights”.

The car’s 6262cc V12 engine delivers 740 horsepower that allows it to accelerate from 0 to 100kph in 3.1 seconds and 0 to 200kph in 8.5 seconds, while the maximum speed is over 340kph. On Ferrari’s test track in Fiorano the F12berlinetta posted a lap speed of 1 minute 23 seconds, the fastest-ever by a Ferrari road car.

In order to compensate for the greater performance, Ferrari developed an ‘aero bridge’ which uses the vehicle’s hood to generate greater downforce and an ‘active brake cooling’ system. These, together with Ferrari’s latest generation carbon-ceramic brakes (CCM3) and the evolution of the ‘magnetorheological’ suspension control system (SCM-E), have contributed to ”drastically reducing stopping distances”.

Ferrari said the car’s design was ”a result of the collaboration between the Ferrari Styling Center and Pininfarina and is a perfect balance of uncompromising aerodynamics with harmonious proportions interpreting the typical elements of Ferrari’s front-engined V12 cars in an original and innovative way”.

It added that the car was ”a coupé with sleek, aggressive lines whose compact exterior dimensions conceal exceptional in-car space and comfort. The all-new Frau leather interior highlights the balance of advanced technology and sophisticated, handcrafted detailing. In the middle of the light and lean dashboard, there are new carbon fibre and aluminum air vents clearly inspired by the aeronautic field”.

Ferrari has not said what the F12 Berlinetta’s price tag will be.

Originally posted 2012-02-29 16:12:41.

Chianti

Perhaps, the best known of Tuscany’s wines, Chianti is a wine-growing zone as well as a wine. Located in the heart of Tuscany, between Siena and Florence, Chianti is divided into seven sub-regions, each with their own character and terroir. The making of Chianti dates back to the 14th century, but it’s only been fairly recently, since 1932, that the Italian government has regulated its production. Today, Chianti must contain at least 75 percent Sangiovese grapes, with up to 10 percent Canaiolo and up to 15 percent Merlot or Cabernet Sauvignon grapes permitted.

Chianti has a bold, full-bodied taste, with hints of ripe cherries and plums. It has a slightly spicy and salty taste that makes it an ideal accompaniement to tomato-based dishes, from traditional red sauces to braised meats.

Brunello di Montalcino
Tuscany’s most revered wine, Brunello (literally, “the nice, dark one”) comes from the southern part of Tuscany, where the climate is somewhat warmer than in Chianti. This slightly warmer temperature allows the wine grapes to ripen just a little more. Consequently, Brunello is made from 100 percent Sangiovese grapes, and always has been. By law, Brunello must be aged longer than most other Tuscan wines – four years, two of which must be in oak.

Brunello has a thick texture and a complex flavor profile, with overtones of black cherry, blackberry, and even chocolate. Brunello is ideal with meat dishes, such as a steak, lamb chops, or a roast.

Rosso di Montalcino
Often considered Brunello’s lesser cousin, Rosso di Montalcino is made from 100 percent Sangiovese grapes in the same region as Brunello, but not aged as long – a minimum one year instead of four. Thus it is fresher, lighter, and better when young. It, too, is a nice accompaniment to meat dishes.

Originally posted 2008-12-23 15:24:07.

“Guido an image of my Lady dwells
At S. Michele in Orto, consecrate
And duly worshipped. Fair in holy state
She listens to the tale each sinner tells:
And among them that come to her, who ails
The most, on him the most doth blessing wait.
She bids the fiend men’s bodies abdicate;
Over the curse of blindness she prevails,
And heals sick languors in the public squares.
A multitude adores her reverently:
Before her face two burning tapers are;
Her voice is uttered upon paths afar.
Yet through the Lesser Brethren’s jealousy
She is named idol; not being one of theirs.”

The feuds of Neri and Bianchi at this time distracted Florence; at the head of the Blacks, though somewhat their enemy, was Corso Donati; at the head of the Whites were the Cerchi and the Cavalcanti. After the horrid disaster of May Day, when the Carraja bridge, crowded with folk come to see that strange carnival of the other world, fell and drowned so many, there had been much fighting in the city, in which Corso Donati stood neutral, for he was ill with gout, and angered with the Black party. Robbed thus of their great leader, the Neri were beaten day and night by the Cerchi, who with the aid of the Cavalcanti and Gherardini rode through the city as far as the Mercato Vecchio and Or San Michele, and from there to S. Giovanni, and certainly they would have taken the city with the help of the Ghibellines, who were come to their aid, if one Ser Neri Abati, clerk and prior of S. Piero Scheraggio, a dissolute and worldly man, and a rebel and enemy against his friends, had not set fire to the houses of his family in Or San Michele, and to the Florentine Calimala near to the entrance of Mercato Vecchio. This fire did enormous damage, as Villani tells us, destroying not only the houses of the Abati, the Macci, the Amieri, the Toschi, the Cipriani, Lamberti, Bachini, Buiamonti, Cavalcanti, and all Calimala, together with all the street of Porta S. Maria, as far as Ponte Vecchio and the great towers and houses there, but also Or San Michele itself. In this disaster who knows what became of the miracle picture of Madonna? For years the loggia lay in ruins, till peace being established in 1336, the Commune decided to rebuild it, giving the work into the hands of the Guild of Silk, which, according to Vasari, employed Taddeo Gaddi as architect. The first stone of the new building was laid on July 29, 1337, the old brick piers, according to Villani, being removed, and pillars of stone set up in their stead. [94] In 1339 the Guild of Silk won leave from the Commune to build in each of these stone piers a niche, which later should hold a statue; while above the loggia was built a great storehouse for corn, as well as an official residence for the officers of the market.

Nine years later there followed the great plague, of which Boccaccio has left us so terrible an impression. In this dreadful calamity, which swept away nearly two-thirds of the population, the Compagnia di Or San Michele grew very wealthy, many citizens leaving it all their possessions. No doubt very much was distributed in charity, for the Company had become the greatest charitable society in the city, but by 1347, so great was its wealth, that it resolved to build the most splendid shrine in Italy for the Madonna di Or San Michele. The loggia was not yet finished, and after the desolation of the plague the Commune was probably too embarrassed to think of completing it immediately. Some trouble certainly seems to have arisen between the Guild of Silk, who had charge of the fabric, and the Company, who were only concerned for their shrine, the latter, in spite of their wealth, refusing in any way to assist in finishing the building. Whether from this cause or another, a certain suspicion of the Company began to rise in Florence, and Matteo Villani roundly accuses the Capitani della Compagnia of peculation and corruption. However this may be, by 1355 Andrea Orcagna had been chosen to build the shrine of Madonna, which is still to-day one of the wonders of the city. It seems to have been in a sort of recognition of the splendour and beauty of Orcagna’s work that the Signoria, between 1355 and 1359, removed the corn-market elsewhere, and thus gave up the whole loggia to the shrine of Madonna. Thus the loggia became a church, the great popular church of Florence, built by the people for their own use, in what had once been the corn-market of the city. The architect of this strange and secular building, more like a palace than a church, is unknown. Vasari, as I have said, speaks of Taddeo Gaddi; others again have thought it the work of Orcagna himself; while Francesco Talenti and his son Simone are said to have worked on it. The question is to a large extent a matter of indifference. What is important here is the fact that it is to the greater Guilds and to the Parte Guelfa that we owe the church itself—that is to say, to the merchants and trades of the city—while the beautiful shrine within is due to a secular Company consisting of some of the greatest citizens, and to a large extent opposed to the regular Orders of St. Dominic and St. Francis. It is, then, as the great church of the popolo that we have to consider Or San Michele. Here, because their greatest and most splendid deed, the expulsion of the Duke of Athens, had been achieved on St. Anne’s Day, July 26, 1343, they built a chapel to St. Anne, and around the church on every anniversary, above the fourteen niches which hold the statues presented by the seven greater arts, by six of the fourteen lesser arts, and by the Magistrato della Mercanzia, that magistracy which governed all the guilds, their banners are set up even to this day.

The great Guild of Wool was already responsible for the Duomo, and it was for this reason, it might seem, that to the Guild of Silk was given the care of Or San Michele; not altogether without jealousy, it might seem, for when they had asked leave to place the image of their saint in one of the niches there, all the other guilds had demanded a like favour, thus in an especial manner marking the place as the Church of the Merchants, the true popolo; the great popular shrine of Florence, therefore, since Florence was a city of merchants.

It is on the south side, in the niche nearest to Via Calzaioli, that the Guild of Silk set its statue of St. John the Evangelist by Baccio da Montelupo; next to it is an empty niche belonging to the Guild of Apothecaries and Doctors. Here a Madonna and Child by Simone Ferrucci once stood, but, owing to a rumour current in the seventeenth century, that Madonna sometimes moved her eyes, the statue was placed inside the church, so that the crowd which always collected to see this miracle might no longer stop the way. In the next niche the Furriers placed a statue of St. James by Nanni di Banco, and beyond, the Guild of Linen set up a statue of St. Mark by Donatello. On the west, in the first niche, is S. Lo, the patron of the Furriers, carved by Nanni di Banco, and beyond, St. Stephen, set there by the Guild of Wool and carved by Ghiberti; while next to him stands St. Matthew, set there by the Bankers and carved by Ghiberti, and cast in 1422 by Michelozzo. On the north, Donatello’s statue of St. George used to fill the first niche, somewhat shallower than the rest owing to a staircase inside the church, but it was removed to the Bargello for fear of the weather: the beautiful relief, also by Donatello, below the copy, is still in its place, under the St. George of the Armourers. The four statues in the next niche were placed there by the Guilds of Sculptors, Masons, Smiths, and Bricklayers; they are the work of Nanni di Banco. Further, is the St. Philip of the Shoemakers, again by Nanni di Banco, and the St. Peter of the Butchers, by Donatello. On the east stands St. Luke, placed there by the Notaries, and carved by Giovanni da Bologna; the great bronze group of Christ and St. Thomas, the gift of the Magistrato della Mercanzia, the governor of all the guilds; and the St. John Baptist, the gift of the Calimala, and the work of Ghiberti: this last was the first statue placed here—in 1414.

Nanni di Banco, that delightful sculptor of the Madonna della Cintola of the Duomo, has thus four works here at Or San Michele—the S. Lo, the group on the north side, the St. Philip, and the St. James. The St. Philip, and the group which represents the four masons who, being Christians, refused to build a Pagan temple, and were martyred long and long ago, have little merit; and though the S. Lo has a certain force, and the relief below it a wonderful simplicity, they lack altogether the charm of the Madonna della Cintola.

Ghiberti has three works here—the St. Stephen, the St. Matthew, and the St. John Baptist, the only sculptures of the kind he ever produced. Full of energy though the St. Stephen may be, it has about it a sort of divine modesty that lends it a charm altogether beyond anything we may find in the St. John Baptist, a figure full of character, nevertheless. It is, however, in the St. Matthew that we see Ghiberti at his best perhaps, in a figure for once full of strength, and altogether splendid.

Donatello, too, had three figures here beside the relief beneath the St. George. The St. Peter on the north side is probably the earliest work done for Or San Michele, and is certainly the poorest. The St. Mark on the south side is, however, a fine example of his earlier manner, with a certain largeness, strength, and liberty about it a frankness, too, in expression so that he has made us believe in the goodness of the Apostle, which, as Michelangelo is reported to have said must have vouched for the truth of what he taught.

The masterpiece, certainly, of these Tuscan sculptures is the bronze group of Christ and St. Thomas by Verrocchio, which I have so loved. All the work of this master is full of eagerness and force: something of that strangeness without which there is no excellent beauty, that later was so characteristic of the work of his pupil Leonardo, you will find in this work also, a subtlety sometimes a little elaborate, that, as I think is but a sort of over-eagerness to express all he has thought to say. Donatello prepared this niche for him at the end of his life it was almost his last work; and Verrocchio, after many years of labour, had thought to place here really his masterpiece, in the church that, more than any other, belonged to the people of the city, that middle class, as we might say, from which he sprang. How perfectly, and yet not altogether without affectation, he has composed that difficult scene, so that St. Thomas stands a little out of the setting, and places his finger—yes, almost as a child might do—in the wounded side of Jesus, who stands majestically fair before him. It is true the drapery is complicated, a little heavy even, but with what care he has remembered everything! Consider the grace of those beautiful folds, the beauty of the hair, the loveliness of the hands: and then, as Burckhardt reminds us, as a piece of work founded and cast in bronze, it is almost inimitable.

Within, the church is strange and splendid. It is as though one stood in a loggia in deep shadow, at the end of the day in the last gold of the sunset; and there, amid the ancient fading glory of the frescoes, is the wonderful shrine that Orcagna made for the picture of Madonna, who had turned the Granary of S. Michele into the Church of the People. Finished in 1359, this tabernacle is the loveliest work of the kind in Italy, an unique masterpiece, and perhaps the most beautiful example of the Italian Gothic manner in existence. Orcagna seems to have been at work on it for some ten years, covering it with decoration and carving those reliefs of the Life of the Virgin in that grand style which he had found in Giotto and learned perhaps from Andrea Pisano. To describe the shrine itself would be impossible and useless. It is like some miniature and magic church, a casquet made splendid not with jewels but with beauty, where the miracle picture of Madonna—not that ancient and wonderful picture by Ugolino da Siena, but a work, it is said, of Bernardo Daddi—glows under the lamps. On the west side, in front of the altar, Orcagna has carved the Marriage of the Virgin and the Annunciation; on the south, the Nativity of Our Lord and the Adoration of the Magi; on the north, the Presentation of the Virgin and her Birth; and on the east, the Purification and the Annunciation of her Death. And above these last, in a panel of great beauty, he has carved the Death of the Virgin, where, among the Apostles crowding round her bed, while St. Thomas—or is it St. John?—passionately kisses her feet, Jesus Himself stands with her soul in His arms, that little Child which had first entered the kingdom of heaven. Above this sorrowful scene you may see the Glory and Assumption of Our Lady in a mandorla glory, upheld by six angels, while St. Thomas kneels below, stretching out his arms, assured at last. It is, as it were, the prototype of the Madonna della Cintola, that exquisite and lovely relief which Nanni di Banco carved later for the north gate of the Duomo, only here all the sweetness that Nanni has seen and expressed seems to be lost in a sort of solemnity and strength.

Between these panels Orcagna has set the virtues Theological and Cardinal, little figures of much force and beauty; and at the corners he has carved angels bearing palms and lilies. Some who have seen this shrine so loaded with ornament, so like some difficult and complicated canticle, have gone away disappointed. Remembering the strength and significance of Orcagna’s work in fresco, they have perhaps looked for some more simple thing, and indeed for a less rhetorical praise. Yet I think it is rather the fault of Or San Michele than of the shrine itself, that it does not certainly vanquish any possible objection and assure us at once of its perfection and beauty. If it could be seen in the beautiful spacious transept of S. Croce, or even in Santo Spirito across Arno, that sense as of something elaborate and complicated would perhaps not be felt; but here in Or San Michele one seems to have come upon a priceless treasure in a cave.

Originally posted 2011-10-07 00:59:00.

Pontremoli is believed to have been first settled around a thousand years before Christ.

It was known in Roman times as Apua. The commune later became an independent municipality in 1226 thanks to Federico II who charters the free municipality, partly because of its mountainous situation. This situation in the valley of the Magra also made Pontremoli a target for numerous conquests from rival Italian and foreign lords. Pontremoli was controlled by various aristocratic families, including the Malaspina (in 1319) and the Antelminelli (in 1322). The conflict between the rival Guelfi and Ghibellini factions in the early fourteenth century resulted in the construction of the Great Bell Tower (Il Campanone) to separate the rival camps. During these Medieval times Pontremoli was often visited by pilgrims travelling from Canterbury to Rome.

In 1331 Pontremoli was sold by John I of Bohemia to Mastino II della Scala (Lord of Verona). Pontremoli was later taken over by the Visconti of Milan in 1339. In 1404 the ownership of Pontremoli once again changed hands as it was seized by the Fieschi family of Genoa. However, by 1433 Pontremoli was again under the control of the Milanese. In 1495 Pontremoli was sacked by the troops of Charles VIII of France, during this time Pontremoli was a territory owned by the House of Sforza, who were the new Dukes of Milan.

Pontremoli was a French territory from 1508 until 1522 as several northern Italian areas were conquered. In 1526, Pontremoli was captured by Charles V of the Holy Roman Empire. Pontremoli was controlled by Spain until 1647, when it was bought by the Republic of Genoa. Three years later, Pontremoli was made part of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany. It stayed as such (with the exception of a period of French control from 1805 to 1814) until Italian unification in the nineteenth century.

With the Leopoldine reforms, Pontremoli became an autonomous community (whilst still part of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany) in 1777. In 1778, it officially became a City. The area was heavily damaged by an earthquake in 1834. In November 1847 Pontremoli was (along with Fivizzano) occupied by the Duke of Modena, due to a dispute over trade routes.

Originally posted 2010-03-31 14:01:35.

The nearby Gulf of Poets saw the Romantic poets Shelley and Byron set the artistic world on fire and follow in the Renaissance footsteps of Dante and Michelangelo.

Castles in Lunigiana During the Middle Ages, there were 160 castles in Lunigiana, only thirty of which have reached our times in a good state of preservation.

The historical origins of these castles date back to times when the Langobards dominated most of the Pianura Padana and, seeking an outlet on the Ligurian/Tuscan coast, they found in the Passo della Cisa the natural way to cross the Appennines. On the other hand, when Luni (which has disappeared) was a flourishing city and harbour, the Romans had already built solid defensive posts along the road which linked up Northern Lunigiana. On the traces of this Roman road the Langobards built the Via Francigena, for the control of which there was a bloody and ferocious struggle among the little feud . The most important castles in Lunigiana, including the castle of the Piagnaro in Pontremoli, the Rocca of Villafranca and the fortified village of Filetto, were built during this period. When the Malaspina played an import part in the politics of Lunigiana, they built a great number of castles, which were used as residences and defences of territory by the several branches of the family. Concerning this we must say that the Malaspinas followed rules which were quite different from those applied in other Italian feuds for the succession of the heirs to the feudal power: the property, the estates and the power were divided into equal parts among all sons, without a special treatment for the eldest one. That led to the formation of dozens of little feuds, each requiring a new castle, on the occasion of every succession. Thus many small (and picturesque) castles were built in Lunigiana, but at the cost of weakening the power of the family at each generation.

Lunigiana is the undiscovered northernmost tip of Tuscany and lies between the coastal province of Liguria to the west and the Apennine mountains to the north-east. To the south-east the region is dominated by the peaks of the Parco Alpi Apuane beyond which are the Renaisance Cities of Florence, Pisa and Lucca. This is an area of outstanding natural beauty dotted with ancient hill-top villagesand terraced olive groves. Not yet discovered by tourists the area is economically poor but rich in other ways. Here the pace is slow, the food and wine robust and the smiles as warm as the sunshine. Here the old-fashioned courtesies are observed and the stranger made welcome. Lunigiana is a veritable paradise for walkers, painters, photographers, and those who simply enjoy the pleasures of life, and is full of natural curiosities such as the caves near Equi Terme, site of the natural sulphur baths. There are also castles, churches, monuments and whole villages built before Columbus set sail for the New World. Names of once-mighty families such as the Medici and Malaspina are commemorated by the fountains, piazzas and palaces they left behind, and all of this is within an hour or so train ride or drive of their more famous cousins to the south – Florence, Pisa and Lucca. And if that is not enough there are festivals, street markets and palios a-plenty – often in medieval costume. The main town in the area is Aulla from which the Taverone and Aulella valleys radiate, the hillsides of which are covered with chestnut woods and high meadows. At the end of the Taverone valley the Lagestrello pass marks the route through into Parma Province, the source of the River Taverone and the end of the Crenale mountain ridge. Leading more directly east from Aulla the old Lucca road runs along the Aulella valley, through Casola and on into the Parco Alpi Apuane before turning south along the old pilgrim road to Lucca. Bordering Lunigiana to the west, past La Spezia and the famous pretty fishing villages of The Cinque Terre is the province of Liguria, with its sandy beaches and pleasant climate.

Originally posted 2008-11-24 08:36:35.

The series of fortified villages, with which the valley is studded, bear witness to its long-standing srategic role as the most important route, over the Passo della Cisa, between the Po Valley and the Tyrrhenian coast.

The terraces, clearly visible on the steep slopes of the hills, attest to the fact that, in the past, the Lunigiana was much more intensely cultivated. Although olives and viness are grown up to a height of 600 metres, the area is largely forested, with chestnut trees alternating with Turkey oaks and mixed woods. Also the upper Serchio Valley, usually known as Garfagnana, bears the clearly visible signs of mans attempts over the cenuries to model the rugged natural landscape and obtain spaces suitable for agriculture. The terraces, built with earthen banks and , provided cultivated land on the mountain slopes, creating clearings in the woods. Here, too, there are ruins of the fortresses that defended the strategic position, evidence of a constant struggle for the political control of the region.

Trek & Bike Tours & Agriturismo in Tuscany & Garfagnana

Garfagnana holiday accommodation, Tuscany

Originally posted 2008-11-07 16:00:37.

Island of Elba – Turistic information about Elba Island

In his adventurous search for the golden fleece, Jason stopped in Porto Argo (the mythical name of Portoferraio). It was from here that the valiant inhabitants of Elba set sail on their long trip in aid of king Priam and the unfortunate inhabitants of Troy. When the Romans took over the exploitation of the iron mines from the Etruscans, they built two sumptuous villas, the first on the promontory of the Grotte, with its once in a life time view of the bay, the other on the peninsula of la Linguella, caressed by the glittering waves sent in by the mistral.

When Cosimo I de’Medici built that Jewel of military town planning, the fortress of Portoferraio, in the sixteenth century, he really had no choice of site. The entire canal which separates Elba from the continent can be observed from the ramparts of Forte Stella or the Falcone and it was thus possible to keep an eye on the terrible Saracen pirates that roamed these waters The harmony between sea, land and architecture was so perfect that the city was called Cosmopoli, cradle of civilization and culture, a model of order and equilibrium.

Next came Napoleon, who in his ten months rule over Elba (May 4, 1814 – February 26, 1815) profoundly marked the territory and the economic and social fabric of the city and the island. He set up his headquarters in the historical center in a large house known as “Villa dei Mulini” but he also had a summer residence in San Martino, where the Demidoff Museum now stands The furniture, weapons, letters written by the Emperor and his generals, can still be seen in the places where he lived. The paintings and frescoes celebrate his campaigns in Egypt, his victories in Arcole, Austerlitz and the many other battlefields where his military genius triumphed. Upon leaving the historical center, wild cliffs frame fascinating coves and small beaches of white pebbles.

The twisted stone columns of Enfola finally reveal their secrets caves smoothly polished by the perennial play of the waves, indentations populated by whole families of seagulls, the nests of swift low flying cormorants a paradise for scuba divers. Time has stopped and nature still rules. The road runs along on the heights and the cliffs gradually turn into hot sandy baches. The sleepy beaches of Scaglieri, Biodola, Forno follow along: golden beaches where people are one with the natural environment. Exploration of the eastern part takes us to località San Giovanni, with its mixture of countryside and ocean, with a small tourist harbour and a spa where ancient remedies and medications are extracted from the algae and muds of the sea. At Bagnaia with its hundred sails spread to the wind, the landscape is dominated by the castle of Volterraio, which has kept watch over the safety of the inhabitants of Elba for centuries.

Originally posted 2008-11-04 15:02:17.

“…Per salire al monte
Dove siede la chiesa….”
to the great Piazzale, and so to the old worn platform before S. Miniato itself, under the strange glowing mosaics of the façade: and, standing on the graves of dead Florentines, I shall look down on the beautiful city.

Marvellously fair she is on a summer evening as seen from that hill of gardens, Arno like a river of gold before her, leading over the plain lost in the farthest hills. Behind her the mountains rise in great amphitheatres,—Fiesole on the one side, like a sentinel on her hill; on the other, the Apennines, whose gesture, so noble, precise, and splendid, seems to point ever towards some universal sovereignty, some 158perfect domination, as though this place had been ordained for the resurrection of man. Under this mighty symbol of annunciation lies the city, clear and perfect in the lucid light, her towers shining under the serene evening sky. Meditating there alone for a long time in the profound silence of that hour, the whole history of this city that witnessed the birth of the modern world, the resurrection of the gods, will come to me.

Out of innumerable discords, desolations, hopes unfilled, everlasting hatred and despair, I shall see the city rise four square within her rosy walls between the river and the hills; I shall see that lonely, beautiful, and heroic figure, Matilda the great Countess; I shall suffer the dream that consumes her, and watch Germany humble in the snow. And the Latin cause will tower a red lily beside Arno; one by one the great nobles will go by with cruel alien faces, prisoners, to serve the Lily or to die. Out of their hatred will spring that mongrel cause of Guelph and Ghibelline, and I shall see the Amidei slay Buondelmonte Buondelmonti. Through the year of victories I shall rejoice, when Pistoja falls, when Siena falls, when Volterra is taken, and Pisa forced to make peace. Then in tears I shall see the flight at Monteaperti, I shall hear the thunder of the horses, and with hate in my heart I shall search for Bocca degli Abati, the traitor, among the ten thousand dead. And in the council I shall be by when they plot the destruction of the city, and I shall be afraid: then I shall hear the heroic, scornful words of Farinata degli Uberti, when in his pride he spared Florence for the sake of his birth. And I shall watch the banners at Campaldino, I shall hear the intoxicating words of Corso Donati, I shall look into his very face and read the truth.

And at dawn I shall walk with Dante, and I shall know by the softness of his voice when Beatrice passeth, but I shall not dare to lift my eyes. I shall walk with him through the city, I shall hear Giotto speak to him of St. Francis, and Arnolfo will tell us of his dreams. And at evening Petrarch will lead me into the shadow of S. Giovanni and tell me of 159Madonna Laura. But it will be a morning of spring when I meet Boccaccio, ah, in S. Maria Novella, and as we come into the sunshine I shall laugh and say, “Tell me a story.” And Charles of Valois will pass by, who sent Dante on that long journey; and Henry VII, for whom he had prayed; and I shall hear the trumpets of Montecatini, and I shall understand the hate Uguccione had for Castracani. And I shall watch the entry of the Duke of Athens, and I shall see his cheek flush at the thought of a new tyranny. Then for the first time I shall hear the sinister, fortunate name Medici. Under the banners of the Arti I shall hear the rumour of their names, Silvestro who urged on the Ciompi, Vieri who once made peace; nor will the death of Gian Galeazzo of Milan, nor the tragedy of Pisa, hinder their advent, for I shall see Giovanni di Bicci de’ Medici proclaimed Gonfaloniere of the city. Then they will troop by more splendid than princes, the universal bankers, lords of Florence: Cosimo the hard old man, Pater Patriae, the greatest of his race; Piero, the weakling; Lorenzo il Magnifico, tyrant and artist; and over his shoulder I shall see the devilish, sensual face of Savonarola. And there will go by Giuliano, the lover of Simonetta; Piero the exile; Giovanni the mighty pope, Leo X; Giulio the son of Guiliano, Clement VII; Ippolito the Cardinal, Alessandro the cruel, Lorenzino his assassin, Cosimo l’Invitto, Grand Duke of Tuscany, bred in a convent and mourned for ever.

So they pass by, and their descendants follow after them, even to poor, unhappy, learned Gian Gastone, the last of his race.

And around them throng the artists; yes, I shall see them all. Angelico will lead me into his cell and show me the meaning of the Resurrection. With Lippo Lippi I shall play with the children, and talk with Lucrezia Buti at the convent gate; Ghirlandajo will take me where Madonna Vanna is, and with Baldovinetti I shall watch the dawn. And Botticelli will lead me into a grove apart: I shall see the beauty of those three women who pass, who pass like a season, and are neither glad nor sorry; and with him I shall understand the joy of Venus, whose 160son was love, and the tears of Madonna, whose Son was Love also. And I shall hear the voice of Leonardo; and he will play upon his lyre of silver, that lyre in the shape of a horse’s head which he made for Sforza of Milan; and I shall see him touch the hands of Monna Lisa. And I shall see the statue of snow that Buonarotti made; I shall find him under S. Miniato, and I shall weep with him.

So I shall dream in the sunset. The Angelus will be ringing from all the towers, I shall have celebrated my return to the city that I have loved. The splendour of the dying day will lie upon her; in that enduring and marvellous hour, when in the sound of every bell you may find the names that are in your heart, I shall pass again through the gardens, I shall come into the city when the little lights before Madonna will be shining at the street corners, and the streets will be full of the evening, where the river, stained with fading gold, steals into the night to the sea. And under the first stars I shall find my way to my hillside. On that white country road the dust of the day will have covered the vines by the way, the cypresses will be white half-way to their tops, in the whispering olives the cicale will still be singing; as I pass every threshold some dog will rouse, some horse will stamp in the stable, or an ox stop munching in his stall. In the far sky, marvellous with infinite stars, the moon will sail like a little platter of silver, like a piece of money new from the mint, like a golden rose in a mirror of silver. Long and long ago the sun will have set, but when I come to the gate I shall go under the olives; though I shall be weary I shall go by the longest way, I shall pass by the winding path, I shall listen for the whisper of the corn. And I shall beat at my gate, and one will say Chi è, and I shall make answer. So I shall come into my house, and the triple lights will be lighted in the garden, and the table will be spread. And there will be one singing in the vineyard, and I shall hear, and there will be one walking in the garden, and I shall know.

Originally posted 2011-10-05 19:44:49.