Discover Tuscany’s Blog: exploring Tuscany and all its hidden corners…

Anyone who will be spending New Year’s Eve in Florence and wants to spend the last night of the year outside can choose from four different free performances.

In the main square right in front of Santa Maria Novella train station a rock concert will take place starting from 9.00 pm where great Italian singers Irene Grandi, Lucio Dalla and the Negrita will be performing. After them there will be a DJ set going on until 2.00 am. Irene Grandi (Florentine singer) and the Negrita (Tuscan rock band) are both Tuscan musicians and are loved by mostly young people, while Lucio Dalla (singer from Bologna) is generally more appreciated by a more grown up crowd.

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Photo by Pierpaolo Putignano

On Saturday morning Florence woke up covered with a soft snow blanket. The night before it started snowing in Tuscany even at low altitude, whitening cities on flats as Florence.

Florence under the snow is certainly a rare sight that of course doesn’t happen every year. Probably Saturday’s snowfall would have pleasantly impressed several tourists, but it surprised much more Florentine people. Someone would have cheered, I think about children and teenagers as well would have joyed (maybe some of them stayed at home from school because of it!), instead someone else would have said Damn! thinking of driving around and maybe going to work, while others are almost “allergic” to snow and would not even have left home (I know some of them ).
Anyway I think that it’s impossible not loving Florence under the snow: look at these beautiful pictures of Florence covered with snow (thanks to Pierpaolo that gave them to us!).

Take a look also at these cute pictures of Chianti under the snow >>

Everyone loves Christmas. I think Florence is magical during this time of the year. Maybe because of the thousands of lights along the streets, maybe because of  the nice Christmas decorations in the shops – or maybe because I got married in December .  I love Florence at Christmas time.

Starting from Piazzale Michelangelo, you can admire a breathtaking view of Florence that looks like a postcard. When it’s dark, everything lights up and you can see the Christmas trees and decorations in homes through the windows. Coming down into the city and crossing the Arno, you can feel that Christmas is all around. This year the municipality of Florence lit up all the avenues with thousands of blue Christmas lights which warm the atmosphere from Piazza Beccaria to Fortezza da Basso.

Most of the streets in the city center are also decorated and illuminated for Christmas. Via dei Calaziuoli is fabulously decorated with thousands of lights set as a rich drapery – it looks like the Red Carpet! Even smaller streets such as via della Condotta and others are illuminated by colorful lights shaped as snowflakes or falling snow. Then in Piazza della Repubblica stands a grand Christmas tree near to the characteristic merry-go-round for children. The shops and their windows are also embellished by Christmas decorations as well as Christmas trees decorated with various trimmings and colorful lights. Florence is just missing Santa’s bells to be perfect.

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Christmas time is coming and as usual December in Florence and in its surroundings means you can find many special events and markets related to Christmas.

Here are a few of the upcoming events in Florence, as well as in Mugello valley and Chianti region:

• German Christmas Market

In Florence in Piazza Santa Croce from December 2nd to the 20th you’ll find the German Christmas Market with its characteristic wooden cabins. Opening hours from 10 am to 10 pm.

• Florence Noël

Christmas Trade Fair at Stazione Leopolda in Florence from the 5th to the 13th of December. It opens from Friday to Tuesday from 10 am to 10 pm and on Wednesday and Thursday from 3 pm to 10 pm. Ticket costs € 7,50; reduced ticket is € 6,00; children under 3 years have free admission.

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In the last issue of Venerdì di Repubblica I read a well-written but highly critical article about the Uffizi Gallery and more in general about the conditions of Italy’s cultural heritage. The article throws light on the situation artistic and cultural treasures in Italy find themselves in and, in particular, focuses on Italy’s top museum (second only if we were to consider the Vatican Museums).
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The Firenze Come Era museum is a true hidden gem in Florence.

It is a really small museum sharing space in the Convent of the Oblate with the city public library (awesome library – go to the last floor to the cafe and enjoy the view of the Duomo as you munch on a panino sandwich).

The name of the museum – literally “Florence as it was” – indicates the nature of the collection. Divided into two sections, the prehistoric/Roman history of Florence on one wing and maps and visual representations of the city on the other, the museum visually shows how Florence used to be in past times.

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The old locomotive of the steam engine train to Marradi

We took a beautiful trip to Marradi a few weekends ago, a mountain village located in the Tuscan Apennines near the border with Emilia Romagna, to go the town’s annual chestnut sagra or food festival.

The Mugello chestnuts are famous and are protected by the IGP (Indicazione Geografica Protetta, or Geographical Protected Indication) trademark and the festival was a wonderful occasion to taste and buy not only chestnuts but many local products as well. We bought chestnut flour, several pieces of local cheeses and a small chestnut cake to take home, in addition to all the other chestnut treats we had that day.

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Yesterday was a beautiful day for Florence and for both residents and visitors alike. Aside from the near perfect weather, Piazza del Duomo officially became pedestrian only and was closed off to the traffic that for the last 60 years has wound its way around a corner of one of the most famous squares in Italy. The smog blackened facades of the Baptistery and Cathedral were marked by the passage of over 2.100 buses and hundreds of taxis, scooters, cars and trucks through the square every single day. Buildings and pedestrians alike will certainly benefit from the cleaner air and diminished noise of traffic.

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From now up to the 18th of December, the Vasari Corridor is once again open for visits but only with reservations. These visits, guided by special staff from the Supervisory board, are only offered for short periods of time during the year for small groups but at a reasonable price (14 euro which includes entrance into the Uffizi, which you can visit beforehand).

The famous corridor, built in 1565 by Giorgio Vasari to celebrate the wedding between Francesco I de’ Medici to Joan of Austria, connects Palazzo Vecchio to the Uffizi Gallery and to the Palazzo Pitti. It was a special passageway reserved exclusively for use by the Medici so that they could move freely from their residence at the Palazzo Pitti to Palazzo Vecchio, the seat of government.

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This past Thursday we spent the day in Chianti on a tour designed and supported by the Florence Chamber of Commerce and tourism board to promote the Florentine area of Chianti. We met our tour group in front of Santa Maria Novella train station at 8.45am and aside from a traffic incident that delayed our departure, we were happily on our way to Tavarnelle Val di Pesa by 10am.

Continue reading about our day in Chianti »