The Rificolona:Florentine Tradition

In early September Florence hosts a unique event, that only Florentines know and celebrate: the Festa della Rificolona, the Festival of paper lanterns.

This typical Florentine festival dates back to the Middle Ages. Since then people went on pilgrimage from Florence surroundings to Santissima Annunziata Church for celebrating the birth of the Virgin Mary on September 8th. They carried a paper lantern to light the way. Today the Rificolona Festival is no longer a religious celebration, but a festival for children.

This year as well, Florence will be lighted up by hundreds of paper lanterns, that will parade along the historical center. On September 7th the parade will start around 9.00 pm in Piazza Santa Croce and will end up in Piazza Santissima Annunziata. On September 8th the parade will then be on the Arno River near Ponte Vecchio, starting at the Rowing Club.

After my last sunburn this past weekend on the Tuscan beaches, I’ve decided to skip the seaside and visit Valdorcia, an area I personally love because of its stunning landscapes, many of which have been immortalized in movies.

On Saturday we’ll first go to San Quirico D’Orcia for a quiet walk through the historical center, with the intention to specifically revisit the striking Romanesque Collegiata Church and the Leopoldini’s Gardens, a wonderful example of Renaissance gardens. For lunch we’ll then head on to Bagno Vignoni and have a delicious lunch with local specialities at the Locanda del Loggiato, where I’ve been in the past and return to often. Then we move on to Pienza where the Cheese Festival, or Festa del Cacio, will be taking place on the following Sunday, September 5th with its particular games. I also want to take the opportunity to visit the splendid Palazzo Piccolomini, a fine example of Renaissance architecture. Read More »

This weekend is Ferragosto, the day of the Assumption, which is a national holiday in Italy. So we have decided to spend the whole weekend in Mugello, the green valley to the north of Florence. Read More »

August 15th, the Assumption day, is a national holiday in Italy and most of museums, shops and restaurants are generally closed. But if you are in Florence for your vacation, don’t worry there are many museums which will remain open

Among the open museums on August 15th there the Uffizi Gallery, Academy Gallery and Pitti Palace and its museums, as well as the Medici Chapels, Palazzo Vecchio and the Archeological Museum. The open churches are the Duomo and the Opera del Duomo Museum, Giotto’s Bell Tower and the Baptistery, together with Santa Croce Church and Santa Maria Novella Church. The Church of Santo Spirito will be open only in the afternoon from 4 pm to 5.30 pm.

Museums and Churches will follow the regular opening hours. Here you find the list of open museums in Florence on August 15th with opening and closing hours.

I’m writing several new articles for our guide to Chianti and I think it’s a good idea to spend the weekend in the Chianti region to refresh memories and sensations of visiting the area. I have visited Chianti many times, but it will be fun to go back while I’m writing about it.

So on Saturday morning I’m planning to go to Greve in Chianti and visit the weekly market, a market that really impressed Grand Duke Leopold I back in the 19th century. Nowadays, it’s a big market with a vast range of local products, as well as clothing and flowers. For lunch, I want to tray the famous Mac Dario at the Antica Macelleria Cecchini in Panzano in Chianti. It is a 10 euro menu made of a 250gr hamburger with roast potatoes, vegetables and onions, bread and water. It’s the Tuscan alternative to fast food . After lunch I’ll move on to Castellina in Chianti and spend the night there. Saturday night is the “Calici di Stelle” event and I want to do wine tasting and enjoy good Tuscan food.

On Sunday I intend to visit Gaiole in Chianti and its surroundings with its famous castles and churches. My plan is to take a guided tour of the Castello di Brolio with wine tasting included. For lunch I want to go San Gusmè, a beautiful medieval town where there is an excellent trattoria, Sira e Remino. I love the Pici Cacio and Pepe, handmade spaghetti pasta dressed very simply with cheese and ground pepper. In the afternoon, I’ll then stop at the Castello di Vertine and at Badia Coltibuono and maybe have dinner there before coming back home.

I cross my fingers so that it won’t rain – hope you have a nice weekend as well!

On the night of Saint Lawrence, August 10th 2010, most of the wine cities in Tuscany will be animated by “Calici di Stelle” (Goblets of stars). For all night there will wine and food tastings, concerts, craft markets, guided tours and stars watching.

In the Chianti Classico region there will be many events: in Greve in Chianti there will be wine tastings, craft market and stars watching from 9.00 pm, in Castellina in Chianti the center will be animated by street musicians, craft market, wine and food tastings, and in Gaiole in Chianti wine and food tastings will start at 6.00 pm.

In Siena wine tastings will take place under the Loggia of Palazzo Pubblico from 9.30, together with guided tours to the Civic Museum and to Torre del Mangia, while in San Gimignano there will be in Piazza Sant’Agostino from 9.00 pm.

There will be also wine tastings and other events in Montepulciano, Castelnuovo di Berardenga, Castiglione d’Orcia and Campiglia Marritima, as well as other minor destinations. In fact the calendar of Calici di Stelle 2010 have many different events scheduled.

So look up high in the sky for your falling star while drinking a good glass of wine, and don’t forget to make a wish!

Even though the weather forecast says that there will be thunderstorms, and I highlight thunderstorms, I really hope that on Saturday and Sunday it will be sunny in Tuscany. I want to go to my beloved Maremma this weekend. Read the post »

Thanks to the success obtained last summer, both the Uffizi Gallery and the Academy Gallery are again offering a day every week when the museums stay open until late into the evening. Every Tuesday in August both Florence museums will be open until 10.00 pm. The last entrance is at 7 pm and museum ticket reservations are recommended.

What do you think about spending the night of St. Lawrence surrounded by Renaissance masterpieces?

July is at almost at its end and the heat in Florence is stiffling. So this weekend I am planning once again to take off and the destination will be Pistoia. I personally love this city because when I go there I feel like going back to my childhood since as a small child, my parents would take me to Pinocchio’s Park in Collodi on my birthday. So I want to go back to the Park and take advantage and also visit the Garzoni Garden, a beautiful example of a Renaissance and Baroque Italian garden, and the recently opened Butterfly House, both located next to the park. After Collodi I want to go to Pescia, a town famous for its flowers. It’s a delightful city with many things to see, including the Cathedral and the Palazzo del Palagio. Read the post »

I haven’t yet planned everything I will do this week end. The only thing that is certain is that I’m heading to Mercantia in Certaldo tonight. I’m going to go see this great Festival of Street Artists that I liked very much in the past. I’ll be in Certaldo around 8 pm and after taking a look at the market in the lower part of  Certaldo and dinner, I’ll climb up to upper Certaldo to go see all the events.

On Saturday I’m planning a morning of total relax. After lunch, I’m planning to go to Cerreto Guidi, a nice Renaissance town about 35 min driving distance from Florence. There is Medicea, an event about culture, food and wine. At 6 pm the “historical reconstruction of threshing”, as well as wineries will open, with wine tastings and art exhibits. At 9.30pm a guided tour will be offered within the beautiful Medicean villa of  Cerreto Guidi. This Renaissance villa, turned into the Museum of  Hunting and of the Territory, was built by Buontalenti as a hunting villa for the Grand Duke Cosimo I.

I have yet to decide what to do on Sunday. I’d like to go to San Gimignano, where a new and very interesting museum opened two weeks ago. The museum is called San Gimignano 1300 and is a spectacular and extremely detailed reconstruction of this beautiful medieval city in Tuscany at that time. It should be really impressive. On the other hand, I’d like also to go to Palazzuolo sul Senio in Mugello for the medieval festival “At the Ubaldini’s Family Court”. The peculiarity of this festival is that this year it’s an historical reenactment of the heroic deeds of Roland. There will a free shuttle bus service from Florence and Pontassieve.

I think I’ll wait and decide on Saturday night what to do on Sunday. In the meantime I wish you a nice weekend!