Spring will arrive in less than 20 days but we had some really cold days during this week in Tuscany. The weather forecast for the weekend fortunately is pretty good and it seems we’ ll have rising temperatures in all the region.

This weekend precedes March 8, date that this year on which we’ll celebrate both Fat Tuesday (the last day of carnival before Ash Wednesday) and International Women’s Day.

To celebrate International Women’s Day, women have free entrance to all State museums and places of art in Tuscany (this initiative, promoted by the Ministry of Cultural Heritage and Activities, is valid for all State museums in Italy).

Throughout this weekend, March 5 and 6, celebrations of Carnival will continue which end this year on Tuesday the 8th. You can find a selection of major events dedicated to Carnival in this other post we dedicated to the events of Carnival 2011 in Tuscany.

Here are some additional interesting events planned this weekend in Tuscany:

On Saturday, March 5, the 14th edition of the “Salone del Mobile” opens in Florence. Held in the beautiful Fortezza da Basso this is one of the main fairs on furniture and interior decor in Italy and will be open until Sunday, March 13.

Head to the village of Impruneta near Florence on either Saturday or Sunday to the “Chocolate Feast“, a small but delicious exhibition dedicated to chocolate and confectionery.

Antiques and Collector’s Markets:

In Arezzo this weekend its big Antique Fair takes place. Organized on the first weekend of each month, the market fills the beautiful Piazza Grande and the historical center with stands of antiques and collector’s items.

In Scarperia in the Mugello area, on Sunday the “Collectors in the Piazza” will spread out through the center offering a trading place for antiques and collectibles.

The central Piazza Mino in Fiesole on Sunday will also host its small traditional antique market.

At the Saschall theatre in Florence on March 5 and 6 will host the “Collecting in Florence” exhibition dedicated to collecting and crafts. Admission fee (€ 3).

To all of you have a nice weekend!

Piazza della Repubblica in Cortona

Counting on good weather, this weekend is certainly dedicated to enjoy Carnival and its masked parades. There are many nice events all around Tuscany and we have collected a list here in a post devoted exclusively to this Carnival 2011.

If you’ re not going to participate in one of the many festivals or parades in masks, you can choose to visit “Danza in Fiera” in Florence, a large event dedicated to dance, or the Chocolate Festival in Scandicci or maybe one of the antique markets around Tuscany happening this weekend.

Some details on the dance fair: Florence is hosting “Danza in Fiera“, a great dance festival organized in the Fortezza da Basso, from Thursday 24 to Sunday, February 27. Dance events, free classes, workshops and more for all lovers of dance. View the full program here.

On Saturday 26 and Sunday 27 in Piazza Matteotti in Scandicci you’ll find the Festival of Chocolate, with the best Tuscan chocolatiers. Sunday in the city center you’ll also find the stalls of the antiques market “Vetrina Antiquaria“.

In Livorno on Saturday 26 at the New American Market you can go to “Artingegno“, a nice market of arts, crafts, antiques and food items.

In Greve in Chianti on Sunday 27 arrives the biological market in Piazza Matteotti while in Piazza della Sala in Pistoia you’ll find the stands of “Zucca Barucca” the market of organic food products and crafts.

The tiny center of Pescia, situated in the province of Pistoia, on Sunday 27 will host a market of antiques and collector’s items.

In the beautiful town of Cortona (Arezzo) this weekend the appointment is with “Ritorno al Passato” (Back to the Past), an exhibition of antiques and modern items organized in the Parterre Gardens.

We wish all our blog readers a great weekend!

The weekend before St. Valentine’s Day, this year falling on Monday, has chocolate as one of its best protagonists. Love and chocolate are a perfect match, are they not?!

There are 3 chocolate-flavored events in Tuscany this Saturday and Sunday, February 12 and 13:

In Fiesole, a short distance from Florence’s historical center, on Sunday you’ll find the “Chocolate Festival”. The stands, located on the central Piazza Mino, will offer specialties prepared by master chocolatiers from all over Italy.

Piazza Santa Croce, in the historical center of Florence, hosts until Sunday the sweet temptations of the “Chocolate Fair”. The large square is animated by many stands full of sweets proposed by Italian and international master chocolatiers.

From this Friday until Sunday in Livorno you’ll find the sixth edition of the handmade chocolate festival called Chocolandia. Confectioners will involve visitors in tastings, new recipes and tips about chocolate.

To celebrate love, the Italian Ministry of Cultural Activities once again proposed a lovely initiative dedicated to all couples. On Saturday and Sunday, couples can visit all state museums, monuments and archeological sites by paying for only one entrance ticket instead of two.

If you’re on a diet or not interested in spending a cultural day, you can count on several alternatives:

Saturday and Sunday in Pistoia, in via dell’ Annona, more than 120 exhibitors will participate to the traditional antiques market.

In Florence on Sunday in Piazza S. Spirito you’ll find a small fair with stands offering handicrafts and antique items.

On Sunday in Asciano, in the beautiful Crete Senesi, the small Market of the Crete Naturalia will take place. On sale you’ll find local products, organic food, handicrafts and antique items.

The characteristic historical center of Barga, in the province of Lucca, will be animated by the stands of a nice market of handicrafts and antiques.

Whether you’ re a couple or not, this weekend before St. Valentine’s day in Tuscany reserves a lot of sweet surprises indeed!

During the past few days, Tuscany has enjoyed an amazing climate: high temperatures reached about 15°C (59 °F) and it seemed to already be spring time!
But it’s still January and over the next few days, the weather forecast predicts a heavy fall in temperatures. Anyway, the weekend is almost here and it’s rich of interesting events in which to take part of.

To prompt our blog readers to get out of the warmth of their homes or rooms, here are some of the most interesting events in Tuscany and Florence we recommend this weekend:

Antiques Markets:

- In Viareggio (Lucca) throughout the weekend, January 22 and 23, visit “Il Tarlo al Mare”, an antiques markets organized every month in Piazza Campioni.

- Prato on January 23 awaits all antiques-lovers and collectors at the market “Collezionare in Piazza”, organized in Piazza San Francesco.

- On Sunday 23, the street of the historical center of Montevarchi will be filled with the stands of the market called “Mercato di Via dei Musei” offering antiques, collector’s items and handicrafts.

Biological Food Markets:

- In Piazza della Sala in Pistoia on Sunday 23 the ecological market “Zucca Barucca” will take place. The stands will offer only biological products, from food to handicrafts.

- Saturday 22 in Pisa you’ll find the “Mercato Contadino” on the streets near the Piazza dei Miracoli, which offers biological food specialties and products from the nearby countryside.

Exhibitions:

These are the last days of the exhibit dedicated to Bronzino in Florence called “Bronzino. Artist and Poet at the Court of the Medici”. The exhibition is organized in Palazzo Strozzi and will end on January 23.

Take advantage of the last days of the exhibition “’Never seen before’: Self-portraits by female artists for the Uffizi Gallery” organized at the Uffizi Gallery in Florence until January 30.

Anyone visiting Pisa will have until February 13th to visit the interesting exhibition dedicated to Joan Mirò, called “Joan Mirò. I miti del Mediterraneo”, and organized in the Palazzo Blu.

Events especially for children:

Even if the children’s shows are in Italian, your children might still enjoy seeing the puppets and costumes and doing something different while here in Tuscany.

On Saturday, January 22 the Biblioteca delle Oblate in Florence will be putting on a marionette show called “Il gioco del vento”, of the “Play of the Wind”, in the children’s area at 16.30.

At the Teatro Cantiere Florida in Florence on Sunday at 16, the theatrical show “Verdino ed il pentolone degli Gnomi” is recommended for children from 3 to 10 years old.

Have an eventful weekend!

Here we are, the last weekend before Christmas. Bells are ringing and weather forecasts predict snow… what better way to say Christmas than this? Joking aside, here are the main events in Tuscany for this third weekend of December if you’re fine with covering up well to deal with the low temps around here at the moment.

Florence:

On Saturday and Sunday, December 18^th and 19^th, you can head over to Piazza Santissima Annunziata to the Arts&Crafts market. There will be several craftsmen showing their works, you might find something interesting for a gifts or two.

On Sunday in Piazza Santo Spirito you’ll find a traditional Christmas Fair with lots of delightful products, while at Ex-Leopoldine in Piazza Tasso there will be Mercanatale, the organic market for buying zero-km food and handmade products.

Tuscany:

On Sunday in Certaldo you’ll find Boccaccio’s Fair, a large market taking place all over the city center. In Greve in Chianti, “Waiting for Christmas” includes a Christmas market and a live Nativity scene. Santa Claus will be present, indispensable if you’re traveling with small children! Other Christmas markets will be in Mugello in Marradi and Palazzuolo sul Senio, and in Torrita di Siena.

Sincerely hoping it won’t snow, we wish you a nice weekend of shopping in Tuscany before Christmas!

It’s almost mid-December but it’s still warm. After a couple of freezing days we came back to mild, gray weather. So let’s see the main events for this second weekend of December:

Florence:

This weekend, head to the German Christmas Market in Piazza Santa Croce, open every day from 10am to 8pm. Then visit Florence Noel at the Leopolda Station until Sunday.
In Piazza Santo Spirito on Sunday December 12^th there will be the monthly arts and crafts market, while within walking distance in Piazza Tasso, at the Ex-Leopoldine Mercanatale, you’ll find a market of local farmers selling only organic products.

Tuscany:

In Greve in Chianti on Sunday there will be the Christmas market of local craftsmen. In Mugello there will be four different and characteristic Christmas markets that will be held in Dicomano, Firenzuola, Palazzuolo sul Senio and Marradi.
If you want to taste something special I suggest you go to Prato on Saturday and Sunday where Dolcemente Prato, Sweet Prato, will be taking place. There will be tastings of sweets and cakes made by the best pastry chefs. Tastings will be accompanied by local liquors and cocktails. In addition, you can admire the large Christmas tree made of 12 kilos of cantuccini, the typical Prato cookies.

For further Christmas markets going around this weekend, read our post on the Christmas markets in Tuscany.

Have a nice weekend!

Wow! Today is December 1^st and the countdown for Christmas has started! Florence has been lighted up with thousands of Christmas lights all around the city. As usual during the Advent there are several Christmas markets and lots of events all around Tuscany.

Christmas markets are the ideal places for finding unique Christmas decorations, handmade gifts and for tasting Christmas sweets and local products. Here you have a list of main Christmas markets in Tuscany 2010:

Florence:
From December 4^th to 12^th at Leopolda Station there will take place the annual fair about Christmas,  Florence Noël.
In Piazza Santa Croce will start today the classic German Christmas Market, that will go on until December 20^th from 10.00am to 8.00pm every day.

From December 3^rd to 5^th at Saschall there will be the Christmas Market organized by Italian Red Cross. Entrance will cost Euro 5,00.
On December 8th at the Pagliere in Via Machievelli, near Porta Romana from 10.00am to 5.00pm , there will be the annual Christmas bazaar held by the American International League of Florence (AILO) ONLUS. There will be sold new and vintage goods, as well as homemade cookies and cakes for raising money for charities in Florence and province.
In Piazza Santo Spirito on December 19^th there will be the Christmas fair.

Added Dec. 10: We just learned there is another Christmas market called Mercanatale on December 12 and 19, in Piazza Tasso at the Leopoldine where you can buy food products made by local producers, including just pressed extra virgin olive oil. Take the best of Tuscany back with you by being direct from the farmer! From mid-morning to late afternoon.

Mugello:
In Marradi on Sunday 5^th, 12^th and 19^th December the city center will host a large Christmas market. In addition on December 19^th you can get to Marradi from Florence by traditional  steam engine train.
In Palazzuolo sul Senio on December 5^th,8^th,12^th and 19^th there will be the Christmas market. There will also be a nice exhibition about the “1000 Nativities of Palazzuolo” until January 6^th.
In Dicomano the Christmas market will be on December 5^th, while in Firenzuola the Winter Market will be on December 12^th.

Chianti:
On December 8^th,12^th and 19^th in the particularly shaped Piazza Matteotti in Greve in Chianti there will be the Christmas market.
In Gaiole in Chianti the markets will be on December 5^th and 8^th from 10.00am to 7.00pm in Piazza Ricasoli.

Pisa and Lucca:
In the historical center of Pisa the Christmas market will take place under the Logge di Banchi and in Largo Ciro Menotti every day from 9.00am to 12.00am until December 24^th.
In Piazza della Cittadella and Via di Poggio in Lucca center there will be a Medieval Christmas market from December 10^th to 12^th.

Lunigiana:
In Fivizzano the market will take place on December 4^th,5^th and 8^th, while in Aulla it will be on December 18^th and 19^th.
In Pontremoli and surroundings there will be on display several beautiful nativity scenes from December 19^th to January 9^th.

Pistoia, surroundings and Montagna Pistoiese:
From December 4^th to January 9^th in Pescia there will lots of events related to Christmas that you can check on the Italian website http://www.vaiinduomo.com/. There will also be the Christmas market in Piazza della Maddalena.
In Pistoia under the Galleria Nazionale the market will take place from December 7^th to 12^th from 9.00am to 8.00pm.
On the mountains in Cutigliano from December 4^th to 12^th there will be Christmas Slow, a special event combining together the slow food and Christmas market. In addition there will be organized a special nativities’ itinerary.

Siena and surroundings:
In Siena on December 4^th and 5^th there will be a large market called Mercato del Campo, right in Piazza del Campo.
On December 18^th and 19^th there will be a nice Christmas market with arts and crafts in Torrita di Siena.

The cold winter has come all at once. After weeks of heavy rain, it suddenly became cold. The weather has become unpredictable, even here in Tuscany. Even though the weather forecasts will predict rain for this last weekend in November, today we still publish the main events in Tuscany for the upcoming weekend that will likely still happen rain or shine. If you’re willing to be out and about, here are some ideas of things to do this weekend.

Florence:

On Sunday November 28^th there will be the 27th Firenze Marathon, an appointment for thousands of runners coming from all over the world.
In Piazza dei Ciompi there will be the monthly appointment with the large Antiques market that spills out onto all of the streets around the Piazza.

Tuscany:

In San Miniato there will be the last appointment with the National Market Fair of the White Truffle, while the weekly appointment with Crete D’Autunno 2010 will be in Serre di Rapolano, near Rapolano Terme, with new olive oil tastings. Even in Reggello you can taste the local olive oil together with other local products.
On Sunday in Montepulciano the Fair of Sant’Andrea will take place, a large market celebrating the city patron, while in Stia in Casentino there will be the traditional Cold Fair with lots of local stalls. In Scandicci and in Galluzzo there will also be antiques markets.

Looking constantly at the weather forecasts hoping the temperatures won’t drop too much, I wish you all a nice weekend.

Hoping that the weather will be mild and won’t rain, these are the main events in Florence and across Tuscany for this upcoming weekend of November.

Florence:

This weekend will finish Food and Wine Biennial 2010. The main event will be Florence Wine Event 2010 from Friday 19^th to Sunday 21^st November in the Ammannati Courtyard inside Palazzo Pitti. It’s an important appointment for wine lovers that will taste wine and oils purchasing the “tastings kit”, that includes a drink card, the goblet and a brochure.

In the gardens of Fortezza da Basso there will be “Fortezza Antiquaria” the renowned and big antiques market where you can find almost everything. At Sachall there will be “Artigianarte” a large market for arts&crafts, antiques and collectibles. Entrance costs euro 3,00 and it will open from 10am to 5pm on Saturday and Sunday.

Tuscany:

If you want to spend the weekend outside Florence, there are several Fairs of  White Truffles in Borgo San Lorenzo in the Mugello valley, in San Miniato and in San Giovanni d’Asso within the Crete D’Autunno 2010 festival.

If you love chocolate then in the medieval center of Certaldo there will be on Saturday and Sunday the Chocolate Fair. In Piazza Grande in Arezzo there will be “Sweet Autumn” where you will be able to buy and taste hand made chocolate, candies and bonbons. You will also have the chance to taste the “pan balestrone” a very ancient sweet typical of Arezzo, similar to Sienese panforte.

While I’m crossing my fingers for the weather not to rain, I wish you all a nice weekend!

As I wrote last week, November is the rainiest month in Tuscany. This week I almost thought I would have become a mermaid .  It luckily seems that the weather will be better during the weekend but unfortunately it’s not predictable. Here you have a selection of the main events in Florence and Tuscany.

Tastings and typical products:

In Florence there is the Food and Wine Biennial 2010 and from Friday to Saturday there will be the Market of Flavors and Crafts in Piazza della Repubblica and Piazza Strozzi from 9am to 8pm. There will also be the “Cantine del Leone”, free wine and oil tastings in several wineries of Chianti Colli Fiorentini.

From Saturday to Sunday in Bagno a Ripoli, few miles away from Florence, there will be Prim’Olio, olive oil market and tastings that have just been pressed in the Tuscan  countryside. In Scarperia, in the Mugello valley, there will be the Trade market of truffles and local products, as well as in San Miniato near Vinci, there will be the Market fair of white truffles, that are renowned all around Italy. Last but not least events related to Crete d’Autunno go on and this weekend in San Giovanni d’Asso there will be the Trade market of white truffles.

Arts and crafts:

For collectors, but also for shopping lovers, on Sunday November 14^th in Tavarnelle Val di Pesa in the Chianti region, there will be a nice antiques market, while in Piazza Santo Spirito in Florence there will be the Santo Spirito Fair, where you can buy hand-crafted products and artworks. In Asciano there will take place the Crete markets where you can find local had-crafted products, as well as you can taste local flood and wine.

Hoping that it won’t rain in the next few days I wish you all a nice weekend!