While I was finally able to get to my little house on the hills near Volterra, the stifling heat still persecutes all of us, making us wonder if there are places around where it's not so freaking hot. Thankfully our little homeland has plenty of them, carefully hidden from sight, back in the day, when the safest choice was just to find the most remote location possible. While Tuscany has plenty of charming monasteries that dot our hills, few are more special than the one that for more than a...

As we keep on exploring the unusual corners of this incredible land, I have decided to go back to one of the places of my childhood. Many years ago my parents brought me to a little town between Florence and Lucca to go to a theme park dedicated to one of the most famous children books on the planet. To be perfectly honest I never really liked it: I've always found it a bit preachy but countless children all over the world can't be all wrong. I came back home a bit disappointed but the place...

Early July in Tuscany is all about surviving the heat, dreaming about being on the beach or anywhere but the office. Things are very different in a picturesque town of the interior, where everyone's mind is focused completely on an ancient festival that is the only game in town. Despite being around for more than seven centuries, this is so much more than a horse race for the people, it's the only thing that matters. In order to figure out why they're so attached to this ancient tradition we...

Summer in Tuscany is a truly glorious season, even if sometimes it gets really hot and muggy. If you're lucky enough to be in this neck of the woods, you'll be spoilt for choice between many fairs, events that are sometimes quite quirky. Last year we talked to you about the Gioco del Ponte, the reverse tug of war on one of Pisa's most famous bridges, an event so unusual that baffles foreigners since the Middle Ages. Up the Arno, the main rival of the city of the Leaning Tower had plenty of...

The weather isn't great these days but summer is right around the corner and chances are it's going to hit hard. When temperatures and humidity rise way above what normal human beings consider bearable, any Tuscan only wants to do one thing: head for the hills to get some fresh air. What if you're just passing through? A day trip might be the answer. Right, now you only have to decide where to go between the hundreds of great places Tuscany has to offer. If you're spoiled for choice, let me...

No matter how much we Tuscans believe that everyone comes here because we're lovely people, chances are that people that land in our region come here because they love our food and wine. We might cringe thinking about it, but we tend to agree. The problem is that this land is so varied that you can't just know every single specialty. There is stuff that is well known here and completely ignored just a few miles away. This means that even someone like myself, born and raised in Tuscany can...

In the past we've talked several times about the odd harbour town that looks and feel nothing like Tuscany. We've explored its famous coffee punch, the street food, its rivalry with the neighbouring Pisa but we have never talked about the odd monument that is so close to the hearts of livornesi. Its story is quite curious and not well known outside of town, as the many controversies that surround it since it was commissioned in the 16th century. That is why this week What's Up Tuscany will...

While we like to say that things never change in Tuscany, going back to the places of your youth is always a mixed bag. You'd like for everything to stay just the same as you remember it but, sometimes, you're up for a pleasant surprise. Last time I was in Pisa I went back to one of the places I loved the most when I was in university, an old coffee house that reeked of history. We didn't go there because the coffee was great, but because we wanted to be part of that great tradition. That...

In this episode we will go back to one of our original missions: shed some light into the least known corners of this land and tell you what makes them so special. In Tuscany it's still possible to just bump into amazing stuff, as it happened to me many years ago while I was roaming the back roads of my region on my motorcycle. The place is, frankly, baffling: what does a great cathedral, a lovely piazza and many ancient palaces do in a town literally in the middle of nowhere? As it happens...

After a few weeks we come back to talk about the amazing history of this land, one that Tuscans are generally very fond of. While it's true that many other places can boast about a rich past, what makes this place different is that ancient events always find a way to sneak into everyday life. There are Tuscans squabbling about battles happened centuries ago! Despite this, many of the more interesting events about this land are unknown to many. Few people, for example, know that up until the...

The worst question you can ask to any Tuscan is also one of the most popular: "what should I absolutely see next time I come to visit". Talk about a fool's errand. There is hardly a town in this region that would't deserve to be explored. Some of the loveliest places are sometimes overlooked just because they are close to more popular places. Think about one of the main towns in the Valdelsa. It's very pretty and full of interesting stuff to do but it's so close to San Gimignano that most...

There are few places in the world that are as deadly serious as we Tuscans are when it comes to defending our traditions. While it is untrue that this land is nothing but an open-air museum, every little change causes enormous backlash by people that believe tradition to be absolutely paramount. Despite this, things change in Tuscany as well. Sometimes stuff disappears into thin air, grinded down by the relentless march of time. When it involves things that are near and dear to so many...

While at first the idea of having hundreds of episodes dedicated to a relatively small region sounded preposterous, the more we delve into Tuscan history, the more surprises we bump into. Take, for example, a place like Pisa: I've gone to college there and almost every day I went into one of Italy's best piazzas, Piazza dei Cavalieri. Little did I know that the small church right next to the imposing Palazzo della Carovana hosts a veritable treasure trove for history buffs like yours truly....

After spending more than two years trying to figure out what it is that makes Tuscany so uncommonly beloved around the world, the sensation to be missing something obvious is quite strong. With all the art, amazing food, wonderful vistas and great wine, this region is still greater than its parts. Maybe a way to get some insight is to look at some of the people that made Tuscany so famous and see what made them tick. Some of these people have been so great to forever change the landscape....

As we have a reputation for enjoying the good things in life and never taking ourselves too seriously, you might think that Tuscany is not a very spiritual place. Well, you'd be very wrong. As much as we like to be contrarian, our roots are firmly into tradition and religion. Aside from the many beautiful churches, there are many places in our region that are perfect for prayer and meditation. Few are as popular as arguably the most famous monastery, home to a certain Saint Francis. In order...

Now that Spring is finally upon us, the temptation to leave everything behind and just go out to enjoy the weather is sometimes overwhelming. Thankfully, the calendar comes around to help with Tuscany's favourite holiday of all times, Easter. While it is not as heartfelt as it used to be back in the day, it's still a great time to come out, celebrate and go around the region to find out interesting corners and historic celebrations. This is why, rather than delving deep into yet another...

Despite the great wealth of interesting and fascinating corners our homeland has to offer, the main reason many people come to Tuscany is to visit the most famous landmarks and experience the beautiful things that made this land famous all over the world. Few of these places are as packed of incredible things as the imposing museum stuck between the Arno and Palazzo Vecchio in downtown Florence. Despite it being one of the most visited places in the world, thanks to the amazing masterpieces...

Now that spring is literally around the corner, time to dust up your light jackets and respond to the call of the wild. For Italians the answer can only be one: a "gita fuori porta". This centuries old tradition quite literally mean "small trip outside the gate", as back before mass motorization the farthest you could go on a day trip was close to your hometown. Now that the range of our escapades has increased vastly, you're spoilt for choice. Allow us to help you with a suggestion, one of...

When the weather is nice and warm, one of my favourite things to do when I was younger was to pick up my motorcycle and explore the little villages in my region. The back roads of Tuscany are charming and lead you to many special places, but in order to discover some of the hidden gems you need to do a bit of homework. Many years ago I visited the village of Montespertoli, not far from Florence, and I found it rather unremarkable. Little did I know that the tower on the hill that dominates...

While the calendar might be telling us that we're very close to spring, the weather begs to differ. That's probably why our minds wander beyond the equinox, towards Tuscany's favourite season, summer. Every family has their preference when it comes to where you spend your holidays but for most Tuscans, summer means sun and sea in the Versilia region. The funny thing is that possibly the poshest resort in the area didn't actually exist until a couple centuries ago. What is now one of the most...

With Ash Wednesday behind us, Catholics all over the world get ready for Lent, the 40 days period where the faithful are supposed to do penance for their sins by abstaining from all sorts of pleasurable activities. While nowadays is nowhere near as strict as it was once in the day, Tuscans have never been big fans of this time of mandatory suffering. While, in theory, the idea to cleanse yourself after the Carnival overdose of partying and food, spending so much time mortifying the flesh...

If I asked each and every one of you, chances are that mountains and snow are not something that you would normally associate with Tuscany. That is a bit weird, considering that a sizeable part of our region is occupied by the Appennines. While most Tuscans definitely prefer our lovely sea, those who go crazy about skiing have a domestic option rather than spending time and money to travel to the Alpine resorts. This remarkable town was born in the 18th century as a frontier post but it...

Maybe you're not aware of it but our little Tuscany podcast is about to celebrate two years on the air. While we changed a couple of times our format, focussing more on timeless content rather than regular news, we've always stayed true to our original mission: spreading love and knowledge for our beloved homeland as far and wide as humanly possible. While having a look at our archive, which by the way will remain online for the foreseeable future, we realised that we haven't talked about one...

During a poll we conducted on our Twitter profile we realised that one of the things you were curious about our beloved Tuscany was to know the quirkiest places, those hidden spots that only locals know about. We thought long and hard before coming up with a serious candidate for the crown of most peculiar village in Tuscany. Hidden in the hills above Pistoia, this tiny hamlet has a very odd name; it's known as the Valley of the Elves. It has nothing to do with the Lord of the Rings or...

As we are a bilingual podcast we have some problems that are quite uncommon for content creators. What to do when your Italian audience is all about our great food while the international audience cares most about wine? You find a way to satisfy both, which is exactly what we did this week. On top of a great dessert that has been making Tuscans happy since the Renaissance, we'll also talk about the ancient liquor that is instrumental in making it. Both these products come with a fair amount...