from April 2005
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Insider's Tuscany
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22. Travel through time
"Walking the streets of Volterra you can see nearly three millennia of architecture—from the Etruscans to the baroque," says Gabriele Cateni, director of the world-class Museo Guarnacci of Etruscan Art. "The city has a historical density unusual even in Italy. Of course, all this history can make life very complicated: Renovations in our museum recently uncovered a rare Etruscan roadway, which has become one of our exhibits."
23. Visit an enchanted garden"It's like stumbling on a Gaudí cathedral in the middle of the forest." Thus Rosa Preziuso, a graphic artist specializing in mosaics, describes her very first visit to Il Giardino dei Tarocchi, deep in the south Tuscan countryside. Here you'll come across 22 fabulous monumental sculptures inspired by the Tarot and encrusted with brilliant mosaics. "You just can't believe your eyes—and you can't help but carry that image of paradise in your heart long afterward."
24. Catch your keep with Paolo
Park guide Paolo Fanciulli (+39 328 202 6759 or +39 333 284 6199) organizes eco-friendly fishing—as well as land—tours of his native seacoast in the Uccellina wildlife preserve, crowned by a grilled dinner from the bounty of his nets. "Paolo combines outdoor adventure, ecology, the thrill of the chase, and a fine meal," says Faith Willinger, self-proclaimed Tuscan-American and author of Eating in Italy. "Plus he offers tastes of little-known delicacies you'd never find in markets—even in Italy."
25. Witness a Renaissance pearl
Pienza is harmoniously picture-perfect—and for good reason. The entire town was planned from scratch and built by the great Renaissance architect Bernardo Rossellino. But its beauty is more than simply skin deep. "There's an incredible magnetism about this place," says local leather craftsman Valerio Truffelli (Bottega Artigiana del Cuoio, Corso Il Rossellino 58; no tel.). "It is an intensely human landscape that somehow manages to raise all the big questions involving life, death, and love."
26. Tour the Tuscan peaks
"The Alpi Apuane are full-fledged Alps—nothing like those foothills they call the Apennine," says poet Nicola Dal Falco of this mountainous, pine-clad area of northwest Tuscany. "It's a region of strange beauty, where mountains of marble dance against the backdrop of the sea." Drive the winding roads past the villages of Fantiscritti and Colonnata, whose quarries have produced the raw materials for millennia of art masterpieces, or hike and climb with ace Alpine guide Roberto Vigiani.
27. Watch an everyday drama
All the world really is a stage in the off-the-beaten-track Tuscan village of Monticchiello, population around 300, where each summer as well as during Christmastime most of the residents perform in town plays written about the joys and trials of their daily lives. "When we are on stage, we see new sides of each other—and of ourselves," says Andrea Cresti, writer and director of the Teatro Povero di Monticchiello (+39 057 875 5118). "Most of the time it's a craftiness, strength, or good-heartedness we never dreamed was there."
28. Soak up some relaxation"It's been called the most beautiful spa in the most beautiful place in the world," says Franco Picchieri, mayor of San Casciano dei Bagni. "I agree, but I'm biased: I was born here." Fonteverde offers a range of health and beauty treatments—plus a grand view of vintage Tuscan countryside. Or bathe amid gardens for free at the hot springs below San Casciano.
29. Enjoy a whole new slice of life
"The knives of Scarperia aren't mere cutting tools," says local historian Andrea Gatti. "Over 500 years they've evolved into objects of great beauty, each a handmade sculpture of polished horn, hardwood, and mother of pearl. One model, the amorosa, is exchanged by young people as a love token." You can see these knives at Saladini and watch the master craftsmen work; Berti and CONAZ.
30. Try a Tuscan essenceThe Officina Profumo-Farmaceutica di Santa Maria Novella (Via della Scala, 16, Florence) isn't your average pharmacy. "It's a bit like entering Paradise," says Count Gaddo della Gherardesca, a 36th-generation Tuscan and connoisseur of fine living. "From the flurry of the street you enter a realm of exhilarating scents, classical music, frescoes, and fine woodwork. I come here for my favorite aftershave, but also for the sheer inebriation of the senses."
31. Drive a world-class roadThe Orcia Valley in southern Tuscany was just made a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and rightly so. "I've driven many beautiful roads," says Carlo Accame, who travels the world as a United Nations election monitor, returning to his family farm and agriturismo in nearby Chiusi. "But in my mind no others match the road from Sarteano to Pienza via La Foce, or San Quirico to Radicofani through Bagno Vignoni."
32. Browse a local market
"Tuscan markets come in all sizes and personalities," says photographer Andrea Pistolesi, author of the forthcoming pictorial tour of Italian markets, Mercati e Mercanti. "And they aren't just for shopping. People catch up on local gossip, and decide the evening's menu based on what's freshest. One of my favorites is at Greve in Chianti each Saturday, where the porticoes of the main square form the perfect stage for this weekly drama."
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