Pogni Castle: the remains of a medieval fortification

The Castle of Pogni, known in the past with the name of Pogna, was one of the most important advanced fortifications of the city of Semifonte in the Val d’Elsa. Semifonte was the most important castle of the feudal family of the Counts Alberti. This castle was the last imperial fortification to be defeated by the municipality of Florence in ...

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Montecatini Alto: a village in the Valdinievole

Montecatini Alto is located on a hill, 290 meters above sea level, which dominates the entire Valdinievole plain with an extraordinary panorama. The inhabited center of Montecatini Terme is located just below the village and can be reached by car in ten minutes or on foot, following a hilly path called “La corta” and finally via an ancient funicular. The ...

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Gambassi Terme: the thermal baths in the hills of the Val d’Elsa

Gambassi Terme is a well-known spa resort located in the hills overlooking the Val d’Elsa, in the province of Florence, which is 54 km away. Thanks to its position along important communication routes, such as the Etruscan road to Volterra or the Via Clodia between Siena and Lucca, the Gambassi area has been inhabited since ancient times, in the Middle ...

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Montecatini Terme: a famous Tuscan spa

Montecatini Terme, one of the most famous spa tourism destinations in Italy. It is located in the heart of the Val di Nievole, a short distance from the most important art cities of Tuscany such as Florence (40 km), Pisa (50 km), Siena (115 km), Lucca (30 km). Even the sea of Versilia is a short distance away, for example ...

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Greve in Chianti: ancient market place in Chianti

Greve in Chianti is a beautiful town located in a flat area among the Chianti hills in the province of Florence, which is about 30 km away. Greve in Chianti was born on the edge of the important communication networks that headed the via Volterrana and the via Francigena. Originally, in the 11th century, a small settlement was established on ...

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Suvereto: historic village overlooking the sea and the plain of the Cornia river

Suvereto, Livorno. Autore e Copyright Marco Ramerini

Suvereto is a delightful medieval village located between Piombino and Massa Marittima a short distance from the Tyrrhenian coast. From the top of the fortress, located 90 meters above sea level, it dominates the Tyrrhenian Sea and the plain below where the Cornia river flows. The village was a fief of the Aldobrandeschi and then belonged to the Principality of ...

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San Donato in Poggio: village in the Chianti hills

Located along the road that connects Tavarnelle Val di Pesa to Castellina in Chianti and just 6 km from the splendid Badia a Passignano, San Donato in Poggio is located 418 meters above sea level immersed in the typical Chianti countryside made up of hills with olive groves and vineyards. San Donato in Poggio is a walled village of ancient ...

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Tignano: a medieval castle in Barberino Val d’Elsa

The small village of Tignano, located on a hill facing the medieval village of Barberino Val d’Elsa, is a small castle dating back to the Middle Ages. According to some studies it seems that its existence has been established since the year one thousand. Of its ancient structures, the circular medieval plan is recognizable. Inside the small village you enter ...

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Walk in Chianti: between La Piazza and San Silvestro

La chiesa di San Silvestro con la finestra rotonda. Autore e Copyright Marco Ramerini

Written by Marco Ramerini. My friend Marcello Marcucci introduced me to a corner of our land that I did not know. With a splendid walk in the Chianti of almost 10 kilometers we crossed the area that is located between the provincial road 101, which connects San Donato to Castellina in Chianti, and the regional road 222, the Chiantigiana. This ...

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Versilia: pine forests, resorts and beaches

Versilia, that is the Tuscan coast between the mouth of the river Serchio and the city of Massa, with the towns of Viareggio, Forte dei Marmi, Camaiore and Pietrasanta in the center, is certainly the most famous coastal and holiday area in the region. Tourism along this stretch of coast began to develop in the 19th century, initially as a ...

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Monte Argentario: a spectacular promontory

The Torre delle Cannelle and the Punta di Torre Ciana, Monte Argentario, Grosseto. Author and Copyright Marco Ramerini

Monte Argentario is a promontory of southern Tuscany in the province of Grosseto, from which it is about 40 km away. Completely mountainous, the highest peak is Mount Telegrafo (635 meters), Monte Argentario is joined to the mainland by two sandbands: Tombolo of Giannella and Tombolo of Feniglia, inside which the Orbetello lagoon is located. The Argentario coast is high ...

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Saturnia: a spa with archaeological remains

Saturnia is a small town located on a high travertine rock at 294 meters high in the municipality of Manciano. The town is an important spa thanks to the presence of sulphurous water (37.5 ° C) which attracts people every year for sweat cures, muds etc. There are historical documents dating back to the XII century that already speak of ...

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Lucca: a city of art with Renaissance walls

Piazza dell'Anfiteatro, Lucca. Author and Copyright Marco Ramerini

Important historical city of Tuscany, Lucca has just over 80,000 inhabitants and is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the region. The city is located in the center of a flat area where the Serchio river flows. Lucca preserves a historic center of great value surrounded by a wonderful circle of walls over 4 km long, inside the ...

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Castiglione della Pescaia: medieval village on the sea

The medieval village of Castiglione della Pescaia. Author and Copyright Marco Ramerini

Castiglione della Pescaia, which is located just over 20 km from Grosseto, is one of the most beautiful medieval towns located along the coast of Tuscany. Coming from the north, it is advisable to exit the 4-lane Aurelia road in Follonica and from there, following the directions for Castiglione della Pescaia, continue for around 20 km along road no. 322 ...

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Maremma: land of swamps and tourist destination

Marsh, Maremma Park, Grosseto. Author and Copyright Marco Ramerini

The Grosseto Maremma is a vast area of southern Tuscany that includes practically the whole province of Grosseto. The territory of the Maremma inland ranges from the Metalliferous Hills to Mount Amiata, while along the coast it stretches between the Gulf of Follonica and the border with Lazio. Maremma is famous for the Butteri – mounted herder – who represent ...

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Sorano: a medieval village with a mighty fortress

The round tower in which traces of the disappeared drawbridge are still visible. Rocca degli Orsini, Sorano, Grosseto. Author and Copyright Marco Ramerini

Sorano is located a short distance from Pitigliano and Sovana, in the extreme south of Tuscany in the area known as “the Tufi area”. Sorano is a beautiful medieval village located along the valley of the Lente river, in a highly suggestive landscape, where dozens of tufaceous spurs with various and bizarre shapes are scattered. THE FORTRESS OF ORSINI The ...

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Vetulonia: one of the most important Etruscan cities

Roman road, Vetulonia. Author and Copyright Marco Ramerini

Vetulonia is today a small medieval village located a few kilometers from Castiglione della Pescaia. This small center of the Maremma, in Etruscan times, was one of the most important cities of Etruria. Located in the valley of the Bruna River in the immediate vicinity of what in the Etruscan era was Lake Prile. Vetulonia became an important Etruscan center ...

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Badia a Passignano: a fortified abbey

Badia a Passignano, Tavarnelle Val di Pesa, Florence. Author and Copyright Marco Ramerini

To reach Badia a Passignano, from Florence take the SGC Firenze-Siena (this road starts from the Firenze-Impruneta exit (ex-Florence-Certosa) of the A1) towards Siena, exit at Tavarnelle Val di Pesa. After the exit, turn right and after about 100 meters, after crossing the bridge over the Pesa river, turn right. Then continue along this road until you start to see ...

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Scarperia: knives and Mugello Circuit

The frescoed ceiling of the entrance courtyard of the Palazzo dei Vicari, Scarperia. Author and Copyright Marco Ramerini

Scarperia was founded in 1306 by the Republic of Florence, which decided to create a military outpost to guarantee connections from Florence to the north. The design of this new fortress was entrusted to the architect Andrea Pisano, it seems that he took part only in the construction of the palace-fortress seat of the vicars. The castle became the most ...

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Pistoia: a city with a valuable medieval center

The facade of the Cathedral of Pistoia. Author and Copyright Marco Ramerini

Pistoia is a city of over ninety thousand inhabitants located in a flat area (67 meters above sea level) in the center of a vast plain crossed by the Ombrone river. The city is located between the Apennines and Monte Albano. Among the activities taking place around the city, the most famous is that of nursery gardening. HISTORY The history ...

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Pescia: the city of flowers and paper

The baroque cathedral of Pescia, high in the background the village of Uzzano. Author and Copyright Marco Ramerini

Pescia has medieval origins, in fact it became a free municipality towards the end of the XII century, it was then subject to Lucca which, due to a rebellion, in 1281, destroyed it. In 1339 it became part of the Florentine possessions, in 1699 it was declared a city and then starting from 1726 it became a bishopric. In the ...

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Punta Ala: renowned seaside resort on the coast

The Scoglio dello Sparviero (or Troia) and the Scogli Porchetti (or Porcellini), Punta Ala, Castiglione della Pescaia. Author and Copyright Marco Ramerini

Punta Ala is a seaside holiday resort located in the municipality of Castiglione della Pescaia along the road that connects Castiglione della Pescaia to Follonica. This worldly center of the Maremma coast rises along a wooded promontory located between the Forte delle Rocchette and the port of Punta Ala. Along the promontory there was the border between the Grand Duchy ...

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Pari: an ancient castle of the Counts of Ardenghesca

Pari, Civitella Paganico, Grosseto. Author and Copyright Marco Ramerini

Pari is a very suggestive small village located between Siena and Grosseto, practically on the border between the two provinces which is marked here by the Farma river valley, a tributary of the Merse. Sometimes, due to its position, the village is also referred to as the place where the Maremma begins, although more often the real Maremma starts from ...

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Elba Island: the most famous of the archipelago

Golfo de Procchio, Marciana, Elba, Livorno. Autor y Copyright Marco Ramerini

The island of Elba is the largest island in the Tuscan archipelago, it measures 225 km² in area and has approximately 31,000 inhabitants. The island of Elba, in size, is, after Sicily and Sardinia, the third Italian island, and alone represents over two thirds of the total area of the islands of the Tuscan archipelago. Administratively the island is part ...

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Recipe: Schiacciata con l’uva (Crushes with grapes)

The “Schiacciata con l’Uva” or Crushes with grapes is a typical dessert of Tuscany. Particularly renowned is the one that is prepared in the Chianti hills south of Florence. The “Schiacciata con l’Uva” is prepared during the harvest period. To prepare it, it is preferable to use black grapes, in particular the one with small grains, that is the so-called ...

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