Tuscany (for the uninformed) is the land of Chianti Wine. It has
gently rolling hills which are less green, less clean, with more
trees, more houses and more litter than the Scottish countryside.
Every hilltop has a medieval looking castle or bougainvailla'd (sp?)
creepers, the kind where Frances Mayes would have penned 'Under the
Tuscan Sun'.I think I saw vineyards (atleast that is what my
rudimentary knowledge of the back-end processing of wines seemed to
indicate). In the country-side, the houses are of brown brick or stone
with red-tiled roofs.
While Florence is an indelibly Renaissance city...
Tuscany (for the uninformed) is the land of Chianti Wine. It has
gently rolling hills which are less green, less clean, with more
trees, more houses and more litter than the Scottish countryside.
Every hilltop has a medieval looking castle or bougainvailla'd (sp?)
creepers, the kind where Frances Mayes would have penned 'Under the
Tuscan Sun'.I think I saw vineyards (atleast that is what my
rudimentary knowledge of the back-end processing of wines seemed to
indicate). In the country-side, the houses are of brown brick or stone
with red-tiled roofs.
While Florence is an indelibly Renaissance city, Siena is more medieval in
character. The main centre of Siena is called 'Il Campo'. This is where
the famed 'Il Palio' races are held every year (Right in the middle of the
square - short races indeed. Il Palio, btw, means silk banner. So now
you know where the name for both the 'Fiat' models in India come
from). The square is slightly sloping and has a town hall on one side
which has a tall bell tower (which is the signature image of Siena.
When you see the photographs, you will remember). The other side is
dotted with streetside cafes and restaurants. I sat down in one,
ordered a ridiculously overpriced birra, and enjoyed the december sun,
watching the elegantly dressed italians walking their even more
elegantly dressed dogs in the square. There were large number of
tourists (the first major place where I saw lots. There were none in
Sicilia) like me with their LPs or Rough Guides in hand, wandering
from one place to another.
The Cathedral (12th century) is as breath taking as any in Italy with
a graceful marble white exterior and beautifully inlaid floors in the
interior. Ofcourse, the ceiling and stained glass are as beautiful as
always. But what is even more interesting is the fact that in the 14th
Century the town decided to make one of italy's largest churches.
Ofcourse given Italian efficiency (similiar to Indian efficiency) the
plan never materialised but one huge wall is remnant of that failed
plan. One can, for an extremely steep ticket, climb the narrow steep
stairs upto the top of that wall. After having climbed those
breathless 131 steps I was left even more breathless by the view the
top afforded. Of the entire red tiled city and the bell tower of the
civic hall and numerous other churches. All this against the backdrop
of the rolling Tuscany hills.
Siena town itself has a beautiful character with narrow inclined
cobbled streets and it is such a small town that a five minute walk
gets one out in the country side. The view of the hills and the
greenery all around was really a beautiful sight.
Another town where I spent a day was Cortona (suggested by a fellow
traveller). It is about an hour from Firenze by train (and then a 15
minute bus ride). I was the sole person on the bus and the driver did
not have any tickets so he stopped a bus in front of an Edicola
(newspaper kiosk, where Bus tickets are also available) and waited for
me while the traffic behind him kept on honking. The slowly winding
and scenic road got us to Cortona which is is situated atop a little
hill from where one gets 360 degree views of the Tuscan country side.
Unfortunately it was a bit misty so I did not get to see Lago di
Trasimeno (which my trusty LP said I could see from there).
There are olive groves and vine terraces all round with narrow cobbled
winding steep streets (there is only one street in the whole of
Cortona that is level). Cortona is such a small town (pop 22k) that
there seemed to be more churches than people. There were a few
tourists but all italian who had come to soak in the Tuscan sun (btw,
the film was shot here).
While I was lunching at a Trattoria, there was a family with 6
children on the next table. The father of this brood of half-a-dozen
looked just like Robert De Niro and for some reason he kept on staring
at me throughout the meal (maybe Mr. De Niro wanted to offer me a part
in his next movie!). Sadly no such Judy Garland moment happened for me
and Mr. De Niro did not even come to talk to me :(
On the way back to the station, I got the same bus driver. I then
realized that he was extremely popular with all the women (he did have
a sort of Marcello M. look with swanky shades) as all the members of
the fairer sex would wave to him and he would (with a very very
practiced move) give them a slight nod of the head. Waves were
reserved for only the extremely belle ragazze.
When I checked into my hotel in Firenze, the gentleman told me that
they only had an attic room but that I would like it. With hesitation,
I agreed to take the room. One had to climb steep narrow stairs to
reach it. When I finally saw the room, the hotel person did not miss
my look of disgust. He then opened the window and asked 'Well?'. I was
too stunned to respond. I had a complete view of the Florence skyline
(with the Duomo) to myself. Waking up in the morning (to the bells of
the Duomo) and opening my window to what is unarguably one of the
prettiest sights in the world certainly made this trip even more
worthwhile.
I had missed 'David' (by Michelangelo.Duh) in my previous trip so I
decided to make up for it and went to the Galleria D'Accademicia) and
after the 6.5E ticket did finally manage to see what the fuss was all
about - The sculpture is so much larger than one imagines it to be
(especially when one knows that it was sculpted out of a single piece
of marble). The details on the sculpture are extremely mindboggling -
Michelangelo used to cut up dead bodies to know more about the human
anatomy. He sculpted this when he was only 29. I had nothing home to
write about at 29 (still dont!). Anyways, now I can say with pride
that I have seen the 3 prime creations of Michelangelo (Sistine
Ceiling, Pieta and David). Having already seen the Uffizi gallery and
its stunning Renaissance collection during my previous visit, I
skipped it this time. The serpentine queue outside the gallery proved
my decision correct.
The view of Piazza Della Signoria is still a sight to behold with the
fountain of Neptune and the spot where Savvonarola was hung and burnt.
And as grand as ever was the walk down the Ponte Vecchio right across
the Arno (which fyi, is like any other European 'river'. So narrow
that a 10 year old could, without effort, throw a stone across it)
right upto Piazza Michelangelo from where one gets a stunning view of
the Florentine skyline (with the Duomo and the Tower (Torre DÃ Arnolfo)
of the Palazzo Vecchio. Btw, am currently reading a book on the
building of the massive Dome of the Duomo (which was an architectural
marvel) and this has helped me appreciate the beauty of Firenze even
more. The Bronze doors of the Baptistery (where all Florentines were
baptized) are made of pure bronze (14th C) and weigh 10 Tonnes (they
are called the 'Doors of Paradise').
Firenze was also where, sadly, I heard the first American tourists.
('Man Oh Man, This is really cool. And its so old!'). But then
thankfully, it is the off-tourist season! Could have been much worse.
Next stop Bologna followed by Milan. As I move northward across Italy,
the people are becoming taller, richer, and more fur-clad. Sadly, it
is become colder and colder :(
Good to Know : In any Italian cafe, it is cheaper to stand and
eat-drink rather than sit. Which is why most cafes will have a crowd
near the bar area with empty chairs.
Highlight of the last few days : Spotting a Sardarji on the Arezzo
Railway Station
(Dec, 2006)
