Experience a truly enchanting holiday in one of my Tuscan Villas
Pienza, a town and commune in the Siena province, in the Val d’Orcia in Tuscany , between the towns of Montepulciano and Montalcino, is the “touchstone of Renaissance urbanism.”
In 1996, UNESCO declared the town a World Heritage Site, and in 2004 the entire valley, the Val d’Orcia, was included on the list of UNESCO’s World Cultural Landscapes.
Annually on december 8 the AILO ( International no-profit association holds) a Christmas bazaar in Florence, donating the earnings to support various charities in the Florence region. Each year many English language second hand books from this bazaar, and also from St. James Church in Florence, are left unsold.
Two years ago Democrats Abroad delivered these book sto Lucca and they were donated to the Melograno Library, which now has a huge collection.
To reach out to a wider geographic area, this year more than 600 books have been given to the Jaqueline’s second hand bookstore and internet point in Bagni di Lucca ( Ponte a Serraglio) 165 additional books have been earmarked for two local projects.
The aim i sto finance, with the help of Grapevine, a scholarship to pay a year’s tuition ( approximatly 600,00 euros) for a student at Lucca’s Boccherini Music school.
The other charity we wish to supporti s Silvana Sciortino, an association of Lucca women dedicated to helping in the fight against breast cancer. Lucca’s Campo di Marte Hospital is in the farfront of breast cancer research and has been chosen by the European Parliament for a special breast cancer unit.
Following the terrible events around l’Aquila at Eastertime, there is still an enormous need for funds to support the ongoing work of re-housing famiglie and returning the community to some kind of normality.
In Italy donations can be safely made to Red Cross Italy (CRI) either.
1. By credit card on line through the CRI web site: www.cri.it/donazioni.html ( or any Red Cross site)
2. By bank account Donation s to Conto Corrente Banacario n° 218020 at the Banca Nazionale del Lavoro filiale di Roma Bissolati, Tesoreria via San Nicola da Tolentino 67, Roma. Payments should be made out to Croce Rossa italiana, Via Toscana 12 – 00187 Roma. IBAN: IT66 C010 0503 3820 0000 0218 020. Indicate that payment is Pro Terremoto Abruzzo.
3. Through the Post Office Donations to Conto Corrente Postale n. 300004 made out to Croce Rossa Italiana, Via Toscana 12 – 00187 Roma. IBAN: IT24 X076 0103 2000 0000 0300 004. Indicate that payment is Pro Terremoto Abruzzo.
A large loaf, usually weighing about two kilos or more, Altopascio bread is typically Tuscan. It i san axcellent accompaniment for all kinds of disse. When it is a few days old, or even when it is a dry, it can still be used for the preparation of hundreds of delicious recipes.
It is made from flour that has not been totally refined and, because it is unsalted, it goes extremely well with the tasty cold meats and cheeses in Tuscany.
This type of bread used to be made in the home once a week, but now local bakers make it with the same simplicity, care and dedication of times gone by.
In Altopascio as long ago as the Middle Ages, the bakers at the Tau Hospice had to ensure the bread was always available to feed the pilgrims as they travelled along the Francigena. It has remarne the symbol of hospitality and welcome and is a centuries-old tradition that continue sto this day.
The town of Altopascio is the leader of the National association “Città del Pane”.
Welcome in Tuscany, awaiting you are more than six tundre kilomtres of coastline, the Apennine mountains gently sloping hills and then rivers and green valleys, a context that can provide a backdrop to all activies, to any passion that you may want to carry out.
The possibilities are endless, the combinations of sports and tourism reserve ubforgettable surprises, and however concetrated you are on your activity, you won’t be able to without casting a glance at everything that surronuds you, boosting your emotions and multiplying your memories.
For everybody yearning for a solida and a bit of relaxation, but who after a couple of hours lazing around feel like prisoners, we have some very interesting ideas.
How about a course that unites movement with learning on the Island of Capraia? Well, you could learn the difficult art of nature photography, while on the nearby Island of Giannutri you will be offered a course in bird watching, as well as the tempting opportunity to visit the Roman Villa and learn to cook fish like in the island’s restaurants.
For thoose constantly on the go, there are walks in cities of art like Siena, and cycling on the tracks scattered about the spectacular countryside of the Crete.
But also visits to castles and glimpse over ancient remains from the Lunigiana to the Chianti area.