MAPPING TUSCANY

All of Tuscany seems off-the-beaten path in winter and not even the Uffizi will boast the usual crowds and queues. So imagine how quiet things get in my Tuscan village, where American and Japanese tourists don't even come through in high season. But one night every February, a barbecue is installed on Cinigiano's town square and the line in front of it will be longer than the one at the Vatican. Winter being cold in southern Tuscany too, lots of red wine will have to be drunk to warm up whilst watching the locals prepare the rivolti , an incredibly basic flour and water only pancake totally appropriate for the start of lent. But Cinigiano being Tuscan - and hence communist at heart - lent isn't taken too seriously, so expect plenty of wine, polenta and fried sausages. CINIGIANO - NOTTE DEI RIVOLTI, WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 17, 2015  Dress warm and arrive early (before 7.30 pm) to avoid the polenta queue. Not here in winter? Visit Cinigiano and its Montecucco wines  during t...

Roman ruins are all over the place in Italy and locals normally stifle a yawn when zealous archaeologists lecture about the discovery of yet another Roman villa or thermal bath. Science  has managed to puzzle together every minute detail of the modus vivendi of the Roman upper class, b ut things are very different when it comes to the majority of the population, since surprisingly little is known about the living conditions of the Roman farmer.      During the last years groups of Brits and Americans hailing from the universities of Cambridge and Pennsylvania have tried to fill this enormous gap in a joint venture called the Roman Peasant Project together with the universities of  Siena and Grosseto  ( I've written about the strange sudden influx of young attractive foreigners the project brought to our Tuscan backwater  before). The team under scientific director Kim Bowes has been digging through the fields around Cinigiano summer after summer with...

If you've been quietly following my photo stream on Instagram or Facebook , you may have been wondering about the exact location of the Sunday walks we've been taking this spring.  Not that I'd tell you.  I prefer to keep the hills of our valley to ourselves. Just the thought of a fellow hiker getting to the wild asparagus a few minutes before me; or a loud American tour group spoiling our calm morning in the fields...

Cinigiano, my Tuscan village, is off-the-beaten path. And that's exactly why I love it. So the last thing I expect when having a drink at one of the local bars is a crowd of young fashionable looking Americans and Brits doing just the same. Which is exactly what happened to me last  summer. My Tuscan father-in-law spends his whole days at the bar playing cards and my brother-in-law doesn't play cards but nevertheless can always be found at the local bar. They looked as surprised as me when they spotted the flock of young foreigners. To say the least I was WORRIED. Had Cinigiano suddenly moved ON the beaten track?! And if so why?  The relief came once I started eavesdropping on their conversation. The trendy looking youngsters didn't talk about the best Prada or Gucci outlets near Florence and neither were they on the look-out for a cheap hostel. To my utter surprise they were talking archaeology, diligently discussing the findings of their day in a Roman dig near...

Cinigiano's town square snowed in (a once in a century event)  The amazing quantities of snow in Tuscany have started to melt away, just in time to free our village's lovely main square for a winter outdoors event. It's a village tradition to celebrate the first day of lent (after all we just got used to celebrating during carnival, so why stop at lent?) with a hearty Tuscan dinner under the stars.  Rivolti (a local pancake made of solely of water and flour), hand-made polenta, Tuscan sausages, wine & a warming fire. Just the things one needs to get over the end of carnival and summon up some energy to sail through the last weeks of winter.  Dress warm and bring a healthy appetite. NOTTE DEI RIVOLTI 2012 , Cinigiano, Piazza Guglielmo Marconi, Wednesday 22nd of February, from 6pm till your feet start freezing off.  My Tuscan village is a 40 minutes drive from Grosseto (inland towards Monte Amiata) and an hour from Siena (driving towards Paganico...

I'm on a secret mission. After a sleepless night I mustered the courage to do something I'm not supposed to do. At least according to my Tuscan native. I'm going to b log about MONTICELLO's FESTA DELLA CASTAGNA (the local chestnut festival). But shhhhh, don't you dare telling my better half! If you insist in reading this blog certain things will just have to stay between you and me.  Never heard of the notorious Tuscan Campanilismo ? If you want to experience it for real come to Cinigiano. Part of the council's territory includes Monticello. A miserable and cold little village on top of an unwelcoming mountain, populated by a bunch of half-wits.  Which is my Tuscan native's description of the town, who - it goes without saying - is not from Monticello. He is from Cinigiano, pure blood. And his statement is in line with the view of the rest of the Cinigianesi - the 500 people who were fortunate enough to have been born and raised a full 10 kilometer...

Cinigiano - Festa dell'Uva Harvest festival 2011 No better time to become infatuated with my beloved Tuscan village than this weekend. Most of the 500 inhabitants are in some way or another involved in the Festa dell'uva, the annual wine harvest festival. 

Without doubt one of the best places to truly understand the Tuscans and to get to know the Tuscan food is not a restaurant but one of the many occasions when villages or towns organize a Sagra (local festivity) or any other event that involves food.