MAPPING TUSCANY

The Cala Violina cove keeps being voted one of Italy's best beaches. Not for its beach bars and deck chair rentals (there are none), but for its clean waters and beautiful location with views towards the isle of Elba. The main reason why the Cala Violina cove remains a natural paradise lies in the difficult access to it. The beach can be reached only via a footpath through the Mediterranean shrub. However, this doesn't mean the beach is exactly off the beaten path. A paid parking area has been set up, due to the growing fame of the bay in recent years. The hike doesn't seem to put people off. The tiny bay is called the violin cove because of the sound its fine sand makes when you walk on it. There is indeed a special sound to walking on it, but in summer you'll only be able to hear it if you tell my kids or the other Italians around to stop shouting around. HOW TO GET TO CALA VIOLINA BAY From Castiglione della Pescaia take the coastal road towards S...

Close to the border of Lazio, Tuscany's southernmost town resembles a Roman colony during July and August. Albeit not one with gladiators and soldiers, but with Rome's left-wing intelligentsia populating hillside bars and restaurants as much as the deck-chairs along Capalbio's endless beaches.  To balance things out, the seaside town Ansedonia a few kilometers up the Tuscan coast has been for decades the holiday destination of choice for the eternal city's right-wing fraction. These days it's hard to say whether this geo-political line  of division is still in place - with all the party hopping of Italian politicians it's impossible to discern which side they presently belong to. But whatever the current opinion of political visitors (a class of people also derisively called la casta - the caste),  Capalbio's own views have stubbornly stayed the same for centuries. 

Tuesday May 1 - Workers' day in Sant'Angelo Scalo near Montalcino The month starts full speed with a festival in Montalcino. No, not Brunello tasting (again!), but  donkey races   and anything else that will make sure you and your kids spend a fun international workers' day in Tuscany .  The festival can be reached on a steam train from Siena (read my post should you be interested in this or other  festivals paired with steam train traveling ).  Saturday May 5 - Italian Folk Music at Sant'Antimo Abbey A wonderful concert in an enchanting location: the male SAT choir singers will  present their latest program of Italian folk songs at Sant'Antimo Abbey near Montalcino. A video and the detailed program can be found on our Montalcino Blog . Rather go for some trekking? This spring's  Tuscany walking festival continues with two more dates in the Tuscan Archipelago National Park :  May 1- trekking, broad beans and Pecorino cheese on the I...

I've written about Tuscany's cultural hibernation before. So it's always a relief when in spring not just the plant world but also the event scene comes back to life. April doesn't just bring moody weather but traditionally opens the festival, food and wine fair season in Southern Tuscany. And luckily, from here on things will keep going strong for the following six months.  Spring at last

The island of Giglio seen from the Maremma National Park beach After a weekend of tension and prayers for the unaccounted passengers and crew members and the relentless hope that as many as possible will still be found alive, the focus is starting to shift. The Costa Concordia cruise ship disaster in front of the Tuscan Island of Giglio has asked 6 human lives so far (16 are still unaccounted for). But the human tragedy may also turn into an ecological nightmare for the Tuscan coastline and its nature reserves.