Yesterday I returned to Lari with the whole family to take part in the annual Cherry Festival.  We arrived late afternoon and the weather was perfect as the hot midday sun was low in the sky and it’s warm rays gave the town a beautiufl glow which was only outshone by the beautiful cherries on […]

Today Italy celebrates Liberation Day, when the country was freed from the fascist regime and Nazi occupation.  I live in San Niccolò and every year the local Circolo / ARCI (founded in 1957 and committed to promoting the rights of the most vulnerable) put on an incredible lunch for the neighbourhood under the San Niccolò Tower. […]

[ebook_store ebook_id=”5479″] April issue available for download now!  Click on the link above. April is a beautiful time to visit Tuscany.  Still cool in the mornings and evenings but if the sun is shining, you can be sure to experience perfect weather to go sight-seeing in the cities as well as the Tuscan country-side which […]

Carciofi or Artichokes are everywhere at the moment and there are so many ways to enjoy them.  I used to shy away from cooking with them as was unsure of the preparation and thought it too complicated and time-consuming which is so not true. When artichokes are at their best, they are so tender that […]

Even though it is still quite chilly in the mornings, Spring has started to show her gorgeous face with lots of sunshine, new flowers in bloom and new season fruit & vegetables in abundance!  People just seem to be happier too, walking around smiling as they soak up the first rays of the warmer sun. Here […]

On the 8th of March it is tradition to give all women a little bunch of Mimosa, a delicate, bright yellow flower to celebrate  the ‘Festa della Donna’  (International Women’s Day)   When I first saw this flower in abundance here, I was quite surprised as was sure that this was the Wattle tree and native only to […]

The Most Romantic Tuscan Town One morning in early February of 2017, as the sun was shining, I made a last-minute decision after dropping Thomas at day-care to take the 90-minute drive to the small town of Pienza, a town and comune in the province of Siena, located between the towns of Montepulciano and Montalcino in […]

Last week we decided to take advantage of the public holiday and travel to Arezzo to meet some friends for lunch and explore the ‘City of Christmas’ as Arezzo calls itself during the month of December.  With Christmas market, nativity scenes on show and even a special place where the children could write a letter […]