Tuscany – Page 2

Pazzi Chapel Restoration

Posted November 20, 2014 by Sharon Leave a Comment

Commissioned by the Pazzi family, the Chapel

Ornate sculpted rosettes, terracotta cherubim roundels and the colourful tin-glaze terracotta by Luca della Robbia decorate the interior of the Pazzi Chapel loggia. It is built in pietra serena, a grey sandstone that, by its very nature, tends to crumble over time.

By Walter Sanders

Many fortunate lovers of Renaissance art journey to Florence, but few get to the splendid Pazzi Chapel—one of architect Filippo Brunelleschi’s 15th Century masterworks–part of the complex of the Basilica of Santa Croce. If you have been to the Pazzi recently, you may have noticed the façade is in need of some repair. After 650 years, who wouldn’t need a little touch up?

The video in the Kickstarter campaign launched by the nonprofit Opera di Santa Croce paints a loving portrait of a jewel. The Opera is seeking donations to match the 50 percent of the funding it has already raised.

I’ll focus on what the Pazzi Chapel means to me. I first experienced it as an art history master’s student. Viewing it from the courtyard, I was underwhelmed. The façade looked severe, and a little top heavy, with the illusion of the tall porch and cupola being supported by impossibly spindly columns.

But there’s something transformative about entering the Chapel. I felt serenity, order, cool spatial integrity. I was amazed how hushed the interior was, muffling clamor from nearby Piazza Santa Croce. And, over time, I learned to love the façade.

I worked inside Santa Croce, at the Scuola del Cuoio (The Leather School), and lived just off the square. Santa Croce and the Pazzi Chapel became integral aspects of my daily life. In some respects, the Pazzi Chapel became a personal escape, a calm island. I needed only to look at it to feel the peace.

Sharon and I met in Santa Croce, and four years later married there. No, not in the Pazzi Chapel but in the Medici Chapel in the adjacent sanctuary of the Basilica.

The Pazzi means a great deal to us, and we are helping to support the renovation (#crazyforpazzi).

Do you have a Pazzi story? Share it here and please consider a contribution to help restore this Renaissance treasure.

Tuscany Tours 2015

Posted November 4, 2014 by Sharon Leave a Comment

Is 2015 the year for your Tuscan dream to come true?

Escape with SimpleItaly to the private Villa Pipistrelli!

Few experiences are as memorable as sharing time and a spectacular destination with an intimate group of friends, colleagues, or grown-up family.

This intimate curated adventure is all about cultural immersion, relaxation, and good times. You’ll feel as if Villa Pipistrelli is your home because you’ll unpack once and “move in” for a week of wonders . . .

• Pecorino cheese-making demonstration and tasting.

• Olive oil comparison blind tasting.

• Watercolor painting class.

• Pasta making session and tasting.

• Wine estate tour with tasting.

• Magnificent medieval Siena—home of the Palio—and a private tour of the Brucco contrada with author Dario Castagno.

• Outing to the stunning hill town of Montepulciano.

• Presentation on the restoration of Villa Pipistrelli conducted by antiques expert Susan Pennington.

• Lavish buffet breakfasts and gourmet evening meals prepared by a private chef at Villa Pipistrelli.

• Free time to explore Montestigliano, the 2,500-acre Tuscan estate on which Villa Pipistrelli is tucked away.

• Social time with author Jennifer Criswell and other English-speaking experts on the culture, cuisine, and lifestyle.

Click here for the full itinerary to make 2015 the year for your Tuscan dream to come true!

Four week-long itineraries are reserved for you to choose from:
April 11–18, 2015
April 18–25, 2015
October 3–10, 2015
October 10–17, 2015

Little Shop in Florence

Posted June 17, 2014 by Sharon 2 Comments

Just off the luxury goods trail in Florence, Sandra’s little shop beckons with hidden “treasures.”

Ferragamo didn’t need to open its Salvatore Ferragamo Museo just for me. I approach all the luxury goods temples—Prada, Roberto Cavalli, Bulgari–on Florence’s stylish Via Tornabuoni with a gaze-in-awe-but-don’t-touch reverence. Owning these baubles is not for me but I can admire the artistry as I would the masterworks in a museum.

So, imagine my surprise on a blindingly sunny morning in April when I wandered a few footsteps east of the Salvatore Ferragamo Museo on peaceful Via B. SS. Apostoli to discover a shop called Sandra.

Gorgeous globe artichokes fresh from Sandra’s garden.

At 41r, tucked into a street level space no wider than a train car, Sandra was honoring her store motto: “di tutto un pò un pò di più” (a little of everything and a little more). Surrounding the entrance were crates of fruits, vegetables, braids of garlic, copper pots, painted wooden plaques, bunches of dried flowers. Sandra said she had plucked the artichokes from her garden that morning.

Stepping over the threshold was like entering a time machine back to Florence of 30, 40, or 50 years ago. On the shelves and from the ceiling were household items, oils, vinegars, herbs, jewelry, collectibles, petite chandeliers. Every centimeter offered a new treasure.

Sandra occupied the space behind the glass refrigerated display case at the back. It was stocked with salume and formaggi, no doubt to fortify serious Sandra shoppers who might want to inspect everything on the premises.

Wild fragolini and their hybrid cousins.

I wondered to myself how Sandra could afford the rent in this alta moda area given the price points of the merchandise. As I paid for my lovely little olive wood mortar and pestle and fragolini (tiny sweet wild strawberries—the only strawberries that would have been in a Florence market 30, 40, or 50 years ago), I said a silent “grazie” to Sandra for having di tutto up pò.

Sandra, Via B. SS. Apostoli, 41r, Firenze, (055) 28.34.10

Gelato in Florence

Posted May 20, 2014 by Sharon Leave a Comment

Gelato maestro Toni Cafarelli churns out sweet memories at Il Re Gelato.

On my recent three-day stay in Florence, I sampled a pair of artisinal gelaterie that I’ve been hearing about. Years ago when I lived in Florence in the Santa Croce quarter, there was only one choice. Vivoli was our spot—superb gelato five minutes away from our apartment. It remains a fine gelateria but these days the number of gelato shops in Florence is expanding faster than a kid’s wish list in December.

Il Re Gelato

Sicilian Toni Cafarelli is the gelato king as far as I’m concerned. He appears on Italian TV and gained major press for his olive oil gelato. The pistacchio and cioccolato fondente we sampled were intensely flavored and caressed our tongues. The fiordilatte (flower of the milk), flecked with candied orange peel, was like eating specks of sunshine.

Located on the busy ring road Viale Strozzi near the Fortezza da Basso and the train station, the shop was filled with locals. In fact, we were the only foreigners. A selection of Sicilian pastries is also on offer. You can try a freshly baked brioche stuffed with gelato in the southern style.
Viale Strozzi 8/r
www.ilregelato.it

Carapina

Like buried treasure, the gelato at Carapina is kept under cover.

Another ultra artisanal shop, Carapina breaks with the tradition of displaying mountains of gelato on trays set in glass cases (visual stimulation=increased sales). Instead, the gelato is kept in stainless steel tubs covered with stainless steel lids to keep out air and light, and thus maintain freshness.

The flavors we tried–cioccolato fondente, crema, and caffè–were all smooth and lovely. We visited the Via Lambertesca location tucked between Piazza della Signoria and the Arno River. The main shop is on Campo di Marte and there’s also a Rome location.

Via Lambertesca 18r
Campo di Marte, Piazza Guglielmo Oberan 2r
Camp de’ Fiori, Via de Chiavari 37/37a (Rome)
www.carapina.it

For more tempting gelato spots in Florence, check out Toni Lydecker’s article in the Tampa Bay Times and Elizabeth Minchilli’s blog post.

What do you say is the best gelateria in Florence?

Spring Blooms in Tuscany

Posted April 18, 2014 by Sharon 3 Comments

La rosa (rose) climbs a wall on the Montestigliano estate near Siena.

Time stops when you’re in Tuscany. I have proof.

Three weeks ago, Walter and I left Pennsylvania to host our tour program at Villa Pipistrelli on the Montestigliano estate. The temperature was chilly. Not a bud or bloom were to be seen.

I returned yesterday to an unchanged landscape.

Time does stop when you’re in Tuscany!

Okay, so I’m exaggerating a bit. I do see a few brave daffodils and maple buds shivering outside my window.

: I tulipani rossi (red tulips)

: Il glicine (wisteria)

: I fiori di primavera (spring flowers)

But for Eastertide, I prefer to pretend I’m still in Tuscany among all the lovely spring blooms.

Castagnaccio

Posted March 19, 2014 by Sharon 5 Comments

In Tuscany, chestnut pancakes are a sweet taste of surviving through hard times.

In a recent Italian language conversation meeting, talk turned to castagnaccio. Daniele, our born-and-bred Tuscan from Siena, recalled snacking on this cake. He remembered it in detail. It was made from ground chestnuts and olive oil embellished with raisins, rosemary, and pine nuts.

To my American ears, such an austere combination of ingredients didn’t sound much like any cake I knew. But since I had never sampled a castagnaccio, I decided to bake one.

I ordered chestnut flour on nuts.com and while waiting for it to arrive, I started researching recipes.

Pamela Sheldon Johns’ Cucina Povera seemed like a good starting point since this “cake” was clearly food of the poor. She shared a recipe but the head note gave me pause. “This dense cake is an acquired taste, and it has taken me almost twenty years to acquire it. But its musky chewiness is much loved by Tuscans.”

Patrizia Chen in Rosemary and Bitter Oranges was more encouraging. “Semisweet, tender, and distinctively nutty, castagnaccio is in itself worth a trip to Tuscany in fall or winter.” She also refers to the preparation as a pancake which seems a more accurate descriptor than cake.

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