Tuscany

The Cradle of European Culture

"I was thinking we should get going, but my husband was drinking wine from unmarked bottles that had been brought out of the cellar. I decided to stroll through the vineyards. When I returned, Mariana had set a long table outside with a red checked cloth. She had a salami, someone else had olives. Pepino, Mariana's husband went to pick tomatoes. One of Mauela's sons fetched some mozzarella from my car.

Mariana asked me to light the candle and I replied in my best Italian, "Dov'e' il semaforo?" Everyone laughed because I had asked for the traffic lights. The table was spread with cheese and tomatoes and Tuscan bread and salami. Though we had reservations elsewhere and other places to be, we all sat and drank wine under the stars until it was time for bed." - from On Italian Time by Mary Morris

When people think of Tuscany, most images conjure up a mental picture of rolling countryside with olive groves and cypress trees, such as captivated the Renaissance painters. A region best known for its landscape, art, wines, olive oil and the language – the language of Dante, Petrarch and Boccaccio whose Tuscan dialect became Italy’s official language and national tongue. Her hill towns and art cities quietly complement the artistic riches of Florence. With its restful pace and orderly landscape of cultivated fields and vast vineyards, total Tuscany intoxicates the senses. From the shores of the shimmering Tyrrhenian Sea to the slopes of the Apennines, Tuscany flaunts her charms: great cities embracing treasure of art and ancient architecture; green hills and valleys under a cobalt sky; warm-hearted wines that match the spirit of the Tuscan people.