Adopt a Tuscan olive tree and enjoy your own organic extra virgin olive oil!

Are you passionate about nature, environment, agriculture, history, traditions, organic food, Italian goodies , Tuscany and all about Italy ? Yes? So, this is your call! Now with https://www.ageroliva.it/ you can have the chance to adopt a Tuscan olive tree on Pistoia’s hills and so in this way you could : 1. save a tree … More Adopt a Tuscan olive tree and enjoy your own organic extra virgin olive oil!

A message of hope after lockdown from Pistoia Tuscany Italy … More

A generous gesture from New York to Pistoia

My good friend Sylvia Zarr from New York decided to donate pizzas and a typical American dessert homemade “brownies” to the nurses of the new Covid19 department located in the city center of Pistoia in Via della Crocetta. Sylvia ordered them through my husband restaurant pizzeria in Pistoia, Il Pollo d’oro. I went personally to … More A generous gesture from New York to Pistoia

Florence cultural tours with yummy stops in harvest time

September it’s harvest time in Tuscany so in this period of the year we can find by bakery a special sweet focaccia made with grapes called : schiacciata con l’uva ; just simple ingredients but very very yummy : ideal for breakfast or as a cake for a tasty snack . This could be your … More Florence cultural tours with yummy stops in harvest time

“Wine windows” in Florence: one just re-open!

Have you ever seen “buchette del vino” in Florence? Maybe yes but you didn’t know what they were… In English could be translated in : “wine windows”, for wine lovers since the XVII century when , due to some export restrictions the Florentine noble families decided to sell wine  produced in their countryside estates , … More “Wine windows” in Florence: one just re-open!

Summer colors of Pistoia : sun is here,on our food market today

Buongiorno from my birthplace, Pistoia! This morning I after having visited the clothes market that as I wrote in another post of some time ago, it is on Wednesday’s & on Saturday’s in the main square of Pistoia since the Middle Age, I took a walk at the vegetable market on the “Piazza de La … More Summer colors of Pistoia : sun is here,on our food market today

Berberè in Florence : an authentic Italian pizza in the heart of Florence

If you are in Florence you can’t miss the Basilica of Santa Croce , the Pazzi chapel and of course all the nice shops in the nearby, especially http://www.aquaflorfirenze.com in Borgo Santa Croce no.6 a lovely shop where you could find the best room fragrances, parfums and luxury soaps to bring home as gifts for … More Berberè in Florence : an authentic Italian pizza in the heart of Florence

Easter time : it’s Colomba sweet time in Italy!

Have you ever tasted Colomba Pasquale ( Easter dove in English )? Not yet? Here follows some photos I took on the ‘backstage’ of Fratelli Lunardi bakery in Quarrata – Pistoia – http://www.fratellilunardi.it This special kind of soft pastry needs many rising hours to be ready for the oven in this case the Lunardi brothers … More Easter time : it’s Colomba sweet time in Italy!

A typical  Italian – freak – market in Florence

Love markets like this : full of nice stalls with organic food & aromatic herbs coming from the  countryside full of different kind of people, a real melting pot !any kind of food fresh straight from the producers , hard   hands & tanned faces so different from the citizen ones   I love the feeling they … More A typical  Italian – freak – market in Florence

Migliacci pistoiesi : traditional  crêpes made with pork blood  (Made in Pistoia – Italy’s capital of culture 2017)

My grand-grandmother Inès introduced me to these particular kind of food when I was a child. I didn’t know what they were made of and so I tasted them & loved them inmediately. Nowadays , as my daughter knows what they are made of , she doesn’t want to try them : she really can’t … More Migliacci pistoiesi : traditional  crêpes made with pork blood  (Made in Pistoia – Italy’s capital of culture 2017)

Where is Pistoia? More than 10 reasons to visit this hidden gem in Tuscany , Italy’s capital of culture in 2017!

Why should you visit Pistoia? Not just because it is my birthplace , of course! ( or  maybe…. just for this ?) not only because it is crowned  Italy’s capital of culture in 2017  but first of all for its geographic position in Italy in the second century BC it was chosen by the Romans as a … More Where is Pistoia? More than 10 reasons to visit this hidden gem in Tuscany , Italy’s capital of culture in 2017!

Why  Pistoia ? my interview to American  expats who decided to live here.

 I love my birtplace Pistoia, as a part of myself, althought   I wanted to escape from her when I was young  as I thought it was too small , too NOT open mind for the big dreams I had..after many  years I fell in love with her just because I have been so fortunate … More Why  Pistoia ? my interview to American  expats who decided to live here.

Made in Pistoia : morning in a Tuscan old  mill pressing olives 

Every November I really need to find an old mill to …smell the aroma of the new extra virgin olive oil ! I said “I need ” because without this sensorial deep experience I can’t start winter time :for me  it’s the easier  way to try to forget summer  time & live the autumn mood … More Made in Pistoia : morning in a Tuscan old  mill pressing olives 

Enrico Baj Macario : a Count who produces regal wines in Chianti!

http://www.bajmacario.it/ This is not just a traditional Tuscan wine estate in Chianti Classico district ,it is something different  : it’s a real experience in the wineyard  ,tasting  wine spilled directly from the barrel , smelling the grape inside the wood , have a ride on an old car from the Second World War among the … More Enrico Baj Macario : a Count who produces regal wines in Chianti!

Do you like read & travel?this is just 4 you : an amazing tour in Tuscany !

http://www.bookclubintuscany.com/ How you can resist to all this? Everythinng you can wish is included here : book,📖travel, food 🍝🍕, wine, 🍷 great company 👭👭 day trips 🚗🚗 , shopping 👠👒💄👢 tastings , a lovely villa 🏡🏡where to stay , cooking class 🍳🍅 , historical palaces, city tours , Tuscan  landscapes …whatelse??? My good friend Suzanne … More Do you like read & travel?this is just 4 you : an amazing tour in Tuscany !

Where to stay in Florence & feeling part of the History : Relais Santa Croce ~ Baglioni hotels ~

If your dream is to live a real Florentine experience & feeling like being part of the History, not just a visitor , this is exactly where you should stay. In an historical building , Palazzo Ciofi-Jacometti , old columns frame the  palace dated midway through the 18th  century,  commissioned by the Papal treasurer  Marquis … More Where to stay in Florence & feeling part of the History : Relais Santa Croce ~ Baglioni hotels ~

Celebrating  300 years of Chianti Classico  wine 🍷: 1716 September 25th  & today 🍷2016

Yesterday I was strolling  in the Florence city center & I’ve heard a drum sound …so I stopped:  I thought it was like being in another century … then I saw a police woman on a  horse & lots of people standing at the border of the  Calzaiuoli street that leads to Piazza della Signoria … More Celebrating  300 years of Chianti Classico  wine 🍷: 1716 September 25th  & today 🍷2016

Pistoia’s gem :ever had an  aperitivo in a greenhouse & in a kitchen garden? Here you can!

I have already told you about Pistoia that has been called  “city of green”  because of its nurseries plant & greenhouses , exporting plants & trees all over the world to create fab private & public gardens /parks ,right? This time I wish to share with you this beautiful location where having a yummy & … More Pistoia’s gem :ever had an  aperitivo in a greenhouse & in a kitchen garden? Here you can!