Il Poggiolo Tuscany

21/05/2023

Parco Carrabe, in the middle of the countryside. The best ice-cream in the Valdarno and a lovely view of the unusual geological formations known as the 'Balze'.

02/02/2023

8 AM on 2nd February, the "Candelora." Legend has it that the bear wakes out of hibernation today. If there is a bit of sun, it stays awake as winter is almost over. If bad weather, it goes back to sleep as there will be 40 more days of cold. Let us hope that there will be brilliant sun!

27/01/2023

" I giorni della merla" = the days of the blackbird (Italian version of groundhog day). If cold, Spring will come early, if warm, Spring will be tardy. Legend has it that blackbirds were originally white, but during a great frost at the end of January they hid in sooty chimneys and became black.

12/08/2022

Great basket made from chestnut. The handle is made so that you can sit on it if you need a rest when picking mushrooms in the woods or whatever. This basket was bought at the annual fair in Terranuova Bracciolini over 40 years ago and looks still new despite decades of service!

05/06/2022

There is now a NEW wall holding up driveway with the same 100 year old bricks recycled from the old wall (each brick individually scraped, soaked and re-laid...) Many many thanks to Luciano, Behar and Nicola!!

01/05/2022

Wonderful presentation by Lara Roney. I am so pleased that women artists are now being showcased in world class museums.

Lara Roney, research assistant of Italian Art at the DIA, discusses “By Her Hand: By Her Hand: Artemisia Gentileschi and Women Artists in Italy, 1500–1800.”W...

22/04/2022

Montevarchi, where you can leave strollers (and bikes) parked in the street.

27/02/2022

February seems to last forever... I can't wait to see flowers once again in the terracotta pots !!

07/01/2022

Um .... we have a bit of a wall problem on the driveway. Fingers crossed it will hold for a while until we can get it fixed.
Nonetheless I feel accomplished that the terracotta pots are all nicely stacked on the opposite side of what used to be a "concimaia" (place where dung was kept to be used for fertiliser).

12/12/2021

Lunch in the sun today.... not bad for 12th December!

06/11/2021

What a glorious long autumn we are having here in Tuscany!

23/10/2021

Even Tuscany has Autumn colours !!

11/10/2021

October skies....

24/08/2021

August is coming to a close and the skies are cloudy... Soon it will be September, one of the best months to visit Tuscany. The weather is usually perfect, tourism thins out and the wine harvest looms near.... I LOVE September in Tuscany ❤

25/07/2021

There is something very intriguing about these enormous, round bales of hay, made and moved by machines. I think the old fashioned, rectangular bales were easier for people to manage, stack and cart around, but the only place I see rectangular bales anymore is in the annual hay-bale making contest in Perelli, with machines that look as if they belong on a Mad Max filmset...

04/07/2021

Bucine shops #3 Alimentari Nieddu Giacomo. There is EVERYTHING!!! A real general store, family owned and run (like most shops in Bucine). Very nice and helpful always. They also deliver all the way to Poggiolotuscany🙂 We love -Nieddu-Giacomo

01/07/2021

Il Fienile.... June 2006- June 2021. Fifteen-year anniversary of barn conversion ❤

25/06/2021

First visit to the Giardino dei Tarocchi built by Franco-American artist Niki de Saint Phalle. So glad we managed to get there .. and stayed until it closed! Such a (literally) magical place.

13/06/2021

Evening light and the sunset reflected in the Fienile veranda windows. A perfect moment for a contemplative glass of wine (even if not Tuscan this time around 🤫)

10/06/2021

Favourite corner of the Casa Colonica garden that is also loved by butterflies (that flit elsewhere as I fiddle with the phone camera, so you have to take my word for their flower preferences).

06/06/2021

Smart work... hard play

06/06/2021

A good way to work off zoom fatigue!

18/05/2021

Aperi-cena anyone??

03/05/2021

Bucine shops #2 : Bottega Baralla Frutta e Verdura .... starring Filippo !!
(they also deliver :-) )

20/04/2021

Bucine shops #1 : SANI meat market in Bucine
Macelleria Sani a Bucine
Presidio SLOW FOOD !!
High qualiy meats, personal service.
And... this family business even delivers right to our door !

09/04/2021

The cypress trees have become amazingly tall. A couple of wood pigeons have a nest in one of the big cypress in front of the house and they cool contentedly (sometimes annoyingly) all day long. At night there is an owl who sits in the tree on the far left and hoots impatiently at the light from the windows (but falls silent when the shutters are closed). When there is wind the cypress make a muted whooshing gossipy sound. These trees make for good company.

16/03/2021

Spring flowers....

23/01/2021

Same old, but beautiful even in deep winter. At times I still wonder how we ended up here. However one thing I have learned is that one never really "owns" land, we are just transient occupants in a looong history, along with the deer, the boar, the porcupines, the hare, the birds and the bugs!