Sincerely, Loree

I knew I was going to love Pienza the moment I set foot out of the car and we took the scenic walk into the old city, which was just five minutes away. 

The first thing we came across was a convent with the most beautiful view I have ever laid eyes on. It was a warm autumn day and the nuns were selling their produce in their enormous garden under a cluster of cheerful beach umbrellas. 

Then, a little old lady walked past with a small bunch of flowers in her hand (a la` Under The Tuscan Sun). She was headed towards the Church of Santa Caterina and I wondered whether the flowers were for a departed loved one or to place in front of the niche of a favourite saint. I hoped it was the latter. 

And just before we crossed the street to enter the historical centre, I spied the house of my dreams. And it was for sale. I think I must have sighed out loud with longing but I'm not Frances Mayes and taking such a huge leap into the unknown is not really consistent with my character. 

Anyhow, I'll continue to dream but, for the moment, let's take a short stroll around Pienza.

A short history of Pienza

Pienza, or Corsignano as it was originally named, dates back to the 9th century. In 1300 parts of the village became property of the Piccolomini family. Enea Silvio Piccolomini was born in Corsignano in 1405. After a long period of Humanist studies he had a successful career as a diplomat and politician. After a short stint as Archbishop of Siena, he was elected pope in 1458. Now known as Pius II he made plans to rebuild the village of his birth as an ideal Renaissance town and named it Pienza (the town of Pius).

Pienza's landmarks

The most important sights of Pienza are all located on its  main square, Piazza Pio II. These are the Cattedrale di Santa Maria Assunta with its Germanic-inspired tower, Palazzo Piccolomini, Palazzo Comunale and Palazzo Vescovile. The latter was built by the notorious Cardinal Rodrigo Borgia who later became Pope Alexander VI and it now houses the Diocesan Museum.

Cattedrale di Santa Maria Assunta

Palazzo Piccolomini

Palazzo Comunale

Pienza's claims to fame

In 1996 Pienza was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site as it represents the first application of the Renaissance Humanist concept of urban design and it played a major role in subsequent urban development in Italy and beyond.

Pienza is also famous for its pecorino cheese and a festival is held in the town every first Sunday of September to celebrate this world-famous cheese that I happen to love so much. There are several shops selling Pecorino cheese in  Pienza and I was sorely tempted to buy a whole round of it but decided that even I might have some difficulty eating all that cheese.

This pretty town was chosen by director Franco Zeffirelli  to film the hauntingly beautiful 1968 version of Romeo and Juliet, starring a very young Olivia Hussey as Juliet and Leonard Whiting as Romeo. If you've seen the movie you might recognise the well below (Pozzo dei Cani).

What I loved about Pienza

Pienza ia very compact and it doesn't take very long to see the whole town (unless you're prone to stopping every 5 seconds to take photos). Like most hilltop towns in Tuscany, Pienza's streets are narrow and winding, flanked on both sides by pretty, well-kept buildings that are 2 or 3 storeys high. 

In contrast to some other places we visited, Pienza is relatively flat, making walking easier as there are no steep hills to navigate. A number of its streets lead towards the walls from where the magnificent colours of the Val d'Orcia assault your senses like a fireworks display on the 4th of July. It's the type of view that I could have stared at for hours on end but which I eventually had to leave to continue exploring this pretty town.

Since the buildings in Pienza are not very high the whole town feels light and airy as it doesn't seem to be weighed down by too much stone. Many houses are very prettily decorated with pots of flowers and, although there were some visitors (like us) roaming around, the place was not crowded at all.  It also has some very romantically named streets like Via dell'Amore (Love Street) and Via del Bacio (Kiss Street) that I thought was really sweet and made me wonder whether the residents live some type of enchanted life.

I really felt at home in Pienza (although I rarely feel out of place in Italy) and would have loved to spend more time there even though we saw most of the town in the time that we had. Being there just felt right somehow and I know that I've placed it on my list of places to revisit. 

It is probably difficult to describe Pienza's attraction to someone who is looking for flamboyant architecture or world-known attractions but what I love most about it is its simplicity coupled with gorgeous Renaissance architecture, charming dwellings, its proximity to wide open spaces and the surrounding landscape of the Val d'Orcia that is more stunning than anything I could ever have imagined.

  

  

  

Before I continue writing about Tuscany, it's time for me to share a little bit about the books I read between July and September 2021. I read a total of 8 books in 3 months which is a bit less than my usual average but there were 2 very thick books in there: The Corfu Trilogy (757 pages) and Outlander (850 pages).

The Corfu Trilogy by Gerald Durrell

This wonderful memoir recounts the years that the Durrell family spent on Corfu in the years leading up to World War 2. 

Durrell is a keen observant of both nature and the people he encounters and he writes about both with affection and humour. His sharp observations about his family and the often-hilarious situations they ended up in had me laughing out  loud several times. The Durrells' life on Corfu is presented as an idyllic time of innocent pleasures and simple joys. This, coupled with the author's detailed descriptions of the natural world, made this book immensely pleasurable to read.

Trigger warnings: some words and phrases used may sound old-fashioned and mildly offensive to modern readers but bearing in mind that this book was first published in 1956 I think that this can be easily forgiven.

My rating: 4.5 ⭐

The Pianist: The Extraordinary Story of One Man's Survival in Warsaw, 1939-45 by Władysław Szpilman

Most people are already familiar with this story due to the movie adaptation of the book by Roman Polanski starring Adrien Brody as Władysław Szpilman. 

The Pianist is an extraordinary account of one man's quest for survival in the Jewish ghetto and in war-ravaged Warsaw during the Nazi occupation. The narrative, told in simple, stark language does not embellish the horrors that Szpilman lived through. Instead, its matter-of-fact tone and the author's ability to state things as he sees them and move on without dwelling on them, seem to indicate the he was still in a state of shock and disbelief when this book was first published in 1946. It was probably also the only way for him to stay sane and alive in a world that had gone completely mad. I found the diary entries of the German Officer who helped Szpilman survive in Warsaw in the months leading to its liberation especially poignant and extremely moving. 

My rating: 4.5 ⭐

The  Lady Of The Rivers by Philippa Gregory

This is a novel about Jacquetta of Luxembourg, the mother of Elizabeth Woodville, wife of Edward IV and queen consort of England. This book starts from Jacquetta's girlhood in France, where she was married at a young age to John of Lancaster, Duke of Bedford and uncle to Henry VI of England. After his death she falls in love and marries his squire, Richard Woodville. Together they would have 14 children. Jacquetta and Richard faithfully served the House of Lancaster and its last king, the childlike Henry VI and his fierce queen, Margaret of Anjou.

Henry and Margaret are ill-suited and the king is often sick, suffering from a malady of the mind that often made him sleep for long periods of time. The kingdom is weak and England's coffers are empty after a protracted war with France. Gregory captures this turbulent period that led to the Wars of the Roses very well and, in Jacquetta, gives us a protagonist that is not easily forgotten.

By now you all know that I enjoy works of historical fiction and, while this book takes several liberties with the actual facts, it did help me unravel some of the complicated succession issues that arose after the death of the much-loved warrior king, Henry V. However, be warned that this book is only for serious historical fictions geeks with a special interest in the Plantagenet rulers of England.

My rating: 3.0 ⭐

Ordinary Grace by Willian Kent Krueger

You may read my full review of Ordinary Grace here.

The Gustav Sonata by Rose Tremain

This is the story of Gustav Perle and his best friend Anton Zwiebel, a budding concert pianist. Anton is selfish and doesn't always treat Gustav well. Gustav's mother, Emilie, treats him roughly and is often hard-hearted towards him. She is a sad and bitter woman . Gustav Perle, on the other hand, is a warm, kind-hearted boy who adores his mother in spite of the way she treated him.

My rating: 3.9 ⭐

The Au Pair by Emma Rous

Seraphine Mayes and her twin brother Danny were born in the middle of summer at their family’s estate on the Norfolk coast. Within hours of their birth, their mother threw herself from the cliffs, the au pair fled, and the village was rife with rumours. As an adult, Seraphine discovers a photo that raises a set of dangerous questions and sets in motion a trail of bizarre events that all lead to the elusive au pair.

This book was a mildly entertaining read that was spoilt by the highly unlikely behaviour of its characters. I found the writing to be childish in places and most of the characters lacked any depth, with most of them coming across as mere caricatures. Midway through the novel I had a good inkling of where it was going so there were no surprises at the end unfortunately.

My rating: 2.6 ⭐

The French Photographer by Natasha Lester

In 1942 successful model Jessica May halts her career and gets behind the camera as a photojournalist for Vogue  but the military makes this as difficult as possible for her. In Europe she meets paratrooper Dan Hallworth and his protegee, Victorine, a little girl who has grown up in a field hospital.

In 2005 Australian curator D'Arcy Hallworth arrives at a beautiful chateau in France to manage a famous collection of photographs taken by an enigmatic person known only as The Photographer.

This book is another WW2 story with a dual to timeline. I really enjoyed the war story and the characters and I loved Jess. I was rooting for her all along so I was quite disappointed with the way the author decided to end the story. The contemporary story was not as well-told as I'd expected and I thought D'Arcy was rather shallow. But perhaps more important than the actual story, The French Photographer highlighted the misogyny that was still so prevalent in the 1940s and that the Allied  liberators of Europe were not all gentlemen and many women were raped and suffered the consequences. It reminded me that in war things are rarely ever black or white but a hundred shades of grey. 

Trigger warnings: rape, suicide and the assorted horrors of war.

My rating: 3.2 ⭐

Outlander by Diana Gabaldon

In 1945 Claire Randall, a former combat nurse, is just back from the war and reunited with her husband on a second honeymoon when she walks through a standing stone circle in the Highlands of Scotland. Suddenly she is a Sassenach—an “outlander”—in a Scotland torn by war and raiding border clans in the year 1743.

It was hard for me to rate this book because I've been watching the TV series (so nothing came as much a surprise)  but especially because I have a huge soft spot for James Alexander Malcolm McKenzie Fraser, the man Claire falls in love with after she goes though the Stones. But I did my best not to let that influence me in any way and be as impartial as possible. I can't say I totally succeeded but the bottom line is that I really enjoyed reading this book.

At first I was a bit overwhelmed by its length and by the great detail the author went into but I got into a good rhythm pretty quickly, especially after Claire went through the Stones. In reality this book is the type of swashbuckling adventure that I love and when there's some fantasy thrown in, I'm hooked. So no complaints from me about this one.

My rating: 4.2 ⭐

That sums up my reading for the summer months. Unsurprisingly, I read a lot of historical fiction during this time. It is a genre I am always drawn to and I am not completely sure why but I think it has something to do with escaping reality into a completely different world of knights in shining armour and ladies in distress. I think I prefer that to the reality of the brutal world we are all living in at the moment.

My husband and I have just got back from a week in Tuscany. I usually don't have a problem talking about our travels but this time, I am rather lost for words. Nothing I can write will ever describe the heart-breaking beauty of this part of Italy. But I will try. So expect me to be raving about Tuscany well into the new year. After two years, it definitely felt good to get away. What felt even better was disconnecting from the world and ignoring all forms of social media - except Instagram. I love the positive vibes of Instagram. 

Today I will just be sharing a general overview of our trip: where we went, what we saw, where we stayed, and so on. In future I will try to translate what my eyes saw into words.

When to go

We had beautiful weather: sunshine, blue skies, warm day, cool nights and not a drop of rain in sight. In reality, we were hoping it would be a bit cooler but I am definitely not complaining because we were able to explore a number of different places and spent all our time outdoors exploring the places we visited (and taking hundreds of photos). We must have walked miles everyday, up and down streets in towns clinging precariously to hilltops.

Where we went

We travelled all over, from the north of Tuscany to the south, grouping towns by their proximity so we could make the most of each day. 

Lucca

Bagni di Lucca

Pisa

Volterra

Siena

The Crete Senesi and Val d'Orcia

Asciano

The chapel of  La Madonna di Vitaleta (this is the famous chapel that graces hundreds of Tuscan postcards)

Pienza

Montalcino

Monteriggioni

Colle di Val d'Elsa

 San Gimignano

        San Miniato

Where we stayed

What to wear

Where to eat

• Da Umberto in Lucca (pizza)
• Panineria al Vicolino in Volterra (panini)
• Pummaro` in Pienza (pizza)
• La Grotta di Santa Caterina - more popularly known as Bagoga -  in Siena (Tuscan cuisine)
• Osteria Boccon del Prete in Siena (Tuscan cuisine)
• Gelateria Dondoli in San Gimignano (ice-cream) - a popular gelateria that has won several prestigious awards, including the ice-cream World Championships in 2006/2007and 2008/2009 editions and has some of the most unique flavours I have ever seen (for example chestnut and rosemary, pumpkin cream and many others).
• La Trofea in Siena (pizza al taglio)

Tuscan specialties

On the outskirts of the village of Qrendi, beneath a chapel dedicated to St  Matthew, is a circular depression in the ground. It is known as ‘Il-Maqluba’ which roughly translates to ‘the overturned'. This natural depression is said to have been formed in 1343 after a particularly severe winter, possibly accompanied by an earthquake. Il-Maqluba was formed by the collapse of the underlying limestone strata. In geological terms, this is known as a doline or sinkhole. The sinkhole itself is 15 metres deep and has a perimeter of 300 metres. It supports a variety of trees such as bay laurel, sandarac gum, carob and hawthorne and other endemic vegetation The sinkhole collects water from the surrounding fields and country-side which accounts for the lush vegetation growing inside it even during the height of summer. That is the scientific explanation for the sinkhole and a possible theory about how it was formed.

But there is, of course, is a more colourful story, the legend recounted by word of mouth from one generation to the next. It is said that a small village of evil people lived right over the area where the depression is today. A pious lady who lived where the chapel of St Matthew is now situated repeatedly warned her neighbours to change their evil ways – to no avail. As a result, God decreed that the ground beneath the village would collapse, sparing no one except the good woman. Angels were then sent to dispose of the hamlet by dumping it at sea. According to this legend this is how the small island of Filfla, a few miles off the south-west coast of Malta, originated. I suppose that this one of those instances when the legend is so much more interesting than the truth.