Tuscany


Did you ever see the movie, A Room with a View? It's one of my favorites and stars Daniel Day-Lewis, Judi Dench, Helena Bonham-Carter and Maggie Smith among others. If you haven't seen it, I recommend it highly. It's a wonderful period piece and Daniel Day-Lewis's performance alone is worth a gander.

 But as the story opens, we're in Florence in Tuscany. We even get to see some of the city's beauties as well as the countryside. For those of you familiar with the film, here's a video featuring the kiss in the poppy field. 

 I've traveled in Europe, but not in Italy. I hope one day to make the journey, though I confess I don't travel easily. Long distances on a plane drive me to distraction. And it's not like the pilot can pull-over so I can stretch my legs, lol.

 But Italy is one of those places that should be on everyone's bucket-list. Tuscany in particular has a long history including the Etruscans who built one of the first civilizations in the region. Etruria was eventually absorbed by the Roman culture. 

 FunFacts about Tuscany (Source) (Source) (Source)
  • The Italian language was born in Tuscany.
  • Tuscany is considered the birthplace of the Italian Renaissance.
  • Tuscany is located in central Italy and has a population of 3.8 million people.
  • Because of it cultural and linguistic heritage, Tuscany is sometimes thought of as a ‘nation within a nation’. The Tuscan dialect is spoken in the region.
  • Florence is the capital of Tuscany.
  • Pinocchio was written by Carlo Collodi who was born in Florence.
  • The Medici family was one of the most famous in the region.
  • Tuscany has a number of UNESCO world heritage sites including the city of Florence and the Medici Villas and Gardens. (Source)
  • Some of the world’s greatest artists and sculptors lived and worked in Tuscany: Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci to name two.
  • The leaning tower of Pisa is in Tuscany.
  • Chianti wine is produced in the central part of Tuscany in the Chianti region. 












 I hope you enjoyed today's blog!
Have a wonderful day and the best week ever!

 Hugs,
Valerie Bosna
     Writing As...
     Caris Roane
     Valerie King
     Eliot Wilde

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Pink Hydrangeas

Image
"You are the beat of my heart..." Supposedly, these words were used to describe the pink hydrangea by a celebrated Asian florist, Tan Yun Yong. The full quote is more elaborate: "The light delicate blush of the petals reminds me of a beating heart, while the size could only match the heart of the sender!" ( Source )  I have a fondness for hydrangeas though I've never grown them. I have a painting in my home that features hydrangeas as well as a print. For today's post, I collected a bunch of photos featured below. But I've included my personal favorite here. I love how lush yet how delicate these flowers are. They are almost too much. The Victorians must have thought so as well because one of the meanings they assigned to hydrangeas was 'boastful'. To read more about how to choose, grow and care for hydrangeas, check out this blog  on Plant Care Today! FunFacts about Hydrangeas ( Source ) The hydrangea plant and flower is also commo
Read more

Bruges Belgium

Image
Bruges Belgium ***Note: This blog first appeared on my Caris Roane blog in August, 2017 Here is one of the prettiest medieval cities in Europe. The word Bruges means 'bridges' which is a sensible name for a city with over eighty bridges crossing dozens of canals. I couldn’t resist doing a brief look at Bruges because of my general fascination with canals and living near all that water. Yes, I do think my interest is partly because I live in the desert. Water anywhere becomes intriguing, lol! Bruges Belgium Funfacts ( Source ) ( Source ) : ·          Bruges is one of the most-visited medieval cities in the world. ·          Belgium is a Western European country of 11,787 square miles and is bordered by France, the Netherlands, the North Sea, Germany and Luxembourg. It has 11 million people: 59 % Dutch speaking Flemish and the rest are mostly the French speaking Walloon people. ·          With 470 castles, Belgium has more castles per square inch than any other
Read more