Archive for 'Localities'

Giacomo Antonio Domenico Michele Secondo Maria Puccini was born on the 22nd of December 1858 and would go on to become an opera composer that would be labelled "the greatest composer of Italian opera after Verdi". Many of his works are very famous. In fact, among his ouevre are some of the best known operas of all time, amongst them are “La Bohème” (1896), “Tosca” (1900), and “Madama Butterfly” (1904). These are the operatic works that tour most often and have become standards of the genre of music.

The Lucca Summer Festival is one of Italy's most famous music festivals and, this year, celebrates twenty years since its inception. As a result, the line-up is rather extraordinary. With events taking place from June to September, there are plenty of chances to experience this Tuscan music institution once you have found a luxury villa in Lucca.

Italy takes her festivals seriously but while the word “festival” might conjure images of boho outfits or muddy fields to people in different parts of the world, Tuscany's festivals tend to be smaller local events that are more about food than music. Despite this, there are actually plenty of great music festivals throughout Italy that attract big names. In fact, local governments often organise big concerts in smaller cities that you would never have imagined would play host to such events. It's not unusual to accidentally stumble across a world-renowned act playing in a town square on a summer night.

One particularly well-established festival of this kind is the Lucca Summer Festival, which is in its 20th year in 2017. Taking place between June 14th and September 23rd, this year, it is held annually in the historical center of Lucca in Piazza Napoleone.

In the final post in this series, here are the last of Google's suggestions for what to do with just a day in Florence. Having just left the Piazza della Signoria, we now move on to the Duomo.

7. Florence Cathedral (Travel: 10 minutes by foot. Approx. time to spend here: 1 hour)

The Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore, or the Duomo, is Florence's cathedral and main church. It was begun in 1296, according to the designs of Arnolfo di Cambio, and was completed in 1436 with the addition of a soaring dome engineered by Filippo Brunelleschi.

The exterior is expressed in polychromatic marble panels and an elaborate 19th century Gothic Revival façade by Emilio De Fabris. A UNESCO World Heritage Site, it is one of the city's must-see attractions and the view from the top is unrivaled.

Continuing on from our last post, we are still following along Google's automatically generated itinerary for a day in Florence. Having just crossed the Ponte alle Grazie, a quieter bridge over the Arno, just a stone's throw from the busier and more famous Ponte Vecchio, we were on our way to the next attraction…

4. Santa Croce (Travel: Less than 5 minutes by foot. Approx. time to spend here: 1 hour)

This stunning Gothic church is a lovely polychromatic 13th century Franciscan basilica that is the final resting place of the likes of Michelangelo, Galileo and Machiavelli among others. Packed to the rafters with incredible frescoes, stained glass, sculptures and other objets d'art, there is plenty to see and do. In fact, there is too much to take it all in entirely in a single visit but the experience of stepping inside this jewel box of culture and history is worth the minor sensory overload.