Folon in the Rose Garden - contemporary art exhibition opening tonight in Florence

Florence has a thriving contemporary art scene. Most days of the week, most weeks of the year, one can find an incredible variety of openings.
Most private galleries are located throughout the city center in beautiful historic buildings, and their fantastic contemporary interior design combines beautifully with the ancient stone pavements and wooden beam ceilings.
But art isn't only located inside: Florence will make your head spin with sculptures situated all over the city, and today one of its most special places, the rose garden in San Niccolò, will host the opening of an incredible exhibition: Folon's whimsical sculptures.
The rose garden, Giardino delle Rose, is located right outside the city walls close to Piazzale Michelangelo. It is one of the most beautiful places in the city, from which you can enjoy an amazing view of all the main monuments and buildings.

It was created in 1865 by the same architect that designed the famous Piazzale, Giuseppe Poggi; he was assigned this job to make Florence even more magnificent, given that the capital of the newly created Italian state was about to be moved from Turin to Florence itself.

This small urban paradise is the perfect location for a lovely day relaxing in the green; virtually unknown to tourists, it offers beautiful slopes of soft green grass on which one can lie down and read a book.

Hundreds of rose bushes and other plants offers shade and privacy. And don't miss the beautiful terrace!

In 1998 a Japanese architect donated a Japanese garden, which is now connected to the rose garden by a small passage.

At 5:30 tonight this incredible location will be made even more beautiful by a number of works of art donated by late Folon's wife, Paola Ghiringhelli.

Imagine looking at Florence through Folon's memorable suitcase, Partir (to leave): what a beautiful omen to all our future travels!

Once again: enjoy!

Gelato in Florence - a bittersweet taste?

It's not easy to find quality food in Florence. Sad truth.
A lot of what the city offers, especially in the historic center, is very standardized, low-quality food. What makes it even worse, is that it is very expensive. At times, prohibitively expensive.

Last Spring many local newspapers covered stories that described the world of gelato. Not just any gelato, but the gelato that you'll find if you are craving the sweet delicacy while strolling the streets in the neighborhood of Ponte Vecchio, the famous old bridge that connects the Duomo area with Oltrarno, "the other side" - what the locals collectively call the quarters of Santo Spirito, San Niccolò and San Frediano. And of course, if you're a tourist in Florence, you will walk in that neighborhood (not to mention: if you do so in a hot summer day, you definitely will want gelato). These articles stirred quite a debate, because journalists listed prices as high as 12 euro and more for a cone or cup of the fresh creaminess.

Locals pointed out that shops go way too far in taking advantage of the tourists' presence; moreover, they noted, such behaviour makes it almost impossible for a Florentine to enjoy some dessert. Indeed, what you're willing to pay on your romantic Italian escapade is way higher than what you'll be ok in dishing out for the same food at home - am I right? So why should it be any different for the people who live in Florence all year? Indeed it shouldn't.

This small case raises a plethora of considerations.
First of all, gelato isn't the only thing that has ridiculous prices in the city center, causing locals to seriously struggle to make ends meet. Everything from fruit to rents can go anywhere from a little more to twice, three and even four times higher than average prices in Tuscany as a whole. This has huge consequences for the locals, who end up not being able to afford to buy food, let alone pay the rent.
Landlords find it much more convenient to rent apartments for a few days at exorbitant prices to foreigners pining for the Tuscan landscapes, and that is exactly what they are doing. Buildings are filled with people that spend short amounts of time in the city and are willing to pay what it takes to give them the experience they want. And they're ok paying a lot for where they sleep, for what they eat and drink, for the gifts they bring back home, for the Italian clothes, the rental car, the amusements, the museums...

Now, if you reread this list, you'll see that it covers pretty much everything that one needs in life - leaving locals with only a few options: either suck it up and lower their lifestyle, or move. And again here we have it: people that decide to leave their lifetime neighborhoods and move outside the city center, where they simply cannot afford to live anymore. So to leave isn't only the choice of men like Lorenzo (see this post of mine) who don't like the social, cultural, and life-style turn that Florence has taken; it's also the choice of many average families that have average jobs and average stipends.

Those of us who do decide to stay in the old center have to be very creative with how we get by: we work double jobs, but we also constantly look for good-quality and well-priced places where to buy food and have fun.
It's not easy, I'll tell you! But those places are there. And I'll share one of my favourite: gelato parlor "Perchè No" (THIS) in Via dei Tavolini 19 (HERE), right between the Duomo and Piazza della Signoria.

The clue to what makes it special is in the image right above: it is "gelato artigianale", which means artisanal icecream.
We should all be picky when we decide to eat or shop in a place that describes itself as artisanal. Many use this word to attract attention, but without really having the required qualities.
Now, there are purists and less-strict people who give different definitions of this term, but generally we should say that for a product to be artisanal it has to be made entirely by hand, and by the person who sells it. Moreover, it is generally assumed that the ingredients or materials should be of high quality, and local.

So, what does it take to make artisanal gelato?

• First of all: it should ONLY be made with actual ingredients, no weird powders. And indeed Perchè No uses only fruit, milk, cream, sugar, water, chocolate, eggs, spices. That's right.
• Second: ingredients must be in season. You just can't make good strawberry icecream in the winter. Simply because fresh strawberries don't grow in the winter. And you can't make orange gelato in the summer: oranges are a winter fruit. If you get strawberry icecream in July, know that it came out of a box or a freezer! At Perchè No the menu changes seasonally. In fact, it actually changes daily! Literally! Every day of the week they have different flavours.
• Third: gelato must be made fresh every day, by hand.

And guess what? This gelateria is located right in the heart of the historic center!
I hope they stay open...and don't raise their prices. For now, amazing but true, their exquisite delicacies are actually affordable!!!

Enjoy!

A Renaissance Disneyland?

After meeting with a Florentine artisan yesterday (see my post "Tourism and artisans"), my head filled with questions so I decided to dive into the complex sociocultural reality of this city by proactively engaging in discussions with any local willing to do so. Of the many things that the artisan told me, a few struck my attention: in his opinion there are too many tourists today in Florence, most tourism is of very low quality, and this situation is a recent phenomenon - he considers 2005 to be the year in which things turned for the worse in Florence.

I was (and am) very curious to understand more about the phenomenon of tourism in Florence, and in particular how locals feel affected by it, whether positively or negatively, and why. So today I had a walk across the river and walked in another artisan's workshop; I've known the owner for various years, so I felt comfortable sharing with him my curiosity. I'll call him Lorenzo for anonymity's sake.

I asked Lorenzo what he thinks about tourism in Florence, and he bluntly told me that in his opinion it's horrible: too many people crowding the city, "consuming, consuming, consuming" and making life impossible for locals. He volunteered that Florence isn't the livable city it used to be: too many people, too many cars, low air quality, streets constantly jammed. I asked him if it's always been like this and he explained that some years ago big cruise ships started going to the Tuscan port of Livorno, "unloading" thousands of people that are then brought to Florence by bus. In his opinion this is one of the reasons for which tourism has increased exponentially - in numbers but not in quality.

I found it very interesting that Lorenzo's ideas matched perfectly Luca's (that's how I'll call the artisan I spoke with yesterday). In fact, I was thrilled to find that Lorenzo's cruise-ship theory might actually be the explanation of what Luca mentioned - the idea that tourism has grown exponentially since 2005.

Lorenzo went on to say that he's been thinking about leaving for quite some time. "Things aren't as they used to be. And they're turning for the worst". "Where will you go?" I asked him. "In the countryside, in a field, in a forest. In solitude. Away from this mess". And I know he's saying this seriously: he has worked with his hands all his life, creating in a variety of fields, and living all around the world. I know that when he says he is thinking about leaving, he means it.

I pointed out that it's unfair to have to leave one's own very home. He agreed, but he also pointed out that it's not just the overcrowded streets or dangerous traffic that compel him to seek other options; life itself has become unpleasant, people around him behave in ways that contradict the lifestyle he believes in. To quote him: "People just buy, buy, buy, consume, consume, like chickens". 

I found this harsh metaphor quite thought provoking: the consumeristic turn that Italian society has taken over the past couple decades has, in other words, made people like animals, because they have become focused solely on the material aspects of life - and this is something that should characterize other animal species, not (in theory) ours. 

To understand the depth of Lorenzo's statement you should have been with me last week, when I visited him in his workshop with some people. They asked him if he gets by (economically) with his work; he said that he doesn't earn much because his products are all hand-made and if he really valued his work he should set a higher price range, but people aren't willing to pay so much...so he must keep his prices lower, and for this reason he manages to pay the bills, but money is generally scarce.
They looked at him for a couple seconds, and then one of them asked what compels him to continue being an artisan, given that he doesn't earn much more than what he needs to pay bills. He stared at us, then turned to me and asked: "When you come here, do we have a good.looking face? Do we smile? Do we look happy?". I said that indeed they do, there's always a lovely vibe in his workshop. Lorenzo then turned to my friend and said: "That's why".

Can one live at a humaine pace within one's own workshop and home, and be satisfied, while the outside world is taking a completely different turn?
Maybe not. 

And this is why Lorenzo is thinking about leaving Florence, despite being deeply in love with this city.

I asked him what we can do about this state of things, and he said "Nothing. What can we do???". Indeed, we are overpowered by numbers. 

"And what about local politicians? Aren't they taking care of the city somehow?". "Oh those people. Leave them out of the matter. They do no good". 

What will happen if locals move out, as indeed they are? What is Florence becoming? A plastic Renaissance Disneyland?

Tourism and artisans

Today I had a wonderfully interesting experience.

I walked in the workshop of a Florentine artisan and we started talking about his sales; a huge tour group stopped in front of his shop, blocking the entrance like a live but immobile wall, their backs to us, listening to the guide. After just a few minutes, they turned to the side and walked away, without even glancing for a moment at the artisan's beautiful window display.

One woman who was with me pointed out that she would have definitely looked in the window and felt curious and compelled to come in...and that comment got me thinking...and got us talking...and we discussed what exactly is going on with contemporary tourism, how it affects Florence, and how it affects the business of this particular artisan.

He told us many things, and I learned some pretty interesting pieces of information from him:

1. Today Florence is overcrowded with masses of tourists that spend a very short amount of time here (even just an hour), visit Piazza Duomo and Piazza della Signoria, shoot a couple photos while rushing after the guide, and all along learn just about nothing of Florence itself. To quote our host, "at most, they'll buy an icecream". 

2. So not only do they not learn about Florence (despite all the language on "discover authentic Florence" that much advertisement uses), they don't even affect much the local economy.

3. What they do affect, in his opinion, is the state of Florence itself as a city, and as a world heritage: groups as big as 80 people crowd the tiny streets, stomp all over the ancient stones, use them up, even consume the works of art displayed all throughout the city..."but you can't call back Cellini to fix his own sculptures, can you?". No you can't. 

4. This mass tourism exploded around 2005. For some reason, in that period the artisan noticed an evident change: tourist groups grew in number and composition, and this is his opinion is a problem. The city is a difficult place to live, now, for locals.

Words started exploding in my head: globalization, identity, preservation, ecology...and I felt that something is deeply wrong. I also felt compelled to share this idea, to spread somehow an awareness, because it is true that quality of life is getting lower and lower, even in a beautiful place like Florence.

What can we all do to make things turn for the better?

Lemons and love

Florence is famous for so many different reasons! You really have infinite options when it comes to choosing a theme for a visit: you can have a Renaissance-art day and visit one of the many museums (or just stroll the city and admire the ancient buildings!), you can choose food as your theme and have a culinary adventure tasting your way through morning markets and afternoon shops; you can choose fashion, and enjoy the leather goods sold in beautiful artisans shops throughout the city...the list can just go on and on!

Today I want to suggest a less obvious route, inspired by a less obvious theme: lemons!

Florence is characterized by beautiful villas both within the city center and in its immediate surroundings. Most villas have gorgeous gardens, and one of the features are beautiful lemon trees. One thing you must know about this lovely mediterranean plant is that, despite its long pointy thorns, it is actually quite delicate, so in the winter Florentines put their lemon trees in a special building called limonaia - literally: the lemon building.

One of the most beautiful limonaia can be found in the Boboli gardens that sorround Palazzo Pitti - an incredible Medici villa located right in the city center, just across Ponte Vecchio, the famous old bridge.

The Medici were the first ones to introduce lemon trees in their gardens, and they actually started a real fad! But lemon trees had (and have!) a hard time during the harsh Tuscan winters, so the gardeners started placing these plants, that were considered exotic, in specially-constructed buildings called limonaie.

The Boboli Limonaia is a beautiful building that often hosts exhibits of various types: 

It was built around 1778 in a location where there had been the so-called Serraglio degli Animali, where the Medici kept...the exotic animals they received as gifts from other royalty! Imagine that: giraffes and hippos right in the center of Florence!

If that seems strange to you, then you should know that right behind Piazza della Signoria there's a street called Via dei Leoni (Lions' street)...and guess why it was called like that? Yes. There were two cages with two real lions! They were placed there to signify the power and strength of Florence - and if you pay attention you might notice, throughout the city, lion sculptures and symbols. Now you know why!

If fierce animals scare you, let's get back to reassuring trees: another beautiful Limonaia is in the gardens of Villa Strozzi in Via Pisana 77.

This location is definitely worth a visit, especially in the summer, when concerts, theatrical performances and exhibits are hosted there. And if you need a super-special reason to go there, consider that it is home of  Polimoda, one of the most famous fashion schools in the world!!

Last but not least: a tasty ending. You can do many many things with lemons, but one of the most interesting is the liquor called Limoncello. Typical of southern Italy, where the warmer climate makes lemon trees thrive and produce the juiciest fruit, Limoncello can be found in shops and restaurants throughout the whole nation. But try to identify the nicer Limoncello, and avoid the fake-tastic, way-too-sugary, grocery-store brands!

Limoncello should be tasty, and even a bit creamy, but not overwhelmingly sweet: flavour should win over sugar!

And if you really want to have the real thing, you can try to make it yourself! It actually isn't that difficult: you just need good quality lemons and patience (the liquor must sit for about a month before you can drink it). You can find the best lemons from the contadini at the Sant'Ambrogio market (their lemons will have the least amount of chemicals, so you can be safe and use the skins; read my first post to learn all about this market and its amazing vendors!).

You will need:

8-10 organic, untreated lemons

1 liter of alcohol (90degrees)

600 gr sugar

1 liter of water

You peel the lemons, put the lemon peels in a jar with the alcohol, and let it sit for a week. And by the way: an AMAZING perfume will spread in your home throughout this whole process!!

Then you prepare a syrup melting the sugar in the water, and pour it in the jar.

Finally, you filter the liquid removing the lemon peels, and fill a few bottles.

Now you must be patient!! You should wait a few weeks before serving your beautiful, fresh limoncello: you'll see it slowly change colour...and when it does so you'll know it will be soon ready for you to enjoy it!

And by the way: you can sip it slowly from a small (very small!!) glass after a meal like Italians do, but you can also add it to chilled acqua gassata (sparkling water) with ice and have one of the most delightfully refreshing drinks of your life.

Enjoy!!

A fresh start

I've been living in Florence, Italy for quite some time now and, to be honest, I love it!!
I love how Florence is a city, with everything that a city can offer, but at the same time it maintains that neighborly feel that we have lost in so many urban environments. In Florence you can still buy most of what you need in open-air markets located within the city center: whether it's fresh fruit and vegetables, cheese and eggs, clothes, or even furniture that you're looking for, you can be sure to find it just a few blocks away from home. This adds so much value to living within the city, and makes for such lovely routines!

Imagine: you can wake up, walk out of your home, stop for a light, healthy breakfast in one of the numerous bars, and just a few blocks away you can enjoy a morning stroll amidst colourful market stands. The vibrant tones of fresh produce, the enticing odours of cheeses, warm baked bread, amazing dishes, will accompany you as you choose what to bring back home with you. Most vendors will let you have a small taste of their delicacies so you can decide what to purchase (...and they might even give you an extra bite just for niceness!).

One of my favourite routines involves the Market of Sant'Ambrogio in the central location of Piazza Ghiberti.
This market is open Monday through Saturday from early morning to 2 PM, and is perhaps the most beautiful one in the city: an old building with cheese, meat, fish and prepared dishes stands is sorrounded by a covered area with fresh produce stands where you can buy fresh fruit and vegetables, but also organic eggs, honey, cheese and other delicacies. One thing that I love about this market is that you can actually buy everything from local contadini - farmers that grow their own produce in the outskirts of Florence and every morning bring their goods to us city dwellers.

On one corner outside there's always a little old man with a small, odd setup: almost a little cart with wheels, where he displays on small shelves baskets of fresh eggs, honey, propolis, and sometimes even fresh juice in small glass bottles (my favourite is the blueberry - so good for your eyes!). He even has little bottles of a special remedy for a sore throat - so in those first chilly autumn days (like now!) I always make sure to stop by and stock up with all his amazing goodies.

My Sant'Ambrogio routine usually involves getting up early (no fresh eggs past 1030!), walking to the Market area, and stopping for breakfast at Teatro del Sale in  in Via de' Macci 111r. If you've never heard of this place, you're in for a treat!
Imagine walking in a real theatre, with a small beautiful stage, tall ceilings with stunning woodden- beams, elegant red-velved chairs, artwork on the walls...and be served a ten course breakfast with freshly baked torte (cakes), hot coffee and tea, yogurt with honey and cereal, and their signature dish: the best schiacciata (focaccia bread) you'll ever have, steaming hot, cut in little strips, and served with mortadella. Enough to convince you? It will be the best and most beautiful breakfast of your life!

After such a meal, you will have all the energy you need to carry around your bags full of fruits and vegetables! Remember to bring with you a cloth-shopping bag: it is the best way to carry a lot of weight. The market vendors put most of their produce in small, breakable, plastic bags; if you don't bring your own big cloth bag, you'll end up with six or seven little ones that are difficult to carry (they really cut through your fingers!). A cloth bag is not only the most sensible choice to make, it's also the most sensitive: Italy has banned plastic bags for ecological reasons, but it seems that shops and markets aren't yet equipped with the ecological alternative of cloth bags or bags made of recycled materials.
You can purchase a cloth bag at most grocery stores for an euro or two at most, and they last a really long time. I have one that I love very much, and that I received as a gift from a market vendor at the other amazing city market: San Lorenzo. I'll tell you all about it in my next post.

Until then, enjoy your new Florentine morning routines and adventures!
Ciao!