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The town I live in was a market town a thousand years ago and we still have a market in the piazza at least once a week.  I first came here, for a six year visit, about thirty years ag0. In those days the tourists came for a brief stop; a coffee break or a lunch on their way from Florence to Sienna…in search of Cathedrals, museums and the like. Back in those days, American tourists first went to…

I went with my wife into Florence the other day. (About a 35 minute drive.) She wanted to buy some soap, or perfume,  or something like that.  I’m a man, a real man – and I do not care about such stuff; but I went along because I’m a nice guy.  And then we entered this soap store, The Farmacia di Santa Novella. To my shock, it is one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever seen.  As good as the…

You know how several places in the North East of the States – through to Virginia – they advertise: “George Washington Slept Here?”.   Well, there is a similar sort of thing going on in my area of Tuscany with Mona Lisa.  You see, Monna Lisa lived in the Tuscan hills.   (The French changed the spelling to ‘Mona’ at the Louvre – you know how the French are.)    Leonardo painted her around 1503-06:…

See that statue standing in our Piazza? (photo above). He is Verrazzano, the famous explorer…discovered the Bay of New York and a lot of the East Coast of the U.S. in the early 1500’s. His family was one of the top 2%ers of his day…They owned the Verrazzano Castle and winery here since the 7th century. You should see it to believe. The bridge in New York was the only thing named after him in…

    Truth to tell, Spring is not my favorite season of the year. Pollen allergies, the dreadful changing of wardrobe from winter to summer, the end of good hot stews, tax payment deadlines...those sorts of things. But there is one event here I have come to really appreciate: The return and nesting of the ‘Rondine’ (Pronounced “Ron-dee-nay”) This bird is a swallow and has been revered in Tuscany…

A few more things about the Tuscan town in which I am living. The man who makes my wife’s daily Cappuccino was named Fabio. I say ‘was’ because I take credit for re-naming him “Fabioloso”. The local Baristas take pride in their work  (see photo above of one of Fabioloso’s efforts) – A Barista is a career…not a job to get through to get another one.  Georgio, another Barista – who I re-named…

Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose.* -Alphonse Karr, 1800’s *The More things change, the more they remain the same.” – not true anymore. So. Where were we? Oh, yes. I am reporting from a small town in Tuscany. My wife and I first came here in the mid-nineties. Stayed for 6 years. We had two English Bulldogs with us: Belle & Lucy.  We’d take them down to our local Caffe every morning for…

I thought I’d tell you a little about the town I live in.  It is a small Tuscan village, just south of Florence. That’s me in the photo…writing from my terrace overlooking the town’s Piazza. I have a forty-two step walk to a little cafe for my morning coffee.  In many ways this village is like an Italian adult version of Sesame Street. The baker, the butcher, the pizza maker, coffee barista…etc.…

I was asked to give a speech at the “NO KINGS” demonstration in Florence the other day. Below is what I came up with.  The first thing I did was go to the ‘Googler’ and ask it what “No Kings was about: “Trump wants to rule over us as a tyrant. But this is America. And power belongs to the people – not to wannabe kings or their Billionaire cronies.” – The Googler And now “The Speech” to a crowd of…

So. Here is what I figure happened: A long time ago, a Human picked up a rock and dragged it into the ground – and a little grub was exposed – and the Human ate the grub. Thus, the first tool was born. Later, he threw a rock at a rabbit, or some creature that was around in those days – and he killed it and ate it. Thus, the first weapon was born. After the Early Human did those things he went…