I like that there’s continuity between the distant past and the present in many Tuscan towns. Take Arezzo. Not too many people go there, but it’s a really nice hill town first settled, as far as we know, by Etruscans. The Romans noted the the inhabitants did lots of nice metal and ceramics, and now Arezzo is known for its gold jewelery.
Agriturismo Le Gret - Arezzo, Tuscany Vacation Rental
Take a place outside of town and you can go do lots of things in the countryside. How about canoing in the River Arno? You know, the famous river that passes through Florence. The Arno Valley is beautiful indeed.
That’s the Agriturismo Le Gret over there on the right. Nice setting, eh? Imagine, they make wine, olive oil, honey, nuts and truffles at the Agriturismo. You can buy food right off the farm and sit outside in a lawn chair and eat and drink to your heart’s content.
Then you could go into Arezzo and buy some jewelry. If it’s antiques you lust after, each first Sunday a month and the Saturday before, Arezzo’s famous antique market takes place on the Piazza Grande and winds through the little alleys that surround it.
And you know what dish the folks from Arezzo are noted for? Acquacotta. Yep, that’s “cooked water.” That can’t cost much, can it? Your dwindling dollar is safe in Arezzo, or at least I think it is.
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I think more talk about the antiques fair would be in order. It is quite an event, encompassing the entire town and bringing thousands of avid shoppers from all over Italy and all over the world. I take a group of Americans there a few times a year. We go in the off-season when the flights are cheap and the dealers really want to sell stuff. The town fell into hard times before the fair was founded and now is the center of antiques activity for the whole country. Check out my website. I’ll be there in February.