After spending almost three years talking about my wonderful homeland, some of you might wonder how a one man band seems always able to find reasonably interesting topics. The process is a lot messier than I'd like but sometimes it borders sheer madness. This week, for example, I had scheduled a completely different episode but decided against it. I tossed the notes I had already taken and started staring at the map, looking for inspiration. A name immediately attracted my attention, a weird but auspicious name of a little town near Siena. I had been there years ago and found it very pretty but I had no idea it was hiding so many interesting things. This is why this week What's Up Tuscany will bring you to Buonconvento, what many consider one of Italy's prettiest villages and tell you everything there is to know about this small but very quirky hamlet.

If you listen to the full episode you will learn how, for a hot minute, this town had all the eyes of Europe on it due to the mysterious death of an emperor and how, centuries ago, the famous writer Boccaccio immortalized forever the crazy tale of a cheeky and very unfaithful servant. Then I will walk you downtown to discover the secrets of the town hall, the funny clock tower that looks like a smaller replica of Siena's Torre del Mangia and why this Mediaeval town is so full of Liberty-style buildings, Italy's answer to Art Nouveau architecture. In the following chapter I will tell you about the outstanding museum that hosts some of Italy's greatest sacred art masterpieces and a smaller barn conversion that is dedicated to the life of regular farmers of the past. If you're into the spooky side of life, I will guide you to a beautiful villa on a nearby hill that, according to many locals, is haunted by the ghost of its owner.

In the final chapters I'll tell you about a small pastry shop nearby that, since 1959, has become a must stop for sweets lovers everywhere. As Queen Elizabeth II was a great fan of their cookies, they have built quite a following overseas but some of their unique creations are so good that it's worth travelling there so that you can taste them out of the oven. Last but not least, I'll let you know about a very interesting day trip through the Orcia and Arbia Valleys with historic locomotives, an incredible hotel that was built from restoring an abandoned village and, at least as far as I'm concerned, one of the best restaurants around. While its name is odd, "The Crazy Count", the food they serve is out of this world, especially the local cheese. The Val d'Arbia is nowhere near as popular as some other parts of Tuscany but it has so much to offer. Think about going there next time you plan your next visit.

Email: podcast@larno.it
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/larno.it
Twitter: @arno_it / @WhatsupTuscany

LINKS TO SOURCES (ITALIAN ONLY)
https://www.tuscanypeople.com/buonconvento-di-nome-e-di-fatto/
https://www.finestresullarte.info/viaggi/buonconvento-luogo-felice-crete-senesi
https://www.tuscanysweetlife.com/province/provincia-siena/buonconvento/
https://siviaggia.it/borghi/borgo-buonconvento-toscana/217877/
https://www.ledolcezzedinanni.com/
https://www.pieveasalti.it/
https://www.trenonatura.terresiena.it
info@visionedelmondo.it / +39 0577 48003

BACKGROUND MUSIC
Pipe Choir - Bom Bom Breakthrough (Instrumental)
Incompetech - Leopard Print Elevator
Wayne John Bradley - Pick You Up
Mike Chino - Calm and Harmony
WUFO - Hyde Park
Pipe Choir - Gemini (Instrumental)
Wayne John Bradley - Blues Rock Original Instrumental
All released under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
https://soundcloud.com/pipe-choir-2/pipe-choir-bom-bom-breakthrough-creative-commons-instrumental
https://incompetech.com/music/royalty-free/index.html?isrc=USUAN1500077
https://soundcloud.com/ayneohnradley/pick-you-up-slow-poprock-style-instrumental-creative-commons
https://soundcloud.com/argofox/mike-chino-calm-and-harmony
https://soundcloud.com/argofox/wufo-hyde-park
https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Pipe_Choir/SGONS_Instrumentals/Pipe_Gemini_Instrumental
https://soundcloud.com/ayneohnradley/blues-rock-original-instrumentalcreative-commons
http://www.pipechoir.com/