”If my brains are any good at all, it’s because I was born in the pure air of your Arezzo countryside.” Michelangelo in a letter to Giorgio Vasari.
This area is like every calendar, picture, painting or postcard of Tuscany that you have probably ever seen. It is just like the many scenes and shots from the movie “Under the Tuscan Sun” (if you have ever seen it), which takes place in Cortona, about 45 minutes from here. It is probably just as you have always imagined Tuscany would be. But then, it is all so very different. For one, I am not surrounded by grape vines. I am at too high of an elevation they tell me, though only at 2000 ft or so – but grapes don’t like that apparently. Yes, they do grow here, but not for a winery’s use…they are for the table or home wine or better yet, Vin Santo. But let me start at the beginning:
We live in the comune of Caprese Michelangelo which is a village in the province of Arezzo, Tuscany, Italy. A comune usually comprises of a principal town or village that almost always gives its name to the comune; other outlying areas called frazioni, each usually centered on a small town or village. These frazioni have usually never had any independent historical existence, but occasionally are former smaller comuni consolidated into a larger. The offices of the comune are housed in a building usually called the Municipio, or Palazzo Comunale. The village and comune of Caprese is roughly 100 km southeast of Florence and 3 hours north of Rome.
This quiet and sleepy mountain town is the birthplace of renowned Renaissance artist Michelangelo Buonarroti [1475-1564]; his family home is just up on the hill and open to the public. The museum dedicated to this great sculptor which just reopened in October after renovation, is also worth visiting even though none of his works are here. Sights here include: the 13th century church of St. John the Baptist, where Michelangelo was baptized; the ancient churches of San Cristoforo a Monna, San Paolo a Monna and Santi Ippolito and Cassiano; the abbey of San Martino a Tifi; and the Michelangelo Museum and Library. The area is also part of the Upper Tiber Valley, or Valtiberina which has abundant art and ancient history in addition to natural beauty with the added bonus of no mass tourism other than during the chestnut festival.
The house we are staying in is nestled in a valley surrounded by rolling hills in the Appenines. Three rivers meander, cross and wind around us converging eventually to the Tiber River. There are larger mountains in front and behind us. There are chestnut groves and olive groves and cypress trees pepper the horizon. Behind us there is a small ancient church and a farm with chickens. On the farm, the men saw wood constantly for both the upcoming winter and to fuel the outdoor bread ovens where they bake bread every other day. The thought of it, is really quite charming. Within walking distance, I have a restaurant, a market and a teeny tiny hair salon (I think it has one chair though I have never been in). There is also a woodworking shop and a small bar where old men play some unknown game during the day while drinking espresso and watch soccer at night while drinking wine. There is a lake just down the road.
There is also a ghost town nearby. I say a ghost town because that is what it has become. It is yet another small hamlet that has fallen prey to an aging population that has died off, leaving no living soul to live and breathe within its crumbling stone walls. Stone houses and villas dot the hills, peeking out here and there. Winding roads course and through the hillsides and often traverse narrow town alleyways. You can see fields and fields of sunflowers or smaller farm fields of planted vegetables. Occasionally, you will happen upon a castello here and an abbey there. But overall, you will note its quietness, its stillness while still remaining busy with daily work-a-day activities. A phenomenon I still have not been able to understand.
Most importantly, this small nook of Tuscany also features a host of excellent traditional restaurants that offer never ending meals at very fair prices. Homemade pasta is often a feature on local menus. Porcini or Truffle mushroom [when in season] sauces, with fresh tagliatelle as a first course or served with Chianina beef for the second dish are truly memorable. This is my Tuscany! And in spite of its historical significance, Caprese Michelangelo remains unspoiled by the influx of tourists who visit the area and is undeniably an excellent location for those wishing to take a relaxing break in authentic Tuscany.
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- The old section of Caprese on the hill where the Casa di Michelangelo is located
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- Church where Michelangelo was Baptized
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- Lake near Caprese
