I visited Cortona for the first time today and it is a charming Tuscan village set high, and encircled with old walls, upon the top of a hill.

The bus from the train station at Camucia brings you right into Piazza Garibaldi, from which there are breathtaking views of the Val di Chiana and an amazing view of the distant Lago Trasimeno which is actually in the neighboring province of Perugia, in the Umbria region of Italy which borders Tuscany. The lake is south of the river Po and north of the nearby river Tiber, has a surface area of 128 km and is the fourth for surface area in Italy.

Marble memorials enshrined on walls of buildings remind you immediately that you are in Italy.

A few meters into the center of the old city led me to the funerary announcements that I’ve seen in Siena and Pisa, among other places.

Below I spotted one of the most charming letter boxes I’ve ever seen! How cute is this?

Looking down towards Camucia from Piazza Garibaldi, the huge local cemetery complex dominates the view:

I spent some time in the famous museum of Etruscan civilization. It’s a fine museum, with many treasures. But the the Diocesan Museum, located on the former site of the local Church of Gesù, won my heart for it houses this masterpiece by Far Angelico:

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I will talk about this painting of the Annunciation in another upcoming post, because it was just that beautiful. The Diocesan Museum has other fine works as well, including important paintings by Pietro Lorenzetti, Bartolomeo della Gatta, Luca Signorelli and Sassetta. Signorelli was born in Cortona and has, as you might expect, a big presence there. I don’t have other pictures to show you, because I’m not a big fan of Signorelli.

If there is one thing I have learned from my 6+ years of living in Italy, it’s that you never, ever, ever know where you will find useful information. It is often not in the logical location.

I’ve walked through the Piazza di San Firenze a million times and marveled at the Baroque church that dominates the square. I’ve never found any good information about it’s construction at a moment’s notice.

An American friend is very interested in the Franco Zeffirelli Foundation and its headquarters, which are located in this building and I’ve been reading about the foundation. And I stumbled across this fascinating info on the Baroque church.

The headquarters

It wasn’t my actual first day back, because it takes me quite a few days to decompress and get regulated with waking v sleeping hours. But, it was my first day back during which I was out, ready to enjoy the scenes in the city.

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Walking near the Accademia, I noticed this poster, which seems to be advertising the beginning of a new master’s course in the fine arts, beginning today, 1 September. Life is resuming as normal?

Below, a common sight throughout Italy, but a beloved sight nonetheless. Red geraniums.

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What walk would be complete without a reference to Dante and street art in general?

I love these old mail slots found on the facades of many buildings. This one harkens back to the days when letters and telegrams were as common as emails.

A view of San Marco, Florence, complete with (German?) tourists.

One of the ubiquitous tabernacles. This one is in my neighborhood and it’s almost impossible to see the painted image under the glass.

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I love living in a city in which poets are free to post their poems on city walls.

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Even if some naysayer feels free to put graffiti on top of the poetry, saying “Fascist shit.” As the Wicked Witch of the West was fond of saying, “what a world, what a world.”

Yes, so there are plenty of naysayers, trying to rain on the parade. But art, like nature, is tenacious. See below.

That was my view on my first day back in the swim of things in lovely old Firenze.

At long last! I’d planned to be in the USA for 2 months starting June 2, but extended my stay by 3 weeks.

Last week I returned to Florence and gratefully missed the hideously hot weather of the summer.

First things first: I love the flight between Germany and Florence! The Alps and the Appenines are both so beautiful.

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Sometimes I think I will be able to resist the charms of Italy, which would really make my life a lot easier in many ways. But, then I’m in the air, on my way back, and the charm offensive has already begun. I mean, come on, look at this adorable packaging for mint candies! And I haven’t even set foot on Italian soil yet.

Will I be able to resist this time? Vedremo.

https://www.cntraveler.com/story/travel-used-to-be-my-identity-how-do-i-move-forward?utm_campaign=falcon&utm_brand=cnt&mbid=social_facebook&utm_social-type=owned&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook&fbclid=IwAR2-LQ2URauLLbv5jWWgHzFG2rCQSYozHkyoVPYkcYyou8kjNDj2iMTibJ0