Stone upon stone: an Italian sojourn: A moment in Medieval time

We passed through grape-clad hills enroute to our next stop in Tuscany and came across a very pretty castello in a village called Monsanto, which is dedicated to producing excellent Chianti Classico on every surrounding hillscape not covered by the cyprus pines that stand tall and on guard there, thus keeping the excellent family cellar stacked, and private.

San Gimignano, a little further on, is a tiny hilltop village dotted with many tall towers that make it appears a screen capture from history -- a moment in medieval time -- that keeps it looking as it once was, way back.

Its history goes right back to the Etruscans, but its eccentric moment in time came when wealthy Italian nobles and aristocracy living here during the fourteenth century sought to outdo their neighbours by building a higher tower, and yet an even higher tower. My tower will be bigger than yours was the ruling syndrome. So high did the towers became that soon the city officials had to restrict the limit: saying they could not be built taller than the existing tallest nearest to the Duomo.

The towers seen from every hill and valley from afar, are square and tall, only about 1 metre by 2 metres large, built against other buildings that were often made of timber and earth. There were few windows and the walls were often very thick which kept them cool in summer and warm in winter. The bottom floors were usually cellars, warehouses, workshops; the next level were bedrooms; above that were the kitchens - the rationale for it being high was that if there was to be a fire in the kitchen, there would always be an escape route down. The top tower spaces were intended for security in times of siege.

Today only 13 of the 72 towers that once existed, remain. Most fell down due to poor foundations; so even back then the wealthy could not always get excellent skilled labourers who could build them a substantial building that would last a long long time. Though some did.

Then, the plague hit San Gimignano, and its population was decimated, and it never quite recovered: leaving it much as it is today.

Today, San Gimignano is almost completely a tourist village. It is thronged with visitors from abroad and the shops and restaurants reflect that. Expensive wine boutiques. Colourful ceramic shops with urns of all shapes and sizes. Delicatessens filled with the smell of fine cheese and salumi. Art galleries displaying works that you might see in Rome or Paris. Stylish restaurants selling the classic Tuscan bread soup: Ribollita. Or wild boar ragu over ravioli. Or even a simple, yet stylish, tagliatelle bolognese. Even the old fixtures and fittings on external walls from ages past still look elegant and beautiful. A lovely place: albeit completely touristy.