Hello, dearest friends,
Today, I will once again tell you about another place I was lucky enough to visit this weekend. After my visit on Saturday, on Sunday, together with a dear friend of mine, we went to visit some friends whom I had originally met in a tourist village many years ago.
Our initial plan was actually to go to Pisa since I hadn't been there in a long time. However, my friend took me to see a village located in the Valdarno Pisano, right on the banks of the Arno River, about 20 km from Pisa—a place I had heard of before but never had the chance to visit.
This village is home to quite a few people, with around 12,000 inhabitants. Our visit started along the riverbanks of the Arno, but what truly caught my attention afterward was the Church of San Giovanni Battista and the square in front of it.
My friend explained that this place, called Calcinaia, got its name from the ancient lime kilns that once existed here, primarily used for ceramic production—a well-known tradition in Tuscany and other parts of Italy. Naturally, we took an interesting stroll through the streets of this town, looking for historic buildings. In fact, we found one where Garibaldi is said to have appeared during the Risorgimento period. We also searched for the ceramic museum, as ceramics were the most important economic activity that supported the town.
Walking through these streets, you can still spot a few medieval towers. This village was founded before the year 1000, and its historic medieval tower, located in the town center, is one of its most important landmarks. It likely serves as a reminder of the town’s defensive system, which, unfortunately, has been lost over the years.
Sadly, as you can see from the photos, parts of this town are in a bit of a state of decay. Without maintenance, this is always an issue. However, I must say that it is still fascinating to walk through these streets, notice historical details, and even here, find so many cats roaming around.
As we continued our walk, we finally found the ceramic museum, but to our surprise and disappointment, it was closed. It is always frustrating to find museums closed on a Sunday, a day when they should definitely be open.
Before heading home, we also went to see the remains of a destroyed railway bridge over the Arno River. I later read that it was destroyed during World War II and was part of the historic railway connecting Lucca to Pontedera. Today, some of its arches are still visible. As you can see from the photo I took, a metal structure has been added to support the aqueduct pipes.
I'm not sure how much sense it makes to keep a structure like this. Sure, it can be considered historical, but from my point of view, it doesn’t seem very useful.
I hope you enjoyed my photos, and I truly hope you visit this place because it does have its own historical charm and interesting aspects. See you in my next post, and I wish you all a wonderful day!
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