La Certosa Restaurant, Florence, Italy

La Certosa Restaurant Villa Entrance

La Certosa Restaurant Villa Entrance

La Certosa Restaurant Villa Entrance

La Certosa Restaurant outdoors

La Certosa Restaurant is a traditional restaurant located in a villa that was built in the 13th century.  Reminiscent of an old country villa, this restaurant is located in the province of Florence, Italy and we were fortunate to be able to try out the Tuscany dinner that is served over there.

Pate as appetiser

Followed by pasta

Being served the Tuscan grilled beef steak

Well marinated and yummy...

Dessert!

Wall decor

With a few large halls, La Certosa Restaurant can serve many different groups at the same time.

It was a pity that we were there for dinner during winter since it gets dark early and we did not have the opportunity to appreciate the whole grounds of the villa though we did manage to take a few pictures of the entrance area.

Complete with folk music entertainment as well as accordion accompaniment, and the antics of the service staff, we were completely enthralled by the food as well as the songs.

Singer and accordion player up front

A waltz

Service staff

Wall decor

Cheers!

Check out the video below for the wonderful entertainment as well as a song that we learned that very day, Just One Cornetto...






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Peruzzi Leather Italy Florence

Renowned for its quality, workmanship and attention to detail, Peruzzi has been in business since 1948. With its largest leather outlet store in Florence, Italy, Peruzzi is a place to visit if you are on a Europe vacation package.



Here in Peruzzi, you can even have your purchases gold stamped with your initials (3 letters and if you are fortunate to have a good rapport with them, you might even be able to get up to 5 letters of your initials).   Other than leather jackets and fashionwear, you can also find a range of souvenir items such as wallets, trash bins, handbags, etc...

Uniquely designed leather handbags 

Gold stamping initials on the spot

Trash bin with gold stamp edges

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Casa Di Dante

Casa di Dante Museum
and the medieval tower called "del Castagna"

Close up of the medieval tower "del Castagna"

During our Europe vacation package, we were on a walking tour of Florence, Italy, when we passed  by Casa Di Dante.


Built to celebrate the birth place of Dante Alighieri, the Italian poet of the Middle Ages, Dante's Home is now the seat of the House-Museum of Dante.  Casa Di Dante has three levels dedicated to the life of Dante.  Here you are able to see the three most important stages in his life.

Image of Dante on the ground in the square in front of Casa di Dante

Bust of Dante

Casa di Dante museum

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Il Porcellino - Florence Italy

Il Porcellino (Italian "piglet") is the local Florentine nickname for the bronze fountain of a boar.

Shiny snout of Il Porcellino

Originally intended for the Boboli Garden, then moved in the Mercato Nuovo in Florence, Italy. the fountain was placed originally facing east, in via Calimala, in front of the Farmacia del Cinghiale, which is the proper italian noun for Boar. To ensure more space to the traffic it was later moved in the side facing south, where it still stands as one of the most popular spots for tourists. The present statue is only a copy, while the original is sheltered in the new Museo Bardini.

The fountain figure was sculpted and cast by Baroque master Pietro Tacca (1577 –1640) in 1612, following a marble Italian copy of a Hellenistic marble original, at the time in the Grand Ducal collections and today in display in the classical section of the Uffizi Museum.

Placing a coin in the jaws of Il Porcellino

Visitors to Il Porcellino put a coin into the gaping boar's jaws with the intent to let it fall through the underlying grating for good luck and rub the boar's snout to ensure a return to Firenze, a tradition that has kept the snout in a state of polished sheen while the rest of the boar's body has patinated to a dull brownish-green.




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