Life in Italy

Day-to-day life in Florence does not always include visits to the Duomo or an indulgent Bistecca for lunch. Beneath the surface, Florence’s community is constantly building upon how it serves its locals, from recommendations for young families, to services for expatriates. The following articles provide tips and tricks for those calling Florence home.

ART + CULTURE

Colour theory in Florence

From Innocenti blue to Ponte Vecchio orpiment and louvre green, the city of Florence is a rainbow waiting to be discovered.

COMMUNITY

Striking truffle gold in southern Tuscany

Ask around and the city folk of Florence will tell you the Maremma, in the region’s south, is rural and, let’s be honest, a little backwards. If you ask the ...

NEWS

The Florentine’s tribute to Jane Fortune

Reflections from Linda Falcone, Marco Badiani

COMMUNITY

The four fashion types you’ll meet in Florence

While first-time travellers to the Tuscan capital may expect a city awash with colourfully clad locals, in reality most Florence dwellers don’t look as if they were plucked straight from ...

COMMUNITY

The “fiaccherai” of Florence

"Fiaccherai" and animal rights activists saddle up for summer debates

COMMUNITY

There’s no place like home: A less-popular take on small town Tuscany

Why four young Tuscans decided to buck the trend and make a go of it in their very small hometown.   Fresh out of university and very recently married, I ...

COMMUNITY

Perks and pitfalls of small-town Tuscany

Moving to the Tuscan countryside is almost every foreigner’s dream, but is it really as idyllic as it sounds? I chatted to three generations of locals to find out. Buffet ...

COMMUNITY

Kid-friendly Florence

From tots to teens, Florence’s younger population gets a made-to-measure May weekend of activities with the return of Firenze dei Bambini from May 4 to 6.   “Ingenuity” is the ...

COMMUNITY

24 hours at Palazzo Tornabuoni

In the heart of aristocratic Florence, Palazzo Tornabuoni was built for one of the city’s most influential families at the height of the Tuscan Renaissance. Once home to the Medici, ...

COMMUNITY

Losing weight in Florence

Our bodies need energy to keep us alive and our organs functioning normally. When we eat lunch, drink water or just have a small bite, we put energy into our ...

COMMUNITY

My Le Cure

With the announcement of piazza delle Cure’s redevelopment, I’ve been sorting through my memories as a former resident of Florence’s northern district. Unknown to tourists unwilling to venture past piazza ...

THINGS TO DO

How to plan your “settimana bianca”

Abetone, the Maremma and the Apuan Alps: these wintery Tuscan destinations are sure to satisfy your cravings for snow during a "settimana bianca".

COMMUNITY

What makes Tuscan men so attractive?

Caught up in the romance of the holiday season, Elisa Scarton Detti hits the streets of Manciano in southern Tuscany to find out what makes Tuscan men so darn attractive. ...

COMMUNITY

Expat circles in Florence

Florence’s siren call has long attracted foreigners since the city became a fixture on the nineteenth-century European Grand Tour. The Florentine columnist Deirdre Pirro describes many of these colourful characters ...

COMMUNITY

5 tips (and a few more) for your Tuscan wedding

First things first, congratulations! The question’s been asked, the prosecco’s been popped—and you’ve delivered the happy news of your nuptials to your nearest and dearest.  Eric Veroliemeulen, general manager of ...

COMMUNITY

Giardino Piero Filippi: a San Niccolò story

Sanniccolini proudly take their children there for play dates. Giardino della Carraia is a breath of fresh air extending up the hill from Porta San Miniato. The name comes from ...

COMMUNITY

Not the lady mayoress

If you want to be mayor in small-town Tuscany, you better stick to the status quo and, more importantly, you better not have a foreign-born wife. It may not have ...

COMMUNITY

Sexual health resources in Florence: a primer

Regardless of age, sex, gender or orientation, sorting through information about sexual and reproductive health can be complicated enough in your native language. Factor in a Florentine move and it ...

COMMUNITY

Opening a business in Italy: the basics

Can I do business in Italy from the U.S.? Can I sell my products in Italy? Should I set up a company in Italy? What type of company best suits ...

COMMUNITY

Velonotte: turning the wheels of imagination

Florence Bike Festival is taking the city on a two-wheeled joy ride. Tackling all things bicycle, from April 21 to April 23, 2017 the Renaissance capital’s cobblestones will rattle to the ...

COMMUNITY

Going lycra: biking in Florence

If you are a keen-eyed early riser, you will have noticed a particular breed of Italians on the streets, setting off at dawn and back home for Sunday lunch, before ...

COMMUNITY

Christmas with the family…and Easter too

A well-known Italian proverb clearly states “Natale con i tuoi, Pasqua con chi vuoi,” meaning that you should spend Christmas with your folks while you can choose whoever you want ...

COMMUNITY

Feeding frenzy

Prologue When I was growing up in Mississippi, my mother hated how I would always tell people we lived “behind Shoney’s”. It was plain fact that the Nashville-based franchise, complete ...

COMMUNITY

The ultimate question in a food-first country

When we were first married, my mother-in-law would call promptly every night as we were washing up the dinner dishes. “Pronto?” one of us would answer. “Cosa avete mangiato?” came ...

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