The Wood Store at Art Toscana Art Courses in Italy

We have a large wood burning stove to heat the house here at Art Toscana Painting Holidays in Italy. You may think this is a lot of wood but it will probably only last until March when we will have to cut some more depending on the early spring weather. When our guests at Art

Lucca at Christmastime

We were in Lucca last week Christmas shopping of course.This is the town most of our guests, at Art Toscana Painting Retreats, visit on their free day. Every shop was so beautifully decorated with baubles, tinsel and Christmas lights. Shoppers were wrapped up in hats and scarves enjoying the carols and nativity displays, sipping aperitifs

Georgie at Art Toscana Art Vacations in Italy

Here is Georgie again. He is 15 months old. A very big puppy now. We took a picture of him in the very same spot this time last year when he was a little puppy. You can’t really go wrong with a Golden Retriever. That is what our guests at Art Toscana Painting Holidays in

The Cathedral at San Candido

Italy has so many ornate churches. This one is particularly beautiful with its vaulted ceiling and frescoes. However, not all Italian churches are ornate. The cathedral of Barga called, Il Duomo di San Cristoforo, is a simple church reflecting the humble lives of the Garfagnana farm workers. Our guests at Art Toscana Painting Holidays in

Looking Forward to the Snow at Art Toscana painting Vacations in Italy

This is San Candido in The Dolomites where, we spent Christmas last year. It could quite easily be Barga covered in snow. We are all hoping for a white Christmas at Art Toscana Art Holidays in Italy.

The Autum Leaves at Art Toscana Art Holidays in Italy

Georgie can’t resist immersing himself in crispy autumn leaves. I suppose it’s like a canine full body massage; the crackling and crunching sound of the leaves adding to the pleasure. The leaves arrived during the last few windy nights. We woke up yesterday to find we couldn’t open the back door without the autumn foliage

The Delites of Cafe Lucchese, Barga, the seat of Art Toscana Art Holidays in Italy

There are so many delicious Christmas goodies here at Cafe Lucchese our wonderful local patisserie; chocolates, panettone, rum babs in jars soaked in rum, specialist olive oil, fig jam, and lots of other Italian Christmas goodies. I have said that Cafe Lucchese could match any other patisserie in the world! A sweeping statement but their

Christmas Wreath

I took this rather wonky photograph of a Christmas wreath in Lewes a few weeks ago whilst visiting our grandchildren. It is so delicate and wistful, I had to put it in my phone. Perhaps it is not a Christmas display because where is the green and red? Chris and I, here at Art Toscana