A Tuscan tour
The quintessential Tuscan "look" of rich red earth and silvery olive trees occurs most frequently in the Chianti area between Florence and Siena, and comprises dozens of medieval hill towns: Montepulciano and Montalcino, known for their wines; San Gimignano, crowded with towers; Pienza, a major center of pecorino production. South and east of this area is the land sometimes referred to as Tuscia, once inhabited by the Etruscans. Dating long before the rise of Rome, the Etruscans left evidence of their highly developed culture with elaborate tombs, jewelry and pottery. Arezzo and Volterra were two major centers of Etruscan civilization. The culture has left its mark both in the Tuscan gene pool and in the word Tuscany itself. West of the old Etruscan stomping grounds is a very green area known as the Maremma, with a large stretch of coast. Five hundred years ago, the area was poor, swampy and plagued with malaria. Now the swamps have been filled in, and its inland is home to the famous butteri, or cowboys, who help raise herds of vitelloni bianchi, the prized cows destined for the region's barbecue pits. Tuscany's beaches continue north with the Costa degli Etruschi, or Etruscan Coast. The island of Elba, made famous by Napoleon's exile, is the largest of a handful of small islands known as the archipelago toscano. Great care has been taken to establish nature reserves on the islands to protect indigenous plants and wildlife. Slightly inland from the coast, the northwest edge of Tuscany is dominated by the Apuan Alps, a curiously self-contained stretch of mountains loaded with marble. The open quarries, many of them thousands of years old, gleam like snow from a distance. This is where Michelangelo came to handpick the raw materials for his sculptures. Ancient Roman emperors brought big business here during various booms of building activity in Rome. Massa and Carrara are two of the cities most associated with the marble mines. Apuan marble is partially responsible for the excellent quality of lardo di Colonnata, which is aged in marble urns in the town of Colonnata. There still are parts of Tuscany that are largely undiscovered. The tiny island of Gorgona, which only allows a small number of tourists per year, teems with delicate sea species and over 400 species of flora. The forested, isolated Garfagnana is another such example. Filled with valleys and gorges, it is one of Tuscany's last frontiers.

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