About one hour by car or train lies the picturesque little hamlet of Certaldo, home of Renaissance’s literary giant, Giovanni Boccaccio.

The big cities in Italy were filled with visitors on this hot summer day, but in Certaldo it was fairly quiet and pleasantly breezy. We leisured through the cobbled streets, keeping ourselves busy capturing the beauty.

The historic part of town is known as Certaldo Alto (high). It is perched above the more modern part of town, Certaldo Basso (low).

Oh, the place you’ll see from a vantage point such as Certaldo’s. Can you name the Tuscan city seen in the background of photo below, sometimes called “Medieval Manhattan” because of its many towers…?