Monday, September 13, 2010

Giardino Garzoni, Collodi, Italy

The medieval city of Collodi hugs the mountainside. Collodi is ~20 km northeast of Pescia.
At the front of the old city is the Villa owned by the Garzoni family, dating from the 1600s.



The villa is not open at this time; it is being refurbished by the family after falling into disrepair. Here are some pictures from it that were posted in the entrance to the garden:

The family had a gorgeous Baroque garden built, completed in 1652 (http://www.pinocchio.it/uk/homeuk.htm).

Much of the stone work here at the garden is Rococo style (rock and shell). Here are some beautiful examples of the rococo art in the garden, including a grotto.
Inside the grotto...
Other examples of statuary, waterfalls, garden plantings that we saw as we climbed and climbed up the steep stairs (yes, Mark came along with his cane!)....
Oh, wait....he isn't a statue!

Capers were found growing in the cracks and crevices of the stonewalls:




Mark and our friend, Mr. Cohen (Israel) posing in the shade of the bamboo forest....
And then, here is some of the Roman road that runs through the garden! You can still see the tracks from the Roman chariots.  We stood here and imagined what it must have been like here thousands of years ago...

The city of Collodi is also famous for the author who wrote 'Pinocchio'; he changed his last name to Collodi in honor of what the city had done for his Mother who worked there. Here's the world's tallest statue of Pinocchio.


Disclaimer: This blog is not an official University of Minnesota or Fulbright Program blog. The views expressed are my own and not those of the Fulbright Program, the U.S. Department of State or any of its partner organizations, or the University of Minnesota.

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