GROOVIN' IT AT MONTALCINO'S BAR LE LOGGE

It's October - summer festival season is over and night life in Tuscany starts to take on a slower pace. Luckily for Montalcino, some people don't loose their spirit even if temperature and tourist numbers start to drop.

Cocktail time at bar le Logge in Montalcino, Tuscany

Michela, shakin' it at Le Logge

Simone Muggianu and his partner Michela run one of Brunello town's nicest bars. Located on Montalcino's main square bar Le Logge is meeting place for young and old alike. Every time I'm in Montalcino I stop for a coffee or an aperitif there. No need to call friends. Either they are already there or one or the other will be arriving shortly.

Best of all, bar Le Logge also makes sure people in Montalcino get their share of big city life. Aperitifs with live music and yes, even dj sets for dancing are organised. You don't even have to go for dinner beforehand. Grab your food directly from the tasty buffet Le Logge puts up during these nights. Enjoy the music, dance and yes, taste yourself not just through Tuscan red wines, but through any Italian drink or cocktail you could wish for.

CAFFE' ALLE LOGGE DI PIAZZA, Friday 12th of October: Aperitif, Dinner and Music
Piazza del Popolo, 1
53024 Montalcino
Phone: +39 0577 846 186; winebarlelogge@email.it
Open from 7am to 1am. Closed on Wednesdays.

SANT'ANTIMO ABBEY - TUSCANY'S ROMANESQUE TREASURE

Sant'Antimo abbey near Montalcino You don't have to be a catholic to remain spellbound by the eternal beauty of the Sant'Antimo abbey. The Tuscan church and monastery can turn a stubborn skeptic into a reborn spiritual. At least for the time of the visit.

SWIMMING, READING AND DINING IN BAGNO VIGNONI

Whilst the sell-out of tourist destination is a well known plague all through Italy, t here exists a tiny town in UNESCO Heritage Val d'Orcia which forgoes made in China souvenirs and just opened a bookshop instead. Bagno Vignoni is one of Tuscany's oldest tourist destinations. In fact the historic spa town has never been anything else than a tourist destination, and the ratio of inhabitants to visitors must always have been at least 1 to 10. Having looked after medieval pilgrims, ailing popes and saints ( St. Catherine of Siena used to live here for a while), Bagno Vignoni isn't tempted at all to put out plastic chairs or pizza takeaways for present day travelers. I used to live close to Bagno Vignoni and have fond memories of chasing my first -born around the town's main square which consists of a steaming hot water pool (a must-see sight for urban architects!). Our healthy mornings were usually finished off with a slice of fudge chocolate c

VAL D'ORCIA: A MAP OF THE UNESCO HERITAGE SITE

About 40 minutes south of Siena and a bit over an hour from the Tuscan coast, Val d'Orcia lies to the east of the Maremma and to the west of Montepulciano and Umbria. The UNESCO world heritage site is made up by the territories of Montalcino, San Quirico d'Orcia (with historic spa town Bagno Vignoni ) , Pienza, Castiglione d'Orcia and Radicofani. The Orcia river crosses two more municipalities (Castel del Piano and my hometown Cinigiano ), where it divides the province of Siena from the province of Grosseto (Tuscany's two southernmost areas) before flowing into the Ombrone river. View VAL D'ORCIA MAP in a larger map

Mapping MONTALCINO

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