A New, Very Old Neighborhood

The historic center of Lucca is small, lying within a 4.2 km (2.5 mile) surround of Renaissance era walls.  It is easy to walk from one side of town to the other in just 20 minutes. It might seem that such a small area would feel like one cohesive neighborhood, but nothing could be further from the truth.

Historically, in the Medieval and in the Renaissance period, Lucca was divided into 3 terzieri (thirds of the town) each with its own administration.  The terzieri were further divided into 4 smaller sections called gonfaloni.  Each gonfalone (singular form of gonfaloni) had a unique name and symbol, which was carried on a banner.   

The 3 terzieri are represented in the many Medieval events held in Lucca

San Martino Cathedral lends its name to the terziere on Lucca’s eastern side

The terzieri in Lucca were the Terziere of San Martino, Terziere of San Salvatore, and Terziere of San Paolino.  San Martino was the largest of the three, though least populated, taking up much of the eastern and central part of the city, from north to south. 

Next, San Paolino, in the western section of Lucca, was the oldest terziere of the city. It had the largest population and held a position of importance within the historic city.

The Church of San Tommaso in the terziere of San Paolino, is one of Lucca’s oldest churches.

The smallest of the terziere was San Salvatore, in the north central part of Lucca. 

One of the most famous fountains in Lucca stands in Piazza San Salvatore in the terziere of the same name, the building behind is the Church of San Salvatore, another of Lucca’s oldest churches. It gave the terziere its name.

Today, there are many echoes of those long-ago neighborhoods in Lucca.   While the modern city has one unified city government, the names of the old terzieri persist, and the churches and piazzas that anchored them are still standing as the cornerstones of unique neighborhoods. 

Two of the Medieval city gates are still used. Both sit within the San Martino terziere and mark the limits of what was the Medieval city. Today, locals and visitors alike walk under the arches each day as they head toward the center of town. A third gate, the Porta San Donato, has been replaced by a newer, larger entrance to the city in the Renaissance era wall.  However, part of the old gate (middle photo below) can still be seen nearby as part of the tourist information center.

The historic divisions are perhaps best represented in Lucca’s frequent Medieval themed events which often involve competitions with costumed teams from each of the terzieri carrying their unique banners.  The Terzieri of San Paolino is still important - it often takes the prize in archery competitions.

This history has been on my mind since I recently moved from an apartment in the San Martino neighborhood to one in the San Paolino area.  Historically speaking, my new apartment is in the Terzieri San Paolino, the Gonfalone della Serena (the subdivision of the Siren).  And even though I am just about a 10-minute walk to the west of my old apartment, this part of town has a very different vibe.  I would describe it as being off the beaten path, a slice of Lucca before the “spiffing up” for tourists.  It is definitely a residential area, not a souvenir shop to be found.  

Bar Probi

I have been exploring the area for the last couple of weeks.  I’ve found one nearby bar for morning coffee, run by a pair of friendly sisters.  It sits just across from a court building and is very popular with the people working there. A cornetto and a cappuccino here costs €2.80. Definitely a taste of old Lucca and certainly not tourist prices.

When I introduced myself to one of the owners, saying that I had just moved to this part of town, her response was “well, then this is your bar, see you tomorrow”.  A nice welcome!   A second bar, Bar Tiani, has welcomed Lucchese since the 1950’s. It is located right next to the neighborhood grocery store. Full of locals, it is a lively place full of the music of spoken Italian. And who doesn’t need a caffè before grocery shopping? A bonus is the small Thursday morning market, just a block or two from my new place. It has wonderful fruits and vegetables straight from area farms.

 I’ve mostly organized my new apartment, a small studio inside a former convent, the style of which is what I call “Ikea chic”.  I now know where the breakers are – an important detail after the power went out in a storm, not an unusual occurrence here in Italy.  I’ve explored the nearest way out of the walls through the very interesting Porta San Donato.  And I am finding new details in doors, windows, bricks, and streets each time I set out. 

I am enjoying things that seem small but have a big impact of quality of life – a complete kitchen (no more Easy Bake oven for me!), good AC (critical in hot, hot August), and – best of all – a terrace which looks out at roof tops and gardens. Opening the doors to the terrace first thing each morning, with beautiful southern light, makes me smile.  That I found this small, affordable place feels like a miracle.

Living in Italy has taught me many things – the joys of a simple apartment, a good local bar for morning coffee, the sound of the Italian language drifting through my doors, church bells ringing, looking out over a hidden garden, and a community of nice people - these are the things of value.

And cool, rainy weather!  I vote for more of that.

The entry way to my building, once a convent.

25 Years of Murabilia in Lucca

Plants, art, crafts, vintage items - there is something for everyone at Murabilia

September is always a special month in Lucca, full of festivals and events.  One of the first in any September is Murabilia.  This year markets the 25th edition of the annual event which showcases all things needed for the fall garden, patio, terrace or home. 

I can’t claim to have attended all 25 of them (if only!), but since establishing a second home here in 2018 I have gone almost every year.  Murabilia offers the first promise of fall, and cooler weather, to come. 

The event has grown over the years from a small local garden show to a major event with exhibitors from throughout Italy and beyond.  While home gardening is still a major theme, horticultural preservation, conservation, education, and “green” culture have also become key components of the event.

In addition to all the displays and educational presentations, there is a festive atmosphere with booths selling foods, crafts, home and garden art, textiles, and vintage items. 

 And chickens!  Everyone seems to love the chickens which come in all colors, sizes, and degrees of fluffiness. Kids and adults alike linger by the chickens.

Being from New Mexico, I am always drawn to the peppers. And while they aren’t being roasted as they are right now back in New Mexico (I sure miss that aroma), there are some familiar sights like jalapenos and habaneros.  New to me were the little whitish-yellow ones called Dente di Coyote (Coyote teeth). Now if only I could find some Hatch style green chile to roast and dry.

 Murabilia is a good place for stocking the kitchen too.  With stands of woven garlic, huge aglione (elephant garlic), red onions, cheese, salami and sausages it helps to bring a shopping bag.  For fall decorating, it is hard to beat the variety of pumpkins and gourds for sale.

 The festival also has great take-away snacks.  Paper cones filled with cheese or salami cubes and fruit filled cups.  What could be more refreshing on a hot late summer day? And of course there is a gelato truck.

For me, the flowers remain the super stars of the event.  The variety in form, color, leaf shape, and texture makes wandering through the displays a joyful way to spend a morning.

September will hold many more special events: a month long carnival just outside the walls, a major religious procession, and several types of markets. 

Murabilia is the perfect way to kick off the month known here as Settembre Lucchese.

As Summer Winds Down

Stinco is a pork shank, tender and wonderful the meat falls off the bone

The calendar says that summer is almost over, though the weather has yet to provide any hints of fall. Temperatures are a little better than they were a couple of weeks ago, but still hot, humid, and sticky.  I’ve had a busy couple of weeks since my return to Lucca, including a move to a new apartment and carting more boxes than I can count to the recycle bins. Fortunately, those chores were balanced out by a couple of fun events.

First, a sagra with a group of old and new friends.  A sagra is a community event, usually held in summer or fall, a festival built around a local specialty dish.  The cooking is done by volunteers (community or church groups, lots of nonne and nonni).  Dining is outdoors at long tables, and the food usually is served cafeteria style – get your tray, go through the line, pick what you’d like.  Sometimes you buy a ticket at the start, which covers everything, and other times you pay at the end based on what dishes you’ve chosen.  Don’t forget to stop by the booth selling wine!

Over the years I’ve been to sagras that celebrate a special type of onion (the Treschietto from Bagnone), rigatoni, polenta, porcini, roasted meats, and soup.   Each one a local specialty and delicious.  Every sagra also served a variety of dishes beyond the featured one, plus wine and a dessert.  

Stinco

Last week’s sagra was in Massarosa, not far from Lucca.  The Sagra dello Stinco featured pork shank – a delicious big piece of pork so tender it nearly fell off the bone. 

There were also a couple of different pasta dishes, grilled chicken, steak, fried fish, quarti fritti (lovely, salty fried dough pieces to layer with prosciutto), bruschetta with tomatoes.  Water, beer, wine.   Desserts, a cream filled torta di nonna or a chocolate filled torta di nonno, rounded out the menu.   Taking place in a not-too-hot summer evening with music, laughter, and friends and it added up to a perfect Italian summer night.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  The last weekend in August also saw the 13th edition of the Notte Bianca (White Night) in Lucca.   This is an end of summer celebration in which most of the city’s museums, along with famous towers and palazzi, are open late (with free entry). Shops stay open well past normal closing times as well. 

Early in the evening there was a creative activity for kids in Piazza San Michele.  As the night progressed, there were multiple sound stages with DJs in the large piazzas and smaller DJ stages or groups performing along many of the streets, a percussion group parading through the streets, and lots of interesting things to see and hear.

No small event - some 60,000 people participated. Perhaps not the thing for anyone who dislikes crowds and loud music, but definitely fun to experience for at least some of the evening.

One favorite was the giant keyboard, played by two people dancing across the keys, in Piazza Cittadella. 

 Another favorite – the groups of dancers in several of the squares.  Everything from tango to zumba, it was not possible to see them all. I chose to watch the salsa dancers in Piazza San Frediano.  Impossible not to move to that beat!

The final event, at midnight, was an acrobatic troupe.  Too late for me – I was home by then but still could hear the music drifting through my windows.

Notte Bianca was a great way to wind down the summer season and begin to think about fall.

Now if only fall weather would make an appearance.

A Festival of Ephemeral Art

Teams of volunteers, often groups of young people, arrived early in the morning to work on creating the “carpet” along Lucca’s walls.

The word ephemeral comes from Greek and describes an object that isn’t meant to last, something that sticks around for just a day. Ephemeral art must be enjoyed as it is created because tomorrow it will be gone.  The largest display of ephemeral art is one I wrote about earlier this summer – the Infiorata in Spello. In that case the creations, made entirely of botanicals, were for the feast of Corpus Domini and included primarily religious themes. Lasting even less than a day, the work was trampled by a procession to the church after just a few hours.

Lucca hosted a festival of Ephemeral Art, The Festival of Arte Effimere Guinness Edition 2026, this past weekend.  Lasting for just one day, it was an attempt to set a Guinness World Record for the longest “carpet” of flowers.  The previous record was held by the city of Huamantla in Mexico and stretched for 3,939.5 meters. Lucca had the perfect spot for this challenge, as the historic walls around the old city stretch for just over 4200 meters.  They also had the perfect organizer, The Association of Sawdust Carpets (Associazione Tappeti di Segatura) from Camaiore.  Game on!

Starting at 6 am on Saturday, teams spread out all along the wall with two main objects. The first was to create a series of works of art using flowers as the main material but also incorporating leaves, sand, sawdust, wood shavings, even fruit and vegetables. 

The second objective was to link all the works with a continuous ribbon of tinted sand, creating the required length needed to achieve the Guinness World Record.   

The art works were specific to the Province of Lucca, reflecting local traditions, history, and events.  The artists used templates on the ground and then slowly, bit by bit, filled them in to become some of the regions most famous things : The Devil’s Bridge, Lucca’s Summer Music Festival, the Roman ruins of Massaciuccoli, the Camelia Festival, the Enolia Wine event, Bike Races, Lucca Comics and Games, the composer Puccini.  In all, 15 separate works of ephemeral art were created.

Throughout the day people walked along the walls to see the works as they took shape.  They were all quite careful not to step on the art or the ribbons of sand that connected them.  And most importantly, it was a day of sunshine and no wind.

The efforts continued until about 6 pm and then began the wait for results.  At 7pm, an official measurement was performed by a local notary and – drum roll – it measured 4,233 meters. A Guinness Record.  As for how long the record will stand, that is anyone’s guess because other cities were competing too. 

In any case, the hard work was appreciated by all who marveled at the creations.  It was a different kind of art in a city well-known for hosting unique art events.  But by the next day it began to disappear.

Even little tomatoes had a role in creating the ephemeral art (photo from internet)

The Infiorata of Spello

In Italian, the word fiore means flowers. An infiorata is a festival in which flowers are used to create stunning, but temporary, works of art.  A wonderful tradition in Italy is to celebrate the Feast of Corpus Domini, which falls about 60 days after Easter, with an infiorata.  Many towns participate in this tradition, some are small local celebrations, while others are large events which draw thousands of visitors.  The celebrations are not just about art or flowers – they are at heart religious celebrations in which the fleeting designs are offerings – and they guide people up the village streets to the church.

 On any normal day, the town of Spello is filled with flowers.  They spill from window boxes, fill pots in little alleys, and line the steps of buildings, creating one of Umbria’s most charming villages. But on the Sunday of the annual Infiorata, Spello takes flower displays to exponentially greater levels.  It is one of the most famous Infiorate in Italy, and something I have long wanted to experience.  This year I finally got my chance when a visit to the event was included as part of a 4-day cooking class in Umbria (more about that in upcoming posts).

A detail from one of my favorite quadri

 The city of Spello closes to traffic on Saturday evening when tarp coverings are placed over the streets.  Teams work under the lighted tarps throughout the night, using only natural plant materials (petals, stems, leaves, herbs) to create detailed designs.  The materials can be fresh or naturally dried but no artificial colors or materials can be used. The labor is intensive, placing petals by hand, making a design come to life, keeping the petals moist, and staying up all night to do it!

One of the most elaborate of the tappeti at this year’s Infiorata

There are two main types of works –  quadri, which are large scale “paintings” and tappeti, long “carpets” of designs which are often geometric shapes.  Templates with the designs are worked on over time and then taped to the ground and used to create the displays.

It is hard to describe the scale of the Infiorata.  The designs wind up hill from the entrance to Spello near Porta Consolare, fill the Piazza della Republica, and continue up through the city up to its highest point.  The route is about a mile long in total.  Along the way are spectacular works of art, many reflecting religious themes (this is after all a celebration of a Catholic feast day), others have broader messages, and some are just pretty reflections of nature.  The event is also a competition, with winners in several categories announced at the end of the celebration.

My favorite work featured these delightful animals

It is best to arrive early (or even stay in town the night before) as the tarps start to come down by 8:00 am, the crowds are waiting, and arriving later can mean a long wait to get in.  The climb can be strenuous if you happen to have a really hot day, so earlier is better.  Luckily our weather was perfect and not hot at all, and the way the displays wound gradually up hill made the walk easy.  One confession though, I did most of the route but skipped the steepest part at the end. It can be a challenge to get photos of the larger works as everyone is trying to get close enough and to find the right just the right angle. There are some scaffolds that can be climbed to get shots from above, and I bet the photos from drone that was flying overhead were amazing. Most of my photos have lots of feet in them! The best photos zoom in on details - are here are some of the most intriguing ones.

The procession moves through the flower art on the way to the church (photo from the Commune of Spello)

Come too late and you’ll miss the fun all together. The works provide a path for a procession led by the Bishop, who walks right over the beautiful creations.  The procession begins around 11 am.  By the end of the day, it will all be swept away.  But this is not sad – it is as it is meant to be.

And now begins the planning for next year’s Infiorata.  Easter comes early next year, on March 28th.  The Infiorata will be Sunday May 30, 2027.   Now’s the time to think about coming!