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Tuscan Roots Tuscan Roots BY MICHAEL SCIVOLI —A CULTURAL JOURNEY INTO THE ITALIAN COUNTRYSIDE FROM THE FOOTHILLS OF FLORENCE TO THE SERCHIO VALLEY. In the heart of central Italy, Tuscany has offered travelers the quintessential Italian experience for centuries. e narrow streets of Florence evoke the very essence of the Renaissance and the sun- soaked hills of the countryside have inspired countless pens. Tuscany has long since become a secular mecca—a cultural haven so many of us vow to see before we're dead and gone. On my very first sojourn to the fabled region, I came for food and wine but what I le with was much more introspective than that. As I ventured deeper into the heart of Tuscany, my surroundings forced me to look inside myself and consider the appeal of life's simple pleasures. When I arrived in Florence in the final days of May, it was the first time in weeks the region had not seen rain (or so nearly every local couldn't help but profess). Passing through the city of dreams I felt the presence of generations past, still alive and well in each passing brick. Locals leaned out from their windows above the façades in a most welcomed cliché, and the sun-kissed brown and yellow hues of the city turned a celestial shade of gold—as though I'd slipped into the fondest Renaissance daydream. V U E N J . C O M 137

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