Exploring the Magnificent Villa Medicea di Poggio a Caiano

Hello dear friends!! How are you?

Yesterday I was supposed to make my usual post, but unfortunately, I had a bad sore throat, so I rested. Unfortunately, the cold and damp weather of the past few days has been getting the best of me, but today I have bounced back wonderfully.

So I wanted to share with you some photos I took a few weeks ago. I thought I had already shared them, but searching through my posts, I realized I had talked about another Medici Villa. By the way, I don't know if you know, but for about 11 years, these villas have been managed by UNESCO, and the Tuscany region has seven of them. In fact, one of my dreams is to visit all these villas, which I understand are about 14 throughout Tuscany.

Today, in particular, I want to talk about the Medici Villa of Poggio a Caiano, also known as L'Ambra. It was a self-guided visit. I was supposed to join a guided tour, but I arrived late, so I was able to visit both the exterior and the interior of the villa, and I must say I really liked it.

This villa was designed by the famous architect Giuliano da Sangallo between 1445 and 1520. It was commissioned by the famous Lorenzo de' Medici and was intended to serve as the Medici family's summer residence. Visiting these places is always very exciting because they are truly important to our history and culture. Naturally, the part I liked the most was the exterior garden, with all these blooming roses. Architecturally, what I really love is the facade with these two very unique and impressive staircases.

It could still use a bit more care for a UNESCO site. I found parts of the plaster peeling off, which isn't a good thing, but it's also true that restoring these important monuments requires a lot of money. However, even inside the villa, you are left speechless in front of these beautiful frescoes. This is probably the best-preserved part of the whole villa, to be honest. Unfortunately, the work phone I used to take the photos couldn't capture the beauty of these interiors. Moreover, there was little light, which greatly affected the quality of the photos.

Entering these places always feels like taking a step back in time. I was also impressed by how well-preserved some of the tapestries are, which are one of the key decorations inside this villa.

I hope that even if the photos I shared didn't come out perfectly, you still enjoyed them. I hope that in the not-too-distant future, you will be able to visit this beautiful UNESCO site, which is an absolute must-see.

See you soon, friends, and see you in my next post!