How did we spend New Year ten years ago? We rented a little flat in Cutigliano, which is around forty minutes away by car from Bagni di Lucca on the road to Abetone, and took to the ski slopes.
Cutigliano itself is full of quaint corners and some lovely buildings. I’ve talked about it in various posts, for example at:
Cutigliano’s church, dedicated to Saint Bartholomew stands a little outside the centre of the town. It possesses a fine pulpit but has a bloody past. In 1537 a massacre between two rival families, the Panciatichi and the Cancellieri, took place within its holy confines. Following this event the old church was burnt down and rebuilt in the second half of the sixteenth century.
While we were there in 2008 it began to snow and Cutigliano was magically transformed.
Today at Longoio the weather continues damp and misty. We last saw blue skies three days ago – a major ‘perturbazione’ has enveloped Europe with high wind and lots of rain. We look forwards to it going away soon!