San Gimignano
San Gimignano looks like someone dropped a medieval Manhattan into the middle of Tuscany. The town is famous for its tall stone towers, built by wealthy families as symbols of power and prestige. At one time there were dozens of them competing for the skyline, and enough survive today to give San Gimignano its unmistakable appearance.
Inside the old walls, narrow streets wind between stone buildings, little piazzas and those enormous towers rising overhead. The remarkably preserved medieval centre makes it easy to forget what century you’re in — at least until another crowd of tourists appears around the corner.
Surrounding all of this is the Tuscan countryside, which only makes the place more ridiculously picturesque. Medieval towers, rolling hills, vineyards and old stone buildings — sometimes Italy really does look exactly like the postcards.
