A follow-up photo-essay from more recent trip can be found here.
Many tour-books call San Gimignano “Manhattan of Tuscany”, on account of a dozen or so surviving medieval towers that form a veritable skyscraper cluster. The towers attract huge crowds of tourists to the town whose ancient core remains attractive and picturesque even when being overrun by sightseeing hordes.
Here is a view to the town from a distance.
There are two towers that stand pretty close to each other and, while they actually differ in size and would not be called remarkable on their own merit, from a number of angles they bear certain resemblance to an erstwhile New York City landmark.
Climbing the tallest of San Gimignano’s towers, Torre Grossa, is highly recommended, especially since it is not as taxing as tower climbs elsewhere. The views over the Tuscan countryside are amazing. Here is one prominently featuring the not-so-twin towers.
This line of houses on the main square, Piazza della Cisterna, is one of my favorite sights in town.
San Gimignano is small, and we visited enough times to be able to explore areas beyond standard tourist routes. On one quiet street, we found a row of doors guarded by sculpted heads. Here is a fragment.
And this is just so unmistakably “Tuscan hill-town” that I like this shot even though there is clearly nothing exceptional about it.
Tuscan towns are among the most-frequently-visited destinations in our travels. That form is set to continue this year.