Hidden treasures of Tuscany

Siena's countryside has plenty of less-known and pictoresque small villages, off the beaten tracks.

If you're planning to visit Monte Oliveto Maggiore abbey - a Benedectine monastery in the Southern part of the region - dont' miss Chiusure. Once a castle owned by the noble Cacciaconti family and later governed by Siena, nowadays Chiusure is a lovely hamblet where you can have a walk, have lunch in one of its typical "osterie" (small, simple restaurants, usually serving home-made foods) and taste the famous artichoke - the festival of the artichoke, Chiusure in piazza, takes place at the end of April. From the top on the hill that hosted the old castle you can have a gorgeous view of the countryside with its "biancane" - soft, green hills - and "calanchi" - white scars of the earth.

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