Of the many areas of Tuscany that are little known by many tourists, few are as beautiful or fascinating as the hills and mountains of Casentino, between Florence and Arezzo. What can be considered the dark heart of Tuscany has many things working for it. Outstanding natural beauties, the largest wild forest in the region, plenty of historical castles, abbeys and villages, food specialties to die for. Despite everything, this is quite a peculiar part of our homeland, whose character was shaped by isolation and centuries of hardship, wars and constant strife. In order to get a glimpse of the soul of the people of Casentino, we'll walk you through some of the most fascinating myths and legends of this land. They're not your regular fairytales: people here definitely have a taste for the macabre. We go from the legend of the winged reptile spawned out of a small lake that has a diamond on its forehead and can paralyze anyone with its breath to the myth of the star-crossed love between a beautiful fairy and a peasant. We will also walk you through the backstory of the ancient spring whose waters are said to do miracles and the story of the castle on a hill that was built only after liberating the place from a pack of demons. Follow us in our trip to the dark heart of Tuscany, a place that will definitely leave a mark on your heart. If you have any question on everything Tuscany, let us know - we're more than happy to help! It's very easy to get in touch: just drop us a message on our social media accounts or an email. Every feedback is greatly appreciated as always!
Email: podcast@larno.it
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/larno.it
Twitter: @arno_it / @WhatsupTuscany

LINKS TO SOURCES (ITALIAN ONLY)
https://www.arezzonotizie.it/social/leggende-casentino-badalischio.html
https://www.casentino2000.it/incontri-ravvicinati-col-badalischio/
http://yogaarezzo.blogspot.com/2013/05/9-la-leggenda-del-badalischio.html
https://livingfaeries.wordpress.com/2015/03/08/la-leggena-della-fata-serpente/
https://www.toscanaoggi.it/Cultura-Societa/Fonti-aretine-sorgenti-capaci-di-donare-il-latte
http://www.trekkinando.it/Descr_itineriario/25_Cetica_UomodiSasso/CETICA-UOMO%20DI%20SASSO%20DESCRIZIONE%20ITINERARIO.pdf
https://www.tuscanypeople.com/castel-san-niccolo-casentino-toscana/

BACKGROUND MUSIC
Pipe Choir - Bom Bom Breakthrough Instrumental
Pipe Choir - The Opening Closing
Pipe Choir - Children of the Son (Instrumental)
Wayne John Bradley - Summercycle
Pipe Choir - Almost Time (Instrumental)
Wayne John Bradley - Blues Rock Original Instrumental
All released under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
https://soundcloud.com/pipe-choir-2/pipe-choir-bom-bom-breakthrough-creative-commons-instrumental
https://soundcloud.com/pipe-choir-2/p-c-iii-the-opening-closinginstrumentalcreative-commons
https://soundcloud.com/pipe-choir-2/pc-one-children-of-the-son-creative-commons-instrumental
https://soundcloud.com/ayneohnradley/summercycle-original-indie-style-instrumental-creative-commons
https://soundcloud.com/pipe-choir-2/pipe-choir-almost-time-instrumental-creative-commons
https://soundcloud.com/ayneohnradley/blues-rock-original-instrumentalcreative-commons
http://www.pipechoir.com/