European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - June 9, 1994, Darmstadt, Hesse                                I t a 1 i i a Nhill Tuscany s Countryside is old farm country and a great place to escape the crowds of nearby  better in Tuscany slight a amps photos by Peter Jaeger by Kathleen Nelson St. Louis Post dispatch an old woman s face glows above a Candle she has just lighted in the Church of san Francesco in Fiesole Italy. She stands neither praying nor moving Content to watch the Candle Burn and catch its warmth. Her daughter stands at the door and Calls Quot mama.  but mama was in no hurry. Nor was 1. She turns to me to explain As her daughter urges her on. She knows Little English i know less italian when i put on a quizzical look she breathes deeply her eyes closed. A smile spreads across her face. I recognize this she s telling me that she s taking a respite from Florence and has retreated to this Small town in the tuscan Hills for a change of Pace. She must have sensed that i needed a break too. Here in the Hills above Florence your logical thought processes can take five. Visitors to churches in these Small towns see the almighty As More attainable than in the great churches of Florence in the Valley below. And the Light. The winding Cobblestone alleys that pass As streets and the concentration of churches shut out part of what illuminates a visit to this Region of Italy. All that is Beautiful in Tuscany seems to Spring from Light be it a Candle in a Chapel the Long shadows with the soft edges on a Villa in the Hills of Fiesole or the Golden sunlight on the rolling vineyards. Time spent in the Hills also provides a bit of historical perspective. The etruscan set up a Crossroads in Fiesole hundreds of years before the birth of Christ. The romans chose this spot As their regional stronghold. Thus Fiesole also show s the first remnants of civilization in Tuscany and is a Good place to Start a tour of the Region. The roman ruins Are Well preserved. The theater dates from the first Century . And could seat 3,000.when i visited a group of German students entertained one another taking turns singing Bawdy songs. The students behaved like dogs let out of the % House on the first Day of Spring bounding from the theater to the columns to the ruins of the Thermal Baths built during the Era of Hadrian. They jumped climbed giggled and mugged for the camera. No doubt they were told How old and rare these places Are and of the respect they deserve. Did t seem to matter though they used these relics As a Jungle gym. Down the Hill from the Center of town is the Villa Baize once owned by a Branch of the Rockefeller family the Villa was willed to Georgetown University in Washington. Each semester 1s students live and learn Here dividing their time Between studying italian and the Art and history of Florence. They re Happy to show a lost sob around the Arbor courtyard and the Loggia the. A. Italians answer to a porch. Continued on free 4 june 9, 1994 Quot stripes Fri Jodz Rie 3 Quot