Nicosia Monastery Ruins
I love ruins. Real ones. There's this move afoot to restore old places. That's not a bad thing. But will we ever see ruins again? Ruins are romantic. I've decided to give you a little picture gallery of Il Monastero di Sant'Agostino di Nicosia near the town of Calci, because it is in ruins. Construction started on the monastery in 1263.
As you can see on the map if you use the map controls to zoom out a bit, the monastery is a bit south of the interesting Certosa pisana di Calci which you can visit and has been turned into a museum. The monastery, however, remains closed to general tourism, but is open for some special events, like Festa Camelie, when the camellias found in the courtyard bloom.
To find out when Nicosia Monastery is open, consult the web page: Nicosia Nostra. This is the volunteer group trying to preserve the monastery and clean it of graffiti.
Nicosia Monastery Pictures
Click the thumbnails to see larger pictures.
More Nicosia Monastery Resources
Isabel's Travel Guide has more pictures and information on the Nicosia Monastery: Nicosia Nostra.
Nicosia Nostra, the site itself, is a volunteer effort to preserve the monastery. The site is in Italian, but it's easy to see what's going on.
For more on the town of Calci, see our blog post: Calci - Hidden Tuscany.
Recommended Lodging
Il Molendino is a highly rated b&b in the countryside, where you can arrange all manner of country excursions, including on horseback, a popular way of wandering in Calci and the valley it’s located in: Val Graziosa.
Eating Well in Tuscany
Getting a new iPad? Got an iPhone? Planning a trip to Tuscany? We have the mobile app for hungry vacationers. It's called Tuscany for Foodies, and it's available now in the app store: Tuscany for Foodies. Over 130 restaurants, caffes, cooking schools and market tours, food guides and even how to manage a "real" Italian meal.
Il Monastero di Sant'Agostino di Nicosia is a short walk up a hill from the itneresting town of Calci in the Pisa province of Tuscany.
Travel Planning:
B&B: Il Molendino