San Gimignano is one of my favorite hill towns in Italy. It’s skyline of towers built in the 1200’s is both unique and impressive. San Gimignano prospered as a key trading town in the early thirteenth century and well off families would build a tower as a show of their wealth. At one point, over 70 towers dominated the town. Today, 13 towers remain and San Gimignano is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, commonly referred to as “Medieval Manhattan"

I highly recommend anyone visiting nearby Florence to take a day-trip here. Get here early in the day though, as tourist buses start arriving mid-morning and the town can be overrun with people in the summer. In the off-season, the town is quiet and peaceful. I took this image a couple of weeks ago in early October and there were only a handful of other tourists. As the sun went down and the lights illuminated the towers, it was a magical scene.