Day trip to Arezzo | Landmark Adventures

(This is part of our series of posts from our six-week Road Scholar Independent Living and Learning in Florence trip to Italy in Spring 2025. We have an index to all the posts from that trip here.)

The language school we attend during the week also offers cultural experiences to its students, so today we joined a group including two other Road Scholars and several students from Switzerland for a day trip to Arezzo, guided by Sylvia B., one of the school’s teachers. Like all of the school’s activities, the tour was in Italian, but Sylvia did a fantastic job of speaking slowly and clearly–and occasionally translating an unfamiliar word–so that even the beginners could understand her well.

We walked the mile from our apartment to the Florence train station to meet Sylvia and the rest of the group at 8:30 am. Sylvia showed us how to purchase train tickets from the machines in the station. Then we boarded for the one-hour ride to Arezzo.

Once we arrived in Arezzo, everyone needed a coffee, so we stopped at a neat little bar in the old city called “No Sugar Please”.

Enjoying our pastries and cappuccino (or Coke Zero) at No Sugar Please.

Approaching the bell tower of Santa Maria della Pieve church on Corso Italia, the main street in old town Arezzo.

Arezzo’s Piazza Grande (main plaza).

The other side of the Piazza Grande. On the first Saturday of each month, the piazza hosts an enormous and well-known antiques market. Fortunately, we were there on the second Saturday, avoiding the crowds.

The 1997 Italian film Life is Beautiful, directed by and starring Roberto Benigni, was shot in and around Arezzo. The film won Academy Awards in 1998 for best foreign language film and best actor. It’s a moving, poignant and often funny film set during the Nazi occupation of Italy. We highly recommend it if you haven’t seen it–you can find it on streaming platforms with English substitles.

Exterior of the apse of Church of Santa Maria della Pieve. This portion of the church dates to at least 1008 C.E.

Sculptures in the ceiling of the barrel vault above the entrance to Santa Maria della Pieve.

The sculptures above the entry represent medieval workers in various trades and guilds.

Entering the nave of Santa Maria della Pieve.

A marker in the aisle of the nave denotes the location (three meters below) of the crypt of Giorgio Vasari, Italian Renaissance painter, architect, art historian, and biographer.

Some 200 years ago, the original chapel of Santa Maria della Pieve was discovered behind a wall under the altar of the later building.

Facade of the Palazzo Pretorio, built in the late 14th century. The coats of arms covering the wall are those of the governing families (essentially, the mayors of the city) who lived here when it was the seat of the city government. The building was then owned by the Medici family in the 16th century, and today is home to the city library.

Arezzo Cathedral (officially the Cathedral of Saints Peter and Donatus).

A tranquil park surrounds the Arezzo Cathedral, criscrossed by walking paths.

The cathedral and park sit at the edge of the high walls that protected the old city. All modern development in this city of 97,000 people takes place outside the walls.

Pine trees growing above the old city walls of Arezzo.

David and Cheryl with our fellow Road Scholars on this trip, Maggie and Patricia.

The entire tour group from ABC School on this day trip. Almost everyone else in the group was from Switzerland. Most of them spoke at least some English, but we could all converse in Italian!

The cathedral bells tolled at noon (sound on).

David & Cheryl on the wall of the old city of Arezzo, with the Tuscan countryside below.

A contemporary granite monument to Italian scholar & poet Francis Petrarch, who was born in Arezzo in 1304.

Clock Tower of the Palazzo dei Priori. Sylvia explained that the “swallowtail” battlements crowning the tower and the adjacent building indicated a property of the Ghibellini, one of the two opposing political factions (along with the Guelphs) during the Middle Ages. The Guelphs supported the Roman papacy while the Ghibellini supported the Roman emperor. Guelph buildings featured square battlements. The battlement design allowed visitors to know whether they were approaching a friendly or hostile location.

Inside Arezzo Cathedral. It turned out that there was a wedding taking place during our visit, but since the cathedral is a public building, it was still open to visitors even during the ceremony.

Apse and altar of Arezzo Cathedral. The stained glass windows were stunning. You can see the bride and groom in front.

Ceiling of Arezzo Cathedral. We always have to remember to look UP while in Italian buildings!

On one side of the cathedral is a small chapel, the Chapel of the Madonna of Comfort.

Inside the Chapel of the Madonna of Comfort.

An oculus in the center of the ceiling of the Chapel of the Madonna of Comfort provided natural lighting, and was reminiscent of the design of Rome’s Pantheon.

The bride, groom and wedding party at the altar during the ceremony.

Because the groom is a police officer, the newlyweds were honored on their departure from the cathedral with a sword salute from fellow police officers. (sound on)

The body of Pope Gregory X (1210-1276) is in the Arezzo Cathedral. He died in Arezzo, leaving a substantial sum of money to be used for construction of the Cathedral.

The crypt of Guglielmo Ubertini, visible through a window in the floor of the Arezzo Cathedral just in front of Pope Gregory X’s body. Ubertini was Bishop of Arezzo from 1248 to 1289. He began construction of the Cathedral in 1277 after the Pope’s death. He commanded the Ghibelline troops against the Guelphs and died in a battle in 1289.

The marble Ark of San Donato above the high altar in Arezzo Cathedral. Created in the late 1300s, it houses the relics of Arezzo’s patron saint and other local martyrs.