Toiano, the ghost town in the province of Pisa
Toiano is a small abandoned village in the heart of Tuscany is the only center in the region not affected by mass tourism. This is because there are no shops, hotels, restaurants, nothing. Just that his "wilderness" and "abandoned" brings with it an indescribable charm. The whole country seems to stand still, time runs but with no mobility.
Its origins go back high Middle Ages, it relies mainly on its structure at the castle, which has remained almost intact, which is accessed via a bridge. Currently, the center appears deserted and was reported to the Fund for the Environment Italian (FAI) as a place to save and preserve. The small village is situated in a enviable from the point of view, situated between the soft Pisan hills and cliffs of the area around Volterra .
Walking through the streets of the small village, you hear only the sounds of nature, the silence broken only occasionally by the rare people that every time we meet. Some houses have been refurbished and are sometimes inhabited, all this makes us hope for a future revival of the country. To access Toiano recommend the small road from Palaia just three meters wide, which offers a breathtaking view: our eyes look out onto a background of gullies and Volterra cliffs, spurs tuff also 50 meters tall.
To get to Toiano, take the Firenze-Pisa-Livorno and exit at Pontedera. Then take the road to Palaia, cross Forcoli and after a few kilometers Toiano indicate, on the left. The village is located on top of a steep climb.
The murder of the beautiful Elvira
But there is something more mysterious nell'anima the village: The death of Elvira, a beautiful young original Toiano just that on 5 June 1947, the day of Corpus Christi, was brutally murdered in a grove by the name of Lupa Botro while went to draw water at the source. He was the boyfriend accused. Unfairly, however: after 24 months of detention was fulfilled and the mystery remained unsolved. The smiling face of the beautiful country is now visible on the strain of marble, which recalls the long road between Palaia and Toiano. If you ask around among the elderly in neighboring countries, yet today many are very happy to talk about the "beautiful Elvira."
In the village there is a sense of beauty violated not only by time and neglect but also by "jackals" who from the church, for example, are taken away frescoes, water, religious and other things of great value. People come up here and it takes away everything that is old and beautiful, it remains the only undisputed beauty and charm of a place without time immersed in the Tuscan countryside surrounded by mountains Pisans.