Here I attach some information about Tuscany (Italy) and Pinocchio’s Park. I thought it ‘d be useful and interesting to broaden our geographical Knowledge while we discuss the article.

Hope you like it.

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The Adventures of Pinocchio comes to life in Italy’s Pinocchio Park, in the village of Collodi. Carlo Collodi, Pinocchio’s creator, took his pen name from Collodi, birthplace of his mother. The park tells Collodi’s version of the Pinocchio story through sculpture, mosaics and puppet shows.

Pinocchio Park is a great place to take kids. A winding path leads visitors through the Village of Pinocchio as they encounter statues of characters from the story. The park also has a snack bar and picnic area, amusement park for small children, a theater for puppet shows, and a museum and gift shop. There’s even an internet train to keep the parents occupied.

Pinocchio Park is open every day, 8:30 to sunset.

The medieval hillside village of Collodi, 17km northeast of Lucca in Tuscany, is an interesting place to visit, too. Also in Collodi, near Pinocchio Park, is the Garzoni Garden. A combination ticket is available to visit both places.

Enjoy our pictures of Pinocchio Park

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The village of Collodi, 17km from Lucca, is home to beautiful gardens and the Pinocchio Park. Villa Garzoni’s Baroque garden is considered by many to be one of the best gardens not only in Tuscany but in all of Italy. The garden, dating from 1652, includes pools and fountains, bushes and flowers, topiary, statues, a maze, and an elaborate staircase ascending the hill.

The medieval hill town of Collodi is picturesque and interesting in itself with narrow streets winding up to remains of medieval fortifications and the 13th century Church of San Bartolomeo with some important art works. Collodi was home to Carlo Collodi, author of Pinocchio, too. More on Pinocchio in Pinocchio Remembered from Europe for Visitors. 

Tuscany

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia 

Tuscany (Italian: Toscana) is a region in Italy. It has an area of 22,990 square kilometres (8,880 sq mi) and a population of about 3.6 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence.

Tuscany is known for its landscapes and its artistic legacy. Six Tuscan localities have been UNESCO protected sites: the historical center of Florence (1982), the historical center of Siena (1995), the square of the Cathedral of Pisa (1987), the historical center of San Gimignano (1990), the historical center of Pienza (1996) and the Val d’Orcia (2004).

Geography

Roughly triangular in shape and situated between the northern part of the Tyrrhenian Sea and the central Apennines, Tuscany has an area of approximately 22,993 square kilometers (8,877.6 sq mi). Surrounded and crossed by major mountain chains, and with few (but very fertile) plains, the region has a relief that is dominated by hilly country.

Whereas mountains cover 25% of the total area — 5,770 square kilometers (2,227.8 sq mi), and plains a mere 8.4% of the total area, almost all coinciding with the valley of the Arno River, summing for 1,930 square kilometers (745.2 sq mi), — overall hills make up two-thirds (66.5%) of the region’s total area, covering 15,292 square kilometers (5,904.3 sq mi).

The climate, which is fairly mild in the coastal areas, is harsher and rainy in the interior, with considerable fluctuations in temperature between winter and summer^[1] giving the region a soil building active freeze-thaw cycle in part accounting for the region once having served as a key breadbasket of ancient Rome^[2]

[edit] Economy

The subsoil in Tuscany is relatively rich in mineral resources, with iron ore, copper, mercury and lignite mines, the famous soffioni (fumarole) at Larderello and the vast marble mines in Versilia. Although its share is falling all the time, agriculture still contributes to the region’s economy. In the region’s inland areas cereals, potatoes, olives and grapes (for the world-famous Chianti wines) are grown. The swamplands, which used to be marshy, now produce vegetables, rice, tobacco, beets and sunflowers^[1]

The industrial sector is dominated by mining, given the abundance of underground resources. Also of some note are the textiles, chemicals/pharmaceuticals, metalworking and steel, glass and ceramics, clothing and printing/publishing sectors. Smaller areas specialising in manufacturing and craft industries are found in the hinterland: the leather and footwear area in the south-west part of the province of Florence, the hot-house plant area in Pistoia, the ceramics and textile industries in the Prato area, scooters and motorcycles in Pontedera, and the processing of timber for the manufacture of wooden furniture in the Cascina area. The heavy industries (mining, steel and mechanical engineering) are concentrated along the coastal strip (Livorno and Pisa areas), where there are also important chemical industries. Also of note are the marble (Carrara area) and paper industries (Lucca area)^[1].

Almost without exception, every town and city in Tuscany has considerable natural and architectural beauty. There is a continuous stream of visitors throughout the year. As a result, the services and distributive activities that are so important to the region’s economy are particularly wide-ranging and highly organised^[1].

[edit] Demographics

The population density of Tuscany, with 161 inhabitants per km² in 2008, is below the national average (198.8 inhabitants per km²). This is due mainly to the low population density of the provinces of Arezzo, Siena and, above all, Grosseto (50 inhabitants per km²). The highest density is found in the province of Prato (675 inhabitants per km²) followed by the provinces of Pistoia, Livorno, Florence and Lucca, peaking in the cities of Florence (more than 3,500 per km²), Livorno, Prato, Viareggio, Forte dei Marmi and Montecatini Terme (all with a population density of more than 1,000 inhabitants per km²). The territorial distribution of the population is closely linked to the socio-cultural and, more recently, economic and industrial development of Tuscany^[1].

Accordingly, the least densely populated areas are those where the main activity is agriculture, unlike the others where, despite the presence of a number of large industrial complexes, the main activities are connected with tourism and associated services, alongside a plethora of small firms in the leather, glass, paper and clothing sectors^[1].

Starting from the 1980s, the region attracted an intense flux of immigrants, in particular from China. There is also a significant community of British and Americans residents. As of 2008, the Italian national institute of statistics ISTAT estimated that 275,149 foreign-born immigrants live in Tuscany, equal to 7.4% of the total regional population.

[edit] Government and politics

Main article: Politics of Tuscany

Tuscany is a stronghold of the center-left Democratic Party, forming with Emilia-Romagna, Umbria and Marche the famous Italian political “Red Quadrilateral”. At the April 2008 elections, Tuscany gave more than 50% of its votes to Walter Veltroni, and only 33.6% to Silvio Berlusconi.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Administrative divisions

Tuscany is divided into ten provinces: