0:00:02 > 0:00:05'I'm Andrew Graham-Dixon, and I'm an art historian.'
0:00:05 > 0:00:07We're in the basement of Italian history.
0:00:07 > 0:00:10'And I'm Giorgio Locatelli, and I'm a chef.'
0:00:10 > 0:00:11Untuosa.
0:00:11 > 0:00:13Unctuous.
0:00:13 > 0:00:15'We are both passionate about my homeland, Italy.'
0:00:15 > 0:00:17Come on, everybody! Let's go!
0:00:18 > 0:00:21'The rich flavour and classic dishes of this land
0:00:21 > 0:00:23'are in my culinary DNA.'
0:00:23 > 0:00:24Pasta would be like...
0:00:24 > 0:00:27'And this country's rich layers of art and history
0:00:27 > 0:00:29'have captivated me since childhood.'
0:00:29 > 0:00:33It actually brings out the naked body all the more.
0:00:33 > 0:00:35'In this series, we'll be travelling
0:00:35 > 0:00:37'all the way down the west coast of the country,
0:00:37 > 0:00:40'from top to toe, stepping off the tourist track wherever we go.'
0:00:40 > 0:00:42This is so Italian.
0:00:42 > 0:00:46'I want to show off some of my country's most surprising food.'
0:00:46 > 0:00:47It is hot!
0:00:47 > 0:00:51'Oftenmost born out of necessity, but leaving a legacy
0:00:51 > 0:00:54'that's still shaping Italian modern cuisine around the world.'
0:00:54 > 0:00:55Mmm.
0:00:55 > 0:01:00'And the art, too, is fantastic, exotic, deeply rooted in history.'
0:01:00 > 0:01:03'Our journey begins in the north-west of the country,
0:01:03 > 0:01:06'Liguria, a region squeezed between the Tyrrhenian Sea
0:01:06 > 0:01:07'and the rugged mountains.'
0:01:08 > 0:01:11'And we'll be continuing our journey along the coast that attracted
0:01:11 > 0:01:14'and inspired the English Romantics...'
0:01:14 > 0:01:15GIORGIO CHEERS
0:01:15 > 0:01:18'..to unknown Tuscany, to find some hidden gems
0:01:18 > 0:01:20'in the tourist trap of Pisa.'
0:01:26 > 0:01:30'Our first stop is Liguria's capital, Genoa.
0:01:30 > 0:01:34'Once one of Italy's great maritime republics,
0:01:34 > 0:01:36'Genoa is still the most important port in Italy,
0:01:36 > 0:01:41'but too often people arrive here only to leave again immediately.'
0:01:41 > 0:01:44'But they're missing out on a place with a truly fascinating history.
0:01:44 > 0:01:48'In the Middle Ages, Genoa was a maritime superpower
0:01:48 > 0:01:51'with trading links across the Mediterranean.
0:01:51 > 0:01:54'Genoa is a city of huge contrast.
0:01:54 > 0:01:58'Grand palaces are squeezed within a warren of medieval alleyways.'
0:01:59 > 0:02:02'Now, I'm sure there's a beautiful baroque palace
0:02:02 > 0:02:06'somewhere round here. Finding it, though, is another matter.'
0:02:06 > 0:02:08- I like this. - Do you know where we're going?
0:02:08 > 0:02:09I think it's down here, actually.
0:02:09 > 0:02:12Doesn't look like the way to go to a palace, this one.
0:02:12 > 0:02:14- No!- But these are the caruggi.
0:02:14 > 0:02:16Rather than streets in a city,
0:02:16 > 0:02:18they're almost like corridors in a house.
0:02:18 > 0:02:22Can you imagine if you tried to invade the place?
0:02:22 > 0:02:25That's why they have this network of medieval buildings.
0:02:25 > 0:02:29In effect, it's a form of defence. You can't bring horses.
0:02:29 > 0:02:31It will slow you down so much.
0:02:31 > 0:02:35Yeah, so what happens is, if anyone wants to invade medieval Genoa,
0:02:35 > 0:02:37the attackers are trapped in a space maybe like this.
0:02:37 > 0:02:40- And then they just... - And they just kill them.
0:02:40 > 0:02:43They pour boiling oil on them, they shoot arrows down on them.
0:02:43 > 0:02:45What can they do?
0:02:45 > 0:02:47The light is brilliant, isn't it?
0:02:47 > 0:02:49- This chiaroscuro.- Yes.
0:02:51 > 0:02:52I think it's this way.
0:03:09 > 0:03:12I think that's it there. That's it!
0:03:12 > 0:03:15Finally! It look a bit different than the other buildings.
0:03:15 > 0:03:18This is the amazing thing in Genoa.
0:03:18 > 0:03:22You are here in this sort of poor area of town,
0:03:22 > 0:03:26and then suddenly there's this fantastic baroque palace.
0:03:29 > 0:03:33'Genoa's power and prosperity was at a peak in the 17th century.'
0:03:37 > 0:03:41It's a symbol of this sudden new wealth, you know,
0:03:41 > 0:03:45when the Genovese bankers, they take over from the Medici, suddenly,
0:03:45 > 0:03:5017th century, they are the richest guys in all of Italy, basically.
0:03:54 > 0:03:57Wow - it's great, isn't it? A hall of mirrors.
0:03:57 > 0:04:00A sort of mini version of a Versailles interior.
0:04:04 > 0:04:05'For the rich Genoese,
0:04:05 > 0:04:10'the rococo style was the perfect way to show their power and their money.
0:04:10 > 0:04:15'Mirrors, gold, silver, stucco, you name it.'
0:04:16 > 0:04:22So here we are in the piano nobile, the grand sala.
0:04:22 > 0:04:24This is the centrepiece of the whole palace.
0:04:24 > 0:04:29- It isn't X marks the spot, it's chandelier marks the spot.- Right.
0:04:29 > 0:04:31And I think that chandelier, if you imagine it lit,
0:04:31 > 0:04:35it's telling us what they wanted us to see if we were visiting.
0:04:35 > 0:04:38Which is this series of paintings, which is all entirely
0:04:38 > 0:04:42about celebration of the Genoese at sea.
0:04:42 > 0:04:45It's their way of saying to all the kings and the ambassadors
0:04:45 > 0:04:50and the diplomats who came to Genoa, "We Genoese, we rule the waves."
0:04:50 > 0:04:53It's no casuality that they call it "La Superba".
0:04:53 > 0:04:55Genoa the proud.
0:04:55 > 0:04:58The story of Genoa as a great maritime republic
0:04:58 > 0:04:59has rather been forgotten,
0:04:59 > 0:05:02but it was every bit as powerful as Venice and in the 17th century.
0:05:02 > 0:05:04It's a kind of capsule of
0:05:04 > 0:05:07one of Europe's great forgotten historical powers.
0:05:09 > 0:05:11Mi piace.
0:05:11 > 0:05:12- You like it?- Yes.
0:05:19 > 0:05:22'There is one more palazzo we need to seek out.
0:05:22 > 0:05:25'It's got a beautiful art collection, including one painting
0:05:25 > 0:05:29'I particularly want Giorgio to see.'
0:05:29 > 0:05:32'But first, I want to give Andrew a real taste of Genoa,
0:05:32 > 0:05:36'where the main ingredient is chickpeas.'
0:05:36 > 0:05:37We are in the Sciamadda,
0:05:37 > 0:05:40which is one of the oldest farinata shops in town.
0:05:40 > 0:05:42- Questo e' Andrea.- Umberto.
0:05:42 > 0:05:44We are going to make farinata.
0:05:44 > 0:05:46OK. Look, he is going to put some olive oil,
0:05:46 > 0:05:48which is obviously local olive oil.
0:05:48 > 0:05:50What is this, like a pancake?
0:05:50 > 0:05:53Kind of a pancake. It's an old way.
0:05:53 > 0:05:55The shop has been here from 1850s.
0:05:55 > 0:05:57That's water and chickpea flour.
0:05:57 > 0:05:59Qui c'e' solo aqua...?
0:05:59 > 0:06:02Farina di ceci, sale e olio che viene...
0:06:02 > 0:06:04And a touch of salt.
0:06:11 > 0:06:13- It's fermenting.- Fermenting?
0:06:13 > 0:06:17Yeah, it's fermenting, so you have a natural yeast.
0:06:17 > 0:06:18Is that all for us?
0:06:18 > 0:06:21Yeah, half for me, half for you!
0:06:24 > 0:06:25OK, look, here we go.
0:06:29 > 0:06:31Like you have a special oven to make a pizza,
0:06:31 > 0:06:34this is a very special oven just to make farinata.
0:06:34 > 0:06:36Wow, look, it's full of smoke.
0:06:36 > 0:06:38You need the flame because it's going to glaze it
0:06:38 > 0:06:41and make it really crispy and beautiful on top.
0:06:41 > 0:06:43It's beginning to bubble up.
0:06:46 > 0:06:50It looks to me like the burnt surface of some dead planet.
0:06:50 > 0:06:52Yeah, like the sun, when you see the sun on the thing,
0:06:52 > 0:06:55- with all the exposure... - The smell is great.
0:07:05 > 0:07:06See how crispy it is?
0:07:09 > 0:07:13It's creamy on this side and crunchy on the other side.
0:07:13 > 0:07:15- Oh, delicious.- Buona?
0:07:15 > 0:07:17Buonissimo.
0:07:22 > 0:07:24Si, si curo.
0:07:24 > 0:07:27When you're talking about fast food, this is exactly what it's all about.
0:07:27 > 0:07:30You stop, you have one of these, it's light, it's refreshing.
0:07:30 > 0:07:32- I think it's slowed me down a bit, you know!- Did it?
0:07:32 > 0:07:34You eat three kilo of that, that's why!
0:07:38 > 0:07:40'There is real vibrancy to Genoa.
0:07:40 > 0:07:43'It's a place where the old doesn't overshadow the new and vice versa.
0:07:45 > 0:07:47'And the old can be pretty special,
0:07:47 > 0:07:51'as you can see at our last destination, the Palazzo Rosso.'
0:07:57 > 0:08:00Here we actually get to met the Genovese.
0:08:00 > 0:08:03These are the people, these are the new merchants
0:08:03 > 0:08:05who think that they are kings. And who is painting them?
0:08:05 > 0:08:07Anthony van Dyck.
0:08:07 > 0:08:10This is Anton Giulio Brignole Sale,
0:08:10 > 0:08:13a young member of the dynasty, and his wife.
0:08:15 > 0:08:17But look how he has had himself painted.
0:08:17 > 0:08:21Definitely looks like somebody who has achieved something.
0:08:21 > 0:08:24And he's sitting on a horse, which is a huge, bold symbol,
0:08:24 > 0:08:28because in the past you would only ever depict the king
0:08:28 > 0:08:32- on top of the horse.- Right. - And the horse symbolises the people,
0:08:32 > 0:08:35symbolises the nation that the king controls and rules.
0:08:35 > 0:08:38So this guy is saying to the world,
0:08:38 > 0:08:41"I'm not only a Genovese merchant, I'm sort of a king."
0:08:41 > 0:08:44And here one of the things that's quite interesting is that
0:08:44 > 0:08:47they're actually quite muted. The colours are low,
0:08:47 > 0:08:48the expressions are quite reserved.
0:08:48 > 0:08:51They've got that sort of Genovese reserve.
0:08:51 > 0:08:53- They're not going, "Ha ha, look at me."- That's right, yeah.
0:08:53 > 0:08:55It looks like two different paintings.
0:08:55 > 0:08:58Look at the bottom. It's not really well finished, is it?
0:08:58 > 0:09:00Well, this is van Dyck's sprezzatura, but you're right,
0:09:00 > 0:09:03it's like the famous sketchiness of his handling.
0:09:03 > 0:09:05He would paint really quickly.
0:09:05 > 0:09:06But he's painted this so quickly
0:09:06 > 0:09:09that you can actually see through the horse's leg.
0:09:09 > 0:09:11It's almost a sketch down here.
0:09:11 > 0:09:15Maybe because it was his last year in Genoa, he finished it quickly.
0:09:15 > 0:09:17- To cash up before he left. - To cash up.
0:09:17 > 0:09:20'Ah, here we are at last.
0:09:20 > 0:09:22'The painting I wanted to show Giorgio.'
0:09:22 > 0:09:24The Cook.
0:09:24 > 0:09:25This is brilliant.
0:09:25 > 0:09:27This is one of these paintings
0:09:27 > 0:09:30that show us the engine room of the palace.
0:09:30 > 0:09:31There's this new...
0:09:31 > 0:09:33Well, it just happens in the 1620s,
0:09:33 > 0:09:38they suddenly develop this taste for having paintings of ordinary people,
0:09:38 > 0:09:41such as their own cooks, their own servants.
0:09:41 > 0:09:44So we've had the upstairs, and this is the downstairs.
0:09:45 > 0:09:49I love the birds. It's so beautiful. Look at the turkey.
0:09:49 > 0:09:52I love the way he's painted the fire.
0:09:52 > 0:09:55You know how you said the van Dyck was very sketchy at the bottom?
0:09:55 > 0:10:00Well, he really admired van Dyck, Strozzi, who painted this picture.
0:10:00 > 0:10:03And he painted that fire with some of that...
0:10:05 > 0:10:10But I think it might be a painting with a kind of secret double meaning.
0:10:11 > 0:10:14Cos Strozzi had been a capuchin monk,
0:10:14 > 0:10:19but he left the order and he got into trouble with the Franciscans,
0:10:19 > 0:10:25who said that he had made himself dirty with his paintbrush.
0:10:25 > 0:10:29There is something about this picture that maybe suggests
0:10:29 > 0:10:30what they disapproved of.
0:10:30 > 0:10:33To me it looks as though somebody's plucking a swan.
0:10:33 > 0:10:35There is a twinkle in her eye.
0:10:35 > 0:10:40I think the painting is meant to put you in the place of the aristocrat
0:10:40 > 0:10:42who has come down to the kitchen,
0:10:42 > 0:10:45you've got a bit of a flirtation going on with your kitchen maid,
0:10:45 > 0:10:50the way she meets your eyes, the way she has that half-smile.
0:10:50 > 0:10:53The more you get back like that, it really...
0:10:53 > 0:10:55like, she's just really having a look at you.
0:10:55 > 0:10:57I think she fancies you.
0:10:57 > 0:10:58Come on!
0:11:04 > 0:11:08'Strozzi's cook would have been preparing a luxurious banquet,
0:11:08 > 0:11:10'the opposite of what I am going to cook -
0:11:10 > 0:11:13'a dish without any pretentions. It's classless.
0:11:13 > 0:11:16'You can find it on almost any family table,
0:11:16 > 0:11:19'not to mention renowned restaurants across the world.'
0:11:21 > 0:11:24That is just fantastic. Do you want to eat that or look at it?
0:11:24 > 0:11:26How much attention do you think they pay
0:11:26 > 0:11:30to the arrangement of the colours, cos I think...I mean, look at this.
0:11:30 > 0:11:32Isn't that fantastic?
0:11:32 > 0:11:35You don't need to eat that. Well, we do need to eat it, maybe.
0:11:35 > 0:11:40'One of Liguria's best-loved recipes is pesto alla Genovese.'
0:11:40 > 0:11:43- Signore Franco, buongiorno. - Buongiorno.
0:11:57 > 0:12:00The shape of the leaf, which is like a spoon.
0:12:00 > 0:12:04The main important thing about this is the size of the leaf,
0:12:04 > 0:12:08because each of the leaf will contain some chlorophyll
0:12:08 > 0:12:10that makes it really green and beautiful.
0:12:10 > 0:12:13If you have big leaves, you have a lot of other stuff.
0:12:13 > 0:12:16- So it's more dispersed. - That's right. Smaller is the leaf,
0:12:16 > 0:12:18and better will be the pesto at the end.
0:12:18 > 0:12:19How much do we need?
0:12:26 > 0:12:29One should be enough, but because I know you, I'll buy three!
0:12:29 > 0:12:30THEY LAUGH
0:12:32 > 0:12:35He says, buy four, then he is going to join us!
0:12:38 > 0:12:39A postissimo!
0:12:41 > 0:12:43- OK.- Grazie!
0:12:43 > 0:12:45- Grazie.- Arrivederci.- Arrivederci!
0:12:49 > 0:12:53'We got a real sense of this town today, with its art,
0:12:53 > 0:12:56'its little alleyways and beautiful palaces.
0:12:56 > 0:12:59'It's time now to go to make some pesto.'
0:13:01 > 0:13:05'Up here above Genoa's maze of medieval alleys,
0:13:05 > 0:13:07'you can really see how the whole city
0:13:07 > 0:13:10'faces towards the sea and the harbour.'
0:13:11 > 0:13:13OK, Andrew, look.
0:13:13 > 0:13:15We got everything we need to make a pesto.
0:13:15 > 0:13:18We are going to do one with pine kernels.
0:13:18 > 0:13:21How many different pesto recipes are there, then?
0:13:21 > 0:13:23There is no one fixed recipe.
0:13:23 > 0:13:26Some people put ricotta in it, some people put almonds,
0:13:26 > 0:13:29some people put walnuts, some people put pine kernels,
0:13:29 > 0:13:30so depends how you balance it.
0:13:30 > 0:13:32And obviously depends as well what they have.
0:13:32 > 0:13:35Remember, this is not a cuisine made of creativity.
0:13:35 > 0:13:38This is cuisine made of necessity.
0:13:38 > 0:13:40This is what they had, that's what they cooked.
0:13:40 > 0:13:43The only thing that is in common is the basil
0:13:43 > 0:13:46and there is olive oil. And it's made in the mortar.
0:13:46 > 0:13:48OK, we are going to put a bit of the pine...
0:13:51 > 0:13:53I want one of these at home.
0:13:53 > 0:13:56That is your next Christmas present.
0:13:56 > 0:13:59It's really good. It's like stress relief.
0:13:59 > 0:14:01Let's start with the basil.
0:14:05 > 0:14:08- Great smell.- Yeah, definitely.
0:14:08 > 0:14:16Like you are convincing the leaf to release its flavour.
0:14:16 > 0:14:18You have to convince it to become a pesto.
0:14:18 > 0:14:21- You are massaging it. - You are massaging it.- Che bello.
0:14:23 > 0:14:25Now we have to put the last two ingredients in.
0:14:25 > 0:14:30Parmigiano reggiano, just gentle, caress it,
0:14:30 > 0:14:34and the olive oil, obviously the olive oil from Liguria,
0:14:34 > 0:14:38almost like the olive oil was made to taste so light
0:14:38 > 0:14:41and not, like, peppery and not bitter.
0:14:41 > 0:14:44It's almost like the land has produced this olive oil
0:14:44 > 0:14:45especially to make pesto.
0:14:47 > 0:14:50OK. A little bit. Come on, taste it.
0:14:56 > 0:14:57- Ahhh!- Season it?
0:14:57 > 0:15:00- No!- Good?- No, it's perfect!
0:15:00 > 0:15:01All that fresh green growth.
0:15:01 > 0:15:04But you'll see as well how they actually pesto.
0:15:04 > 0:15:07It breaks like that, it will actually attach itself to the pasta,
0:15:07 > 0:15:09it will hang on the pasta, kind of thing.
0:15:09 > 0:15:13The pasta will be, like, dirty of these things when you eat it.
0:15:15 > 0:15:18'Pesto goes with any pasta, but here in Liguria,
0:15:18 > 0:15:21'they like it with trofie, some chopped potatoes
0:15:21 > 0:15:22'and a couple of green beans.'
0:15:28 > 0:15:29We are ready.
0:15:36 > 0:15:38- OK. I've got the cheese.- Andiamo.
0:15:41 > 0:15:43- It's delicious.- You made it, man.
0:15:43 > 0:15:45I made it, yeah(!) THEY LAUGH
0:15:45 > 0:15:49I was the sous chef. It's really good.
0:15:49 > 0:15:51The first thing we know about pesto
0:15:51 > 0:15:56is about in the cambusa of Cristoforo Colombo.
0:15:56 > 0:15:59He was from Genova. There is some paper
0:15:59 > 0:16:03that talks about a sort of pesto that is called agliata.
0:16:03 > 0:16:05So it was a base of garlic,
0:16:05 > 0:16:09which obviously also was very good for scurvy and all these things.
0:16:09 > 0:16:14So Genovese cuisine is genuinely this cuisine of preserving food
0:16:14 > 0:16:17- so you can travel for long distances.- Yes, exactly that.
0:16:17 > 0:16:21I like that thought - pesto was the fuel
0:16:21 > 0:16:24that helped Christopher Columbus to discover America!
0:16:24 > 0:16:27The key success of his expeditions was the fact
0:16:27 > 0:16:30he could take some good food with him.
0:16:30 > 0:16:32- BOTH:- Cristoforo Colombo.
0:16:41 > 0:16:44'It's time to say farewell to old Genoa and its port,
0:16:44 > 0:16:47'but what better way to do that than a drive that offers
0:16:47 > 0:16:50'one last glimpse of the city from on high?'
0:16:54 > 0:16:57This extraordinary elevated road
0:16:57 > 0:17:01that runs right through the middle of ancient Genoa.
0:17:02 > 0:17:06I love it. It makes the city into a sort of drive-through experience.
0:17:06 > 0:17:10You cross palaces at the level of the piano nobile.
0:17:10 > 0:17:13You pass straight directly beside...
0:17:14 > 0:17:19- 16th-century frescos of St George. - St Giorgio....killing the dragon.
0:17:19 > 0:17:22Can you see, there's a guy having a shower in there.
0:17:22 > 0:17:24THEY LAUGH
0:17:24 > 0:17:27I think it also expresses the determination of the Genoese
0:17:27 > 0:17:30- not to turn their city into a museum. - That's right.
0:17:33 > 0:17:36'Before we head for the wilds of Liguria,
0:17:36 > 0:17:38'we're going to stop off to see some of the best
0:17:38 > 0:17:42'19th-century realist sculptures in Italy.
0:17:42 > 0:17:47'They're housed, not in an art gallery, but a cemetery.
0:17:47 > 0:17:48'Staglieno.'
0:17:50 > 0:17:54'Traditionally, ornate tombs were the preserve of wealthy aristocrats,
0:17:54 > 0:17:57'but the prosperity of the industrial revolution
0:17:57 > 0:17:59'changed all that.
0:17:59 > 0:18:03'Finally, ordinary working people could afford them too.
0:18:03 > 0:18:07'And they wanted to be immortalised down to the finest detail.'
0:18:09 > 0:18:12- Look at these. Wow. - Absolutely amazing, isn't it?
0:18:12 > 0:18:16What I love about it is this sort of combination
0:18:16 > 0:18:19of total realism and the sort of idealism.
0:18:19 > 0:18:22That lady who could have stepped straight out of a 19th-century
0:18:22 > 0:18:28ballroom, and she is being whooshed up to heaven by an angel.
0:18:28 > 0:18:31Sort of beacons to the beyond.
0:18:32 > 0:18:34- This is brilliant.- Look at that.
0:18:34 > 0:18:36And then you've got...
0:18:36 > 0:18:38Look at that moustache!
0:18:38 > 0:18:39Giovanni Ratto.
0:18:40 > 0:18:43He is wonderful, and his clothes.
0:18:43 > 0:18:48What I love about it, it's almost like a stone costume museum.
0:18:48 > 0:18:50If you want to see what people wore in Genoa
0:18:50 > 0:18:52in the 19th century, this is it.
0:18:52 > 0:18:54- I mean, he's got a Charlie Chaplin hat!- That's right.
0:18:54 > 0:18:58He almost looks like an Italian version of Charlie Chaplin.
0:19:02 > 0:19:05- Look at this one. - This is a complete scene.
0:19:05 > 0:19:06A deathbed scene.
0:19:09 > 0:19:11It's so touching.
0:19:12 > 0:19:15The sadness of the expression, as well, isn't it?
0:19:15 > 0:19:18It's scenes from real life, isn't it?
0:19:18 > 0:19:21Going to the cemetery is still more of a tradition here.
0:19:21 > 0:19:23It's a very, very important thing.
0:19:23 > 0:19:24I remember when I was young,
0:19:24 > 0:19:27every week, we had to go to the cemetery.
0:19:30 > 0:19:33'Staglieno occupies 250 acres.
0:19:33 > 0:19:36'It's one of the biggest cemeteries in Italy,
0:19:36 > 0:19:38'and is still in use today.'
0:19:39 > 0:19:42Can you imagine? Look how big it is, and how peaceful it is.
0:19:42 > 0:19:44This is like a city of the dead.
0:19:45 > 0:19:48'And one tomb here means a great deal to me.
0:19:49 > 0:19:52'It belongs to the intellectual father of the 19th-century movement
0:19:52 > 0:19:54'to unite Italy.
0:19:55 > 0:19:58'He was nicknamed "the beating heart of Italy".'
0:20:00 > 0:20:04I wanted to come here. I have never been here to visit these tombs.
0:20:04 > 0:20:10It's the tomb of Giuseppe Mazzini. This guy was...so important
0:20:10 > 0:20:15because he believed on Italy be united.
0:20:15 > 0:20:19His idea of this egalitarian state as a republic.
0:20:19 > 0:20:23Mazzini was a real free thinker.
0:20:23 > 0:20:26When he made this revolution movement in Italy,
0:20:26 > 0:20:29he was caught and then he was sent in exile,
0:20:29 > 0:20:33- so he decided to come to London. - Was he a friend of Karl Marx?
0:20:33 > 0:20:36He used to hang around with Karl Marx, he used to hang around with
0:20:36 > 0:20:40Dickens, he'd hang around with a lot of the intelligentsia of the moment.
0:20:40 > 0:20:42They used to pay him to go and talk.
0:20:42 > 0:20:46Apparently, he was an avid drinker of coffee as well.
0:20:46 > 0:20:49His funeral was attended by 100,000 people.
0:20:49 > 0:20:54Can you imagine 100,000 people around here? Incredible.
0:20:54 > 0:20:58- Is he one of your heroes? - Definitely.
0:21:01 > 0:21:04Mazzini was a real believer in democracy and he spent his life
0:21:04 > 0:21:07promoting it in Italy and across Europe.
0:21:12 > 0:21:15The 19th century was a period of turmoil, involving both
0:21:15 > 0:21:19questions of national identity and man's relationship with nature.
0:21:22 > 0:21:26The English Romantic poets loved the rocky Ligurian coastline
0:21:26 > 0:21:29to the south of Genoa called the Cinque Terre,
0:21:29 > 0:21:33and came here often from the 1820s.
0:21:37 > 0:21:40Around here, the best way to travel is by boat.
0:21:44 > 0:21:46This region is so inaccessible that
0:21:46 > 0:21:49it remains almost unchanged for centuries.
0:21:51 > 0:21:57I think what's interesting about this area, is that it's not popular really
0:21:57 > 0:22:00- among modern tourists.- No. You see, the thing is that,
0:22:00 > 0:22:04the more you go through now, less is reachable by land.
0:22:04 > 0:22:09But in the 19th century, Byron, Shelley, all the romantic poets,
0:22:09 > 0:22:11they loved it here
0:22:11 > 0:22:14because they had this idea that nature should be wild,
0:22:14 > 0:22:20sublime, dangerous, stormy, turbulent like the soul of the Romantic poetry.
0:22:20 > 0:22:23- That's right. - In fact, Shelley even died here.
0:22:23 > 0:22:26It was that dangerous, he actually died in a sea storm.
0:22:27 > 0:22:31Then you feel like you are actually inside a Romantic painting
0:22:31 > 0:22:37with the distance, the blue horizons. It's stunning.
0:22:39 > 0:22:43And then it opens up, until the city just appears up there.
0:22:43 > 0:22:49Now you can start to see all the terraces. Life was hard here.
0:22:49 > 0:22:52If you can imagine, it's not like a paradise, as they say.
0:22:52 > 0:22:55Look at that. Look at the way they work the land,
0:22:55 > 0:22:57metre by metre by metre.
0:22:57 > 0:22:59It's typical Ligurian things, all the vegetable
0:22:59 > 0:23:01and fruit and things that we eat.
0:23:01 > 0:23:04So what a job to gather your harvest.
0:23:04 > 0:23:07You gather your harvest almost like a rock climber.
0:23:12 > 0:23:13I'm fascinated by this unique
0:23:13 > 0:23:17relationship between the Ligurians and their land.
0:23:17 > 0:23:21I can understand why the Romantics were drawn to this place.
0:23:21 > 0:23:25Everything is uphill, everything has got steps and stairs.
0:23:29 > 0:23:32This land doesn't have any secrets for the locals.
0:23:32 > 0:23:37In the Ligurian cuisine, herbs that grow wild find its way to the pot
0:23:37 > 0:23:39as well as any delicacies bought in a shop.
0:23:41 > 0:23:43One of the nicest examples is a dish that
0:23:43 > 0:23:47I am going to cook this evening and it's called torta pasqualina.
0:23:50 > 0:23:53We've met up with Maria, who has lived in these mountains
0:23:53 > 0:23:57all her life and knows where to find the best herbs for our torta.
0:24:16 > 0:24:18She only knows the name in dialect,
0:24:18 > 0:24:20so...I don't know how to translate it.
0:24:30 > 0:24:33- This is my kind of shopping, Giorgio. - Yeah, for free, I know that.
0:24:36 > 0:24:38- Grazie, Maria.- Prego.
0:24:41 > 0:24:43Mmm! Que buono!
0:24:44 > 0:24:46It's a little bit like a radish.
0:24:46 > 0:24:48I think. A little bit like a radish?
0:24:48 > 0:24:49Yes, it does, yeah.
0:24:52 > 0:24:54You can make tagliatelle, green tagliatelle
0:24:54 > 0:24:57- like they do with spinach.- You use this actually in the flour?- Yeah.
0:24:57 > 0:25:00They make a meal out of the roots, they make a meal
0:25:00 > 0:25:01out of the leaves.
0:25:02 > 0:25:06So is this very local, specialised knowledge of the local plants?
0:25:06 > 0:25:07Of course.
0:25:15 > 0:25:17Her grandmother teach her mother...
0:25:27 > 0:25:29She is 78 years old herself.
0:25:29 > 0:25:31Have you seen how she come up those steps?
0:25:36 > 0:25:40What is amazing is that she still gets excited about finding them.
0:25:40 > 0:25:42Grazie.
0:25:47 > 0:25:51Maria is amazing. A one-woman herbal encyclopaedia.
0:25:51 > 0:25:54I think she should be made a national treasure.
0:25:57 > 0:26:01And I couldn't be happier with the herbs that she found for us.
0:26:02 > 0:26:05So where do you know this recipe from, Giorgio?
0:26:05 > 0:26:07I came across it when I was very young.
0:26:07 > 0:26:12I used to come down with my family and we used to eat it in the bar.
0:26:12 > 0:26:15This is the food that I really love when I come to Italy.
0:26:15 > 0:26:19It's actually this simplicity which show the attachment
0:26:19 > 0:26:22and understanding of the land.
0:26:22 > 0:26:27We are eating food that was gathered by Maria, who learnt it
0:26:27 > 0:26:28from her grandmother,
0:26:28 > 0:26:33so we are really touching history and touching the Ligurian history.
0:26:33 > 0:26:35Andrew, I don't want the stem, otherwise, we are going to
0:26:35 > 0:26:37feel it under our teeth. Just the leaves.
0:26:37 > 0:26:39When I'm going to cook it,
0:26:39 > 0:26:41if I find any stalk, you'll be severely beaten.
0:26:43 > 0:26:46Discipline in the kitchen.
0:26:46 > 0:26:49Great, OK. Well, you won't find any stalks, I promise you of that.
0:26:49 > 0:26:54What is fabulous about this is the mixture that we've got of them
0:26:54 > 0:26:58will determine the flavour, so every time or every different season,
0:26:58 > 0:27:01or every different village, same recipe
0:27:01 > 0:27:02but with a different result.
0:27:04 > 0:27:07OK, Andrew, this is enough. I'm going to go and do the cake.
0:27:08 > 0:27:12I'm going to read some poetry and think about the nature of Liguria.
0:27:16 > 0:27:20It's not a complicated recipe, just chopped herbs, ricotta and egg.
0:27:22 > 0:27:23This is creative cooking.
0:27:23 > 0:27:27People here had to find the best way to combine the ingredients
0:27:27 > 0:27:31available at any one time - with amazing results.
0:27:38 > 0:27:41- Hey, Giorgio!- Andrew!
0:27:41 > 0:27:44Everyone on the other terraces have started to eat!
0:27:44 > 0:27:48OK, I'll bring you something. I've got something for you, special.
0:27:48 > 0:27:52This bit of coast is famous for its anchovies, so while
0:27:52 > 0:27:55the torta is baking, I've prepared a delicious local aperitivo.
0:27:55 > 0:28:01- Aha!- We could not come to Liguria
0:28:01 > 0:28:06and not eat some of this beautiful acciughe!
0:28:06 > 0:28:12- Wow!- Look, two different recipes. These are boiled in a bouillon,
0:28:12 > 0:28:15which has got lemon and orange in it.
0:28:15 > 0:28:23These ones are raw and are marinated just with onions and lemon juice
0:28:23 > 0:28:25and then some oregano.
0:28:25 > 0:28:29These look great. Do I eat it with a knife and fork?
0:28:29 > 0:28:32In reality, you should eat them with your hands.
0:28:32 > 0:28:35This is the kind of the thing that you will have if you go to a bar
0:28:35 > 0:28:38and you order an aperitif, or something before your dinner.
0:28:38 > 0:28:41- They don't bring you crisps and nuts.- Those are delicious.
0:28:42 > 0:28:46This is the raw one, this is Ligurian sushi.
0:28:50 > 0:28:51Mmm!
0:28:53 > 0:28:56The raw ones, still taste of the sea, isn't it?
0:28:56 > 0:28:59- This is the taste of Liguria for real.- That's beautiful.
0:29:00 > 0:29:02I'm going to get the cake for you.
0:29:02 > 0:29:06- Wow.- Andrew!
0:29:10 > 0:29:15Mmm! The smell. As soon as you cut it, the smell that comes up...
0:29:15 > 0:29:18- What does it smell of? - It smells of...- Liguria, no?
0:29:18 > 0:29:21- Yes, it smells of herbs, it smells of herbs.- Ah, look.
0:29:23 > 0:29:25I'm really happy with that.
0:29:28 > 0:29:34Mmm! That is fantastic. It's like eating a chunk of the landscape.
0:29:34 > 0:29:37It even looks like a chunk of the landscape.
0:29:37 > 0:29:43It's got wonderful...fresh... And I like the way it's sort of portable.
0:29:43 > 0:29:46You can carry that around, we'll put it in the boot of the car.
0:29:46 > 0:29:49Can you imagine, some guys who went out at sea
0:29:49 > 0:29:52would take a little piece of that to remind him of the land?
0:29:52 > 0:29:54This is a portable piece of Liguria.
0:29:54 > 0:29:58- Exactly, it reminds them of the land.- It's lovely, fantastic.
0:29:58 > 0:30:01- I'm so glad that you like it. - I tell you what, you've done all
0:30:01 > 0:30:05the work, so I'm going to read you a poem. This is written by Shelley
0:30:05 > 0:30:08as he was looking out across a scene just like this,
0:30:08 > 0:30:11here on the Ligurian coast.
0:30:11 > 0:30:16"I sat and saw the vessels glide, Over the ocean bright and wide,
0:30:16 > 0:30:21"Like spirit-winged chariots sent, O'er some serenest element,
0:30:21 > 0:30:23"And the wind that winged their flight,
0:30:23 > 0:30:25"From the land came fresh and light,
0:30:25 > 0:30:30"And the scent of winged flowers, And the coolness of the hours
0:30:30 > 0:30:33"Of dew, and sweet warmth left by day,
0:30:33 > 0:30:35"Were scattered o'er the twinkling bay."
0:30:35 > 0:30:37Isn't that beautiful?
0:30:37 > 0:30:38Fantastic!
0:30:49 > 0:30:55Shelley moved close by in 1882, soon to be joined by Lord Byron.
0:30:59 > 0:31:03I'm taking Giorgio to a particular spot where Byron often came to
0:31:03 > 0:31:07contemplate nature and which inspired some of his best-known poetry.
0:31:14 > 0:31:15Wow! That's a big cave.
0:31:15 > 0:31:17La Grotta della Poesia.
0:31:22 > 0:31:27I think something that's interesting that coming here has made me
0:31:27 > 0:31:31doubly realise is that when the Romantics came to Liguria,
0:31:31 > 0:31:33they were really the first generation
0:31:33 > 0:31:37of English tourists who came not to see a church,
0:31:37 > 0:31:42not to see the Colosseum, not to see the monuments of antiquity,
0:31:42 > 0:31:47but to try to touch raw, real untamed nature.
0:31:47 > 0:31:51So they would...Byron would prefer the monumentality of this cave.
0:31:51 > 0:31:53He was more interested in that
0:31:53 > 0:31:57than he was to see the great temples of the classical past.
0:31:57 > 0:32:01So, practically what you are saying is they are the first people
0:32:01 > 0:32:04who went out on what we call "holiday".
0:32:04 > 0:32:06- In the modern sense, yeah. - In the modern sense, yeah, yeah.
0:32:06 > 0:32:12To sort of pick up real life of the place, the real flavour,
0:32:12 > 0:32:13the real taste
0:32:13 > 0:32:18and the real traditions of the people that they went to visit.
0:32:18 > 0:32:23They were sick of civilisation, sophistication, powdered wigs.
0:32:23 > 0:32:28In a sense, it's the beginning of the idea of getting away from it all.
0:32:28 > 0:32:31Something that somehow feels more simple, more pure, more true.
0:32:31 > 0:32:37This must be the craggiest, most hostile, most wild bit of the entire
0:32:37 > 0:32:43Ligurian coastline and it's exactly here that Byron used to swim.
0:32:43 > 0:32:45It's pretty awe-inspiring.
0:32:47 > 0:32:51And there is only one way truly to share Byron's experience.
0:32:53 > 0:32:57- Giorgio...- Yeah.- ..uno, due, tre.
0:33:04 > 0:33:06- It's cold!- Delicious!
0:33:06 > 0:33:12We are immersed now in the same water that Byron
0:33:12 > 0:33:17was swimming and... What is his name?
0:33:17 > 0:33:20- Shelley.- Let's go, come on. - That's the one you look like.
0:33:26 > 0:33:30By the time he came to Liguria, Byron was already famous for his swimming.
0:33:31 > 0:33:34In fact, he once told a friend that he was
0:33:34 > 0:33:38prouder of his long-distance swimming exploits than he was of his poetry.
0:33:43 > 0:33:46Although I don't pride my swimming over my cooking,
0:33:46 > 0:33:51enjoying such beautiful scenery in this way is pretty unique.
0:33:51 > 0:33:54And what a wonderful way to re-charge the batteries
0:33:54 > 0:33:56for the next leg of our journey.
0:34:01 > 0:34:03We are halfway to Pisa
0:34:03 > 0:34:07and just across the border into Tuscany are the quarries of Carrara,
0:34:07 > 0:34:10source of one of the materials which made the Renaissance possible.
0:34:11 > 0:34:15Beneath the dramatic landscape, all these hills are made of marble.
0:34:17 > 0:34:20For me, this is one of nature's grandest cathedrals.
0:34:22 > 0:34:27Look at this. Fantastic! I've never been this close.
0:34:27 > 0:34:30This is the birthplace of the Italian Renaissance cos the
0:34:30 > 0:34:33Italian Renaissance begins with sculpture
0:34:33 > 0:34:36and all the great sculpture was made with marble from Carrara.
0:34:36 > 0:34:38We are really going up and up.
0:34:38 > 0:34:42When Michelangelo was going to carve the tomb of Julius II,
0:34:42 > 0:34:46- he spent nine months up in these mountains.- Doing what?
0:34:46 > 0:34:47Getting his own marble.
0:34:47 > 0:34:51Nowadays, artists don't even carve their marble.
0:34:55 > 0:34:58It's all marble here, isn't it? Look at the square.
0:34:58 > 0:35:01It cost less to do it in marble than anything else.
0:35:01 > 0:35:04And the locals here have come up with uses for marble
0:35:04 > 0:35:07that are pretty different from sculpture.
0:35:15 > 0:35:18Andrew, it looks like a sarcophagus.
0:35:18 > 0:35:21Here is where he rests.
0:35:21 > 0:35:23This is the cemetery of lard.
0:35:32 > 0:35:36Wow. So what's inside of that, lots of cuts of lard?
0:35:36 > 0:35:41That's lots of cuts of lard, mixed with the herbs, the salt.
0:35:48 > 0:35:51At least six months. The smell is...
0:35:54 > 0:35:58Mmm! It's amazing. It smells very sweet.
0:35:58 > 0:36:01It's a little bit like prosciutto but it's different.
0:36:01 > 0:36:04- You can really smell the rosemary, can't you?- The rosemary,
0:36:04 > 0:36:08the garlic and the salt, and then his secret recipe of spice.
0:36:13 > 0:36:1515 types of spices.
0:36:17 > 0:36:20Mmm! It smells very exotic.
0:36:20 > 0:36:23It smells to me like the bazaars of Morocco.
0:36:23 > 0:36:25I feel like I'm almost in Tangier, you know?
0:36:39 > 0:36:41The marble, on top of keeping the coolness
0:36:41 > 0:36:44and the right temperature, because you must think
0:36:44 > 0:36:47that this is a produce that comes before refrigeration
0:36:47 > 0:36:51and then, you know, there is this sort of like...
0:36:51 > 0:36:52perspiration that it has.
0:36:52 > 0:36:55- It breathes, the marble breathes. - Exactly.
0:37:13 > 0:37:15Bene.
0:37:15 > 0:37:20- OK.- So how do you recommend that we eat it, Giorgio?
0:37:20 > 0:37:23You know, this is the way they eat it here.
0:37:23 > 0:37:26We'll just do some pieces of bread,
0:37:26 > 0:37:31put a little bit of onions on them.
0:37:31 > 0:37:34- Nothing too complicated. - No, because the flavour is
0:37:34 > 0:37:37- already there, you've got all the spice.- What is that, capers?
0:37:37 > 0:37:40That's capers with a bit of onion in it,
0:37:40 > 0:37:42something to elevate the flavour.
0:37:42 > 0:37:45Look how beautiful and pink.
0:37:45 > 0:37:48It almost reminds me of the vein of the marble.
0:37:54 > 0:37:57Bizarrely it reminds me a little bit of eating gravadlax,
0:37:57 > 0:38:00or sometimes smoked salmon, with a bit of
0:38:00 > 0:38:04raw onions and capers, except here it is smoked pig fat.
0:38:04 > 0:38:09You are now tasting the territory...
0:38:09 > 0:38:13real. We have arrived now in Tuscany for real.
0:38:15 > 0:38:18It's true, it's beautiful. That's what I like about this place.
0:38:18 > 0:38:21Everything is white, the walls are white, even in here,
0:38:21 > 0:38:24everything is white. Outside it's white, we are eating white.
0:38:28 > 0:38:31Now I want Giorgio to see one of my favourite sculptures
0:38:31 > 0:38:34made from Carrara's pure white marble.
0:38:34 > 0:38:36It's in the little town of Pistoia.
0:38:38 > 0:38:41Sandwiched between Pisa and Florence,
0:38:41 > 0:38:44it's an easy mistake to miss little Pistoia
0:38:44 > 0:38:46between those two colossus of tourism.
0:38:51 > 0:38:52It's off the beaten track
0:38:52 > 0:38:56but it contains one of the gems of early Renaissance art.
0:39:00 > 0:39:04The medieval Church of Sant'Andrea was one of only two churches to
0:39:04 > 0:39:06enjoy baptismal rites here.
0:39:08 > 0:39:09That's why in the 13th century,
0:39:09 > 0:39:14Canon Arnoldus commissioned a pulpit to be built in the baptistry.
0:39:19 > 0:39:25So, simple little church, Romanesque, very old. Pre-Gothic construction.
0:39:25 > 0:39:29Simple arches. Beautiful grey stone.
0:39:31 > 0:39:33Incredible, the ceiling. Look at how beautiful.
0:39:33 > 0:39:35The ceiling is lovely, isn't it?
0:39:37 > 0:39:39This is why I brought you here,
0:39:39 > 0:39:43because this is one of the great things. It's the pulpit.
0:39:43 > 0:39:47No longer is used as a pulpit, they have taken the stairs away.
0:39:47 > 0:39:52It is now considered too precious for the priest even to stand up in.
0:39:52 > 0:39:54It is by Giovanni Pisano.
0:39:54 > 0:39:59Most tourists who come to Tuscany, they have heard of Giotto,
0:39:59 > 0:40:03they've heard of Duccio, but they haven't heard of Pisano
0:40:03 > 0:40:08and, in fact, he and the work of his father,
0:40:08 > 0:40:14they actually come before Giotto and Duccio. They are doing this...
0:40:14 > 0:40:16- They inspired them. - They deeply inspired them
0:40:16 > 0:40:18and particularly Giotto.
0:40:18 > 0:40:22If you look at the frescoes in the Arena Chapel, the figures
0:40:22 > 0:40:27look as though they have been carved from stone and then painted.
0:40:27 > 0:40:30It's incredible from underneath, Andrew.
0:40:30 > 0:40:32This is the Massacre of the Innocents.
0:40:32 > 0:40:37- So complicated.- It is cut from a single piece of marble.
0:40:37 > 0:40:39Just think how complicated it is to do that.
0:40:39 > 0:40:43And the perspective is just incredible.
0:40:43 > 0:40:44It is very emotional.
0:40:44 > 0:40:48Look at the weeping women and their expressions are incredible.
0:40:48 > 0:40:49The Last Judgment.
0:40:53 > 0:40:55Look at the Devil down there, he is eating the man.
0:40:55 > 0:40:58He's got his arms in his mouth.
0:40:58 > 0:41:01That's what happens to cooks when they go to hell.
0:41:01 > 0:41:04- To bad cooks. - To bad cooks.
0:41:04 > 0:41:08It's interesting the choice of subjects that make the maximum drama,
0:41:08 > 0:41:09the maximum suffering.
0:41:09 > 0:41:15It might be white marble but you can still sense the blood.
0:41:15 > 0:41:16Drenched with it.
0:41:17 > 0:41:20This is practical art. I mean, you know...
0:41:20 > 0:41:23It's a message, a strong message the people down here has to get.
0:41:23 > 0:41:28It's not only going to tell a story, it's here to make them cry.
0:41:28 > 0:41:31It's a machine for making you believe in God,
0:41:31 > 0:41:33this pulpit really, that is what it is.
0:41:33 > 0:41:39The sculptors are the first artists to really tell the stories of Christ
0:41:39 > 0:41:43in this vivid way that will feed into the whole Renaissance.
0:41:43 > 0:41:47And so many things that become part of Italian art,
0:41:47 > 0:41:51this is where they are invented, by this man Giovanni Pisano,
0:41:51 > 0:41:54who really does deserve to be more famous.
0:41:56 > 0:41:58You could look at the pulpit a thousand times
0:41:58 > 0:42:00and still find new things to see.
0:42:02 > 0:42:05Pistoia definitely took me by surprise.
0:42:05 > 0:42:08I think that if it was in any other region,
0:42:08 > 0:42:10it would have been invaded by tourists,
0:42:10 > 0:42:13like our next destination.
0:42:13 > 0:42:17So, Pisa, here we come. Another great maritime power. I think
0:42:17 > 0:42:20we are on an alternative version of the grand tour. You know,
0:42:20 > 0:42:21the aristocrats of the past,
0:42:21 > 0:42:27the English aristocracy used to go to Rome, Florence, Venice.
0:42:27 > 0:42:30- But we are doing something different. - The Tyrrhenian side of Italy,
0:42:30 > 0:42:33the power, much more powerful than it was on the other side.
0:42:33 > 0:42:37You know, in the other side, the Adriatic side, you only have Venice.
0:42:37 > 0:42:40Here you have Pisa and you had Genova.
0:42:40 > 0:42:44- So this area was much more open for business.- It's funny how
0:42:44 > 0:42:48it's fallen out of fashion. Pisa seems to me to have the reputation
0:42:48 > 0:42:52among tourists of a place that you only go to for the day,
0:42:52 > 0:42:54or maybe even just for the morning.
0:42:54 > 0:42:56You go and see the Leaning Tower of Pisa,
0:42:56 > 0:43:01have a pizza and leave and I think that's unfair.
0:43:01 > 0:43:03I think Pisa is more than that.
0:43:09 > 0:43:12In the 11th century, Pisa ruled the waves.
0:43:12 > 0:43:15To reflect their maritime glory, the Pisans built the four
0:43:15 > 0:43:20magnificent religious buildings that together form the Campo Dei Miracoli.
0:43:21 > 0:43:24The marshy terrain of the area turned one of its buildings,
0:43:24 > 0:43:28the Bell Tower, into the world's most famous example of subsidence.
0:43:30 > 0:43:33Surprisingly for a maritime republic,
0:43:33 > 0:43:38Pisa lies inland and the River Arno became a vital artery connecting
0:43:38 > 0:43:42its port to the open sea. There's no longer a port here
0:43:42 > 0:43:46and very little river traffic, but it's still a great place
0:43:46 > 0:43:47to get a sense of the old city.
0:43:49 > 0:43:52Along these banks sits one of Pisa's best kept secrets -
0:43:52 > 0:43:54the Museum of San Matteo.
0:43:57 > 0:44:00It's beautiful, but it's the middle of the day,
0:44:00 > 0:44:02it's in high summer, massive tourist season
0:44:02 > 0:44:08and it's completely, utterly empty. This is one of the most
0:44:08 > 0:44:11beautiful small museums in the world!
0:44:14 > 0:44:18Wow! Andrew, this is incredible.
0:44:18 > 0:44:22- It's actually rather sad. - What are they made of, wood?
0:44:22 > 0:44:27- They are made of wood. - Wow.- In a way, they are the sort of
0:44:27 > 0:44:31dead bodies left by Napoleon, cos when he came to Pisa in
0:44:31 > 0:44:36the early 19th century, he ransacked all the monasteries and the convents.
0:44:36 > 0:44:40They saved what they could and all these beautiful wooden statues,
0:44:40 > 0:44:42they generally show the Madonna
0:44:42 > 0:44:45receiving the Annunciation, the news that she is pregnant.
0:44:45 > 0:44:46It's so beautiful.
0:44:48 > 0:44:50So beautiful, isn't it?
0:44:50 > 0:44:52This is really, really fantastic.
0:44:54 > 0:44:55It's by Simone Martini,
0:44:55 > 0:44:59who's one of the great painters of Siena along with Duccio.
0:44:59 > 0:45:05One of the most fantastic panels in all of 14th-century Italian art.
0:45:05 > 0:45:07The jewel looks like it's shining.
0:45:07 > 0:45:12- I think they are actually real pieces of glass.- Oh, right. That's why.
0:45:12 > 0:45:17I also think it's an object that reminds us how rich
0:45:17 > 0:45:24they were in Pisa when the city was at its height as a maritime power.
0:45:24 > 0:45:29Look at the gold leaf on that, look at the use of lapis lazuli.
0:45:29 > 0:45:33I mean, it's not just a beautiful painting, it's a huge status symbol.
0:45:35 > 0:45:38But what I really came here to see were these works of art.
0:45:39 > 0:45:43- It's really an exceptional room this one.- It is incredible.
0:45:43 > 0:45:45Exceptional.
0:45:45 > 0:45:51For me, it's one of the most effecting rooms in any of
0:45:51 > 0:45:56Italy's Pinacoteca, public museums. You can travel through history
0:45:56 > 0:46:03to see how the Crucifixion changed in Pisan art and in Italian art.
0:46:03 > 0:46:05And it's a huge change, it's one of the great
0:46:05 > 0:46:08changes in Western art that takes place here.
0:46:08 > 0:46:15- Right.- Here we've got the 12th century, so the 1100s,
0:46:15 > 0:46:19and this is what we call the Christus triumphans.
0:46:19 > 0:46:21Christ triumphant on the cross.
0:46:21 > 0:46:24- Comfortable.- Comfortable, he is triumphing over death.
0:46:24 > 0:46:30His anatomy, relatively unscathed, he doesn't look tormented, troubled.
0:46:32 > 0:46:36Now here, this is the great shift.
0:46:36 > 0:46:38Here we now have what I think of as
0:46:38 > 0:46:41the very, very beginning of the Renaissance.
0:46:41 > 0:46:47Christ as a real man, feeling real pain, his body is bleeding.
0:46:49 > 0:46:52His face is full of pain and sadness.
0:46:54 > 0:46:55And if we keep coming round...
0:46:57 > 0:46:59..this is by Giunta Pisano.
0:47:01 > 0:47:04The body is kind of contorted in the pain,
0:47:04 > 0:47:06and the blood is spilling down.
0:47:08 > 0:47:11Without a shadow, much more pain.
0:47:11 > 0:47:13There is that sense almost of desperation.
0:47:15 > 0:47:18This is the moment when art begins to bleed.
0:47:20 > 0:47:24- More human.- More human. - That's right, so you can see
0:47:24 > 0:47:27- yourself in there.- You can see yourself, and I think the whole
0:47:27 > 0:47:30of the rest of the Renaissance, with its ideal of realism,
0:47:30 > 0:47:33making it real, making you feel like you are there,
0:47:33 > 0:47:35I think this is where it comes from.
0:47:39 > 0:47:42So for all the glory of the Leaning Tower,
0:47:42 > 0:47:44there's definitely more to Pisa.
0:47:49 > 0:47:52Nowadays, Pisa is more of a tourist attraction than a sea power,
0:47:52 > 0:47:57but further south is a town whose historic port has survived and thrived,
0:47:57 > 0:48:00and where they have wonderful fish.
0:48:00 > 0:48:05Livorno is not exactly classic Tuscany but it has its charms.
0:48:08 > 0:48:11It's actually rather more beautiful than I expected it to be.
0:48:11 > 0:48:14I mean, yes, there is a lot of modern mixed up with the old,
0:48:14 > 0:48:16but I like that.
0:48:16 > 0:48:19It's a place that has this kind of truthfulness to that
0:48:19 > 0:48:22and its food is like that.
0:48:23 > 0:48:25This town has an eventful history.
0:48:27 > 0:48:30The port was already well established in medieval times.
0:48:30 > 0:48:36Florence bought it from Genoa in 1421 and it became a free port
0:48:36 > 0:48:39under the Medici in the 16th century.
0:48:39 > 0:48:43The Medici allowed the Jews to trade here and there was a strong
0:48:43 > 0:48:47British community too, who anglicised the named to Leghorn.
0:48:47 > 0:48:51Shelley was sailing from here to the Cinque Terre in 1822
0:48:51 > 0:48:54when his schooner sank and he drowned.
0:48:54 > 0:48:59The reason I wanted to come here is for Livorno's signature dish -
0:48:59 > 0:49:02caciucco, an earthy fish stew.
0:49:02 > 0:49:04The taste of the sea couldn't be more appropriate
0:49:04 > 0:49:07for the end of our journey.
0:49:07 > 0:49:10What is amazing is the variety. The variety is important.
0:49:10 > 0:49:15Variety makes colourful recipes, colourful cooking.
0:49:15 > 0:49:20- It's not one thing. Should we have a coffee?- Yeah. I need a coffee.
0:49:20 > 0:49:22- Buongiorno.- Un cafe.
0:49:22 > 0:49:26I love this. I think this is a '60s coffee bar.
0:49:26 > 0:49:29In fact, I love the whole place, I love the...
0:49:29 > 0:49:32I just love the way the people are here.
0:49:32 > 0:49:35It's almost like the faces you see in Italian paintings.
0:49:35 > 0:49:40I think it's got to do with the social way, food is part of society,
0:49:40 > 0:49:44so this is like, you have a church or a cathedral to go and pray,
0:49:44 > 0:49:47you've got the biggest building in town is where you
0:49:47 > 0:49:51- get your food.- It's communal. - With the herbs in Liguria, here you
0:49:51 > 0:49:54have the same thing. You have to try to balance the flavour of the fish.
0:49:54 > 0:49:59You have to have a knowledge of what the fish will add to your soup.
0:49:59 > 0:50:03Like you were saying that you don't put too much rucola in your herb pie.
0:50:03 > 0:50:06You have to balance it. This is very, very important.
0:50:06 > 0:50:09How many kinds of fish do you think you'll end up with?
0:50:09 > 0:50:13Traditionally, you should have 17 different types of fish.
0:50:13 > 0:50:16I don't think we are going to achieve that, but we'll definitely have between ten and 12.
0:50:16 > 0:50:17It's also seasonal.
0:50:17 > 0:50:20I think when I'm going to go around buying the fish, I'd like to go
0:50:20 > 0:50:23by myself because I'm going to get a better price.
0:50:23 > 0:50:26- With an English guy I'll get double the price.- Yeah, OK, good point.
0:50:26 > 0:50:30- I'll leave you to it.- No, no, no. You have to pay for the coffee.
0:50:30 > 0:50:33- I'll leave you the money to pay... - No, no, no. You pay for the coffee.
0:50:33 > 0:50:37- Ciao, Giorgio. See you later. - See you later.
0:50:56 > 0:50:58It's never the same. Never, never the same.
0:51:06 > 0:51:09So calamari, that is the base.
0:51:09 > 0:51:12OK. This is so beautiful!
0:51:21 > 0:51:25Boccacia! I don't know the name of this in English.
0:51:25 > 0:51:26Two nice slice of this palumbo.
0:51:30 > 0:51:32OK, perfetto.
0:51:32 > 0:51:35These are all fish that gets thrown away in England,
0:51:35 > 0:51:36this never makes it to the market.
0:51:36 > 0:51:39We don't kind of have the culture of using something like that
0:51:39 > 0:51:41to make into a soup, which is incredible.
0:51:49 > 0:51:54Oh, look at that! This doesn't need to be cooked. It's so beautiful!
0:51:54 > 0:51:57- Grazie.- Grazie. - Arrivederci.- Arrivederci.
0:51:58 > 0:52:00Such fresh fish is a real treat,
0:52:00 > 0:52:03and I can't wait to see what it tastes like.
0:52:07 > 0:52:11What better setting to cook our fish than the Ristorante Aragosta
0:52:11 > 0:52:14in the old port, where customers really know their catch.
0:52:18 > 0:52:21Here, chef Michelangelo is renowned for his caciucco
0:52:21 > 0:52:23and has very kindly lent me his kitchen.
0:52:28 > 0:52:31Extra virgin olive oil from Tuscany.
0:52:40 > 0:52:43- This is the octopus? - This is the octopus,
0:52:43 > 0:52:44calamari and sepia.
0:52:49 > 0:52:54This is the ONLY fish soup that goes with red wine.
0:52:54 > 0:52:58- Vino rosso.- That's why you justify as well the chilli in it.
0:52:58 > 0:53:01The chilli and the red wine will work well together.
0:53:04 > 0:53:06Tomato.
0:53:06 > 0:53:08He wants it really red.
0:53:08 > 0:53:11- What's the next stage, Giorgio? - The next stage is to use
0:53:11 > 0:53:14some of the fish stock and we just bring it up to boil.
0:53:14 > 0:53:17Then we like to really cook it. At least 40 minutes.
0:53:19 > 0:53:22The octopus, calamari, everything will be so, like...
0:53:22 > 0:53:25they will be breaking in your mouth, really well done.
0:53:27 > 0:53:29OK, Andrew...
0:53:29 > 0:53:33you remember there's all this fish going in, it'll go down.
0:53:33 > 0:53:34So that is just the base.
0:53:36 > 0:53:41- OK.- So they go in whole?
0:53:41 > 0:53:45- Yeah.- How long does that all cook for then?- Cinque minuti.
0:53:45 > 0:53:48- Five minutes, no more than five minutes.- Solo cinque?
0:53:48 > 0:53:53OK. This is the most important bit.
0:53:53 > 0:53:55You've got some garlic and you got some...
0:53:55 > 0:53:58So you rub toasted bread with garlic and put that as the base?
0:53:58 > 0:53:59You put that as the base.
0:54:05 > 0:54:12Mmm! Buonissimo! Buonissimo!
0:54:12 > 0:54:15Fantastic! It's almost like, you know...
0:54:15 > 0:54:19It's not gritty but it's got that substance to it, that body.
0:54:23 > 0:54:24Mmm! Que bello!
0:54:33 > 0:54:36If the poor eat like that, I want to be poor all my life!
0:54:48 > 0:54:51'Caciucco is always made in large quantities,
0:54:51 > 0:54:54'so it only seems fair to enjoy it in the company
0:54:54 > 0:54:56'of the restaurant staff.'
0:54:56 > 0:54:58- Buon appetito.- Buon appetito.
0:54:58 > 0:55:00- What happens now? - You just attack it.
0:55:00 > 0:55:01Ladies first.
0:55:07 > 0:55:10You can get a little bit of the sauce.
0:55:10 > 0:55:11Well done, Giorgio.
0:55:13 > 0:55:16- Wow!- Delicious!- Delicious!
0:55:16 > 0:55:18People food for the people.
0:55:18 > 0:55:22- You don't need anything else, do you? - You just need a bit of time
0:55:22 > 0:55:25and a little bit of passion.
0:55:25 > 0:55:30- I'm eating with my fingers as usual. - This is not a polite dish to eat.
0:55:41 > 0:55:43It's really nice the way that the fish,
0:55:43 > 0:55:45each one keeps its separate flavour.
0:55:45 > 0:55:47This is so, like, special about it.
0:55:56 > 0:56:00What an amazing dish. I love the fact that it is all seasonal.
0:56:02 > 0:56:05Just like in Liguria, the locals here have a strong relationship
0:56:05 > 0:56:08with their surroundings. It's the land or the sea
0:56:08 > 0:56:11that dictates the recipe and not vice-versa.
0:56:14 > 0:56:17Andrew, look at that. This is the Tyrrhenian sea.
0:56:17 > 0:56:21Can you imagine here, like hundreds of years ago when the maritime
0:56:21 > 0:56:24republics were fighting off, it must've been so busy.
0:56:24 > 0:56:28All these galleons, invaders, the Spanish, the French
0:56:28 > 0:56:32were all here, duelling out in this bit of sea,
0:56:32 > 0:56:34which now looks much more quiet, isn't it?
0:56:34 > 0:56:37It feels like a part of Italy that the world's left behind.
0:56:37 > 0:56:40I feel like we've been going much against the flow,
0:56:40 > 0:56:44travelling this way, coming to Livorno. There's not a single tourist
0:56:44 > 0:56:49in Livorno that I can see. Just fishermen, chefs.
0:56:49 > 0:56:51- I like that! I love that...- Lots of women and men in the market...
0:56:51 > 0:56:54- Yeah, I like it.- It looks really like a real town, you know.
0:56:54 > 0:56:56You really get the flavour of it.
0:56:56 > 0:57:00I also really liked the Ligurian coast,
0:57:00 > 0:57:03the wildness of it, the lack of development.
0:57:03 > 0:57:06You know, that sense that you could really feel that
0:57:06 > 0:57:09you were in the landscape that hasn't changed
0:57:09 > 0:57:11for more than a thousand years,
0:57:11 > 0:57:14and I love Maria. I love Maria
0:57:14 > 0:57:18picking the herbs with the energy of a six-year-old.
0:57:18 > 0:57:21- Maria was incredible.- What about the art that we have seen?
0:57:21 > 0:57:26Definitely was the pulpit in Pistoia. That was unbelievably beautiful.
0:57:26 > 0:57:29I'm struck by the very strong connection between the territory
0:57:29 > 0:57:31and the art traditions of the territory.
0:57:31 > 0:57:36So you've got Carrara, that great quarry just up there in the hills.
0:57:36 > 0:57:43- Expertise in carving seems sort of built in here.- It's incredible.
0:57:43 > 0:57:46Those wooden crosses. There is something very immediate
0:57:46 > 0:57:50about the art here. To me the wooden crosses are like the caciucco.
0:57:50 > 0:57:54They hit you in the face, you know, there is this absolutely blatant...
0:57:54 > 0:57:57It's the art of the poor, the food of the poor.
0:57:57 > 0:57:59Just as much as on our other journeys, I feel like we've touched
0:57:59 > 0:58:01something right at the centre of Italy here,
0:58:01 > 0:58:04- even though we have been on the edge. - Yes.- You know what I mean?
0:58:04 > 0:58:08That's right. Italy has got so much coastline.
0:58:08 > 0:58:11So the coastline is as important as the centre.
0:58:11 > 0:58:15This is where the fusion of culture really happens.
0:58:15 > 0:58:17Come, let's go. I'll take you to Lazio.
0:58:17 > 0:58:19So in Lazio you have to learn one thing.
0:58:19 > 0:58:22In order to get anything, you have to say, "Aho!"
0:58:22 > 0:58:23Aho!