Sunrise at Vitaleta

This little chapel is probably the most photographed in all of Italy. Sitting by itself on a hilltop in San Quirico D’ Orcha and about the size of a potting shed, it used to house a statue of Madonna (the religious icon, not the pop icon) sculpted in 1590. Now the chapel serves as a back drop for tourists to get their fake wedding pictures taken (see the Alabama Hills post). I took this panorama about 20 years ago (see the deep tracks post), and although Ive seen hundreds of better shots of this little anomaly, I love the long shadows captured with the golden color of sunrise. Tuscany is really a magical place. There are few places on earth where the ethereal is really real, and not manufactured by Disney.