Civitavecchia

Our drive to Civitavecchia (chuh-VEE-tuh-vek-ee-uh) was uneventful other than the damage done to our kidneys and teeth.  Note to self, never drive Superstrada 1 (SS1) again!  Unlike the Autostrada, Superstradas are supported by taxes rather than by tolls.  And boy does it show!  The road was nearly as rough as some of the roads leading to our agriturismos.

Civitavecchia itself strikes us as a rather sketchy city.  There’s not much going for it other than having the port to bring in cruise ships so that tourists can visit Roma.  Our B&B was located a couple of kilometers out of town and was a pleasant enough setting, though.

The first reason for spending two nights here was to break up the drive from Volterra to Sorrento.  A more important reason was to allow us to visit two different Etruscan Necropoli.  (Necropole,  Necropoli  -  sorry thinking of Dana Carvey here).  The first one we visited, Banditaccia (ban-DEE-tach-ee-uh) Necropolis, was one-half hour north of Civitavecchia in the city of Cerveteri.  The second one, with painted tombs, was only 15 minutes south of Civitavecchia in the city of Tarquinia (tar-QUEEN-ee-uh).

Both of these sites were simply amazing.  The Banditaccia Necropolis dates back as far a the 9th century BC.  While most of what we saw here was the elaborate burial tombs, it also included family living quarters.  All constructed out of tufo. We skipped on entering most of the tombs as they were very difficult.  There were several spelunkers here, wearing lighted hard hats, determined to enter the most difficult tombs.  The Tarquinia tombs were unique in that  the interiors were painted. They have been called “the first level of Italian painting”. Most of these have been dated from the 7th to the 4th century B.C. The fact that the paintings have survived this long is amazing!  Of course they are being well protected now.  When leaving the Tarquinia Necropolis, we happened upon our very first view of an ancient Roman aqueduct.

Next stop, Sorrento, a four hour drive away.  Thankfully most of it is Autostrada.  Our longest planned drive while staying at the Sorrento agriturismo is a day trip to Pompeii and Herculaneum.

Banditaccia Necropolis

Tarquinia Necropolis

Roman aqueduct

Volterra

We were able to say arrivederci to our hosts, at Castello di Cosona, and pass along our wishes to Nonna. She is 96 now and keeps her mind sharp reading and doing crossword puzzles. Just amazing!  It is always heart-wrenching to leave our Scuola apartment here. Now we start counting the days until we can return!  Or perhaps we should count our friends, the sheep instead.  Greeting us upon our arrival was not enough.  They decided to block the road for us as we were leaving.  While the sheep were our friends, the sheep dogs were decidedly not.  Five of them came out and gave our Fiat hell while we were patiently waiting for the sheep to cross.  Next visit we will have to have some bistecca on hand to placate the dogs!

Volterra is an island in the sky and the road to it is like driving through Big Sur. Simply dizzying! Our previous visit here was only a couple of hours, so this time we spent a couple of days to better explore Etruscan history.  Evidence of the Etruscan civilization has been found in central Italy dating back to 900 B.C. Traces of Etruscan ruins and museums can be found in many villages and towns. Tombs and artifacts are still being discovered.  They were far more advanced than their neighbors, as represented by their mining of metals (800 years before the Bronze Age) for making ingots for trade and some very finely crafted jewelry. They drained and irrigated land that became the fertile breadbasket of Central Italy. Some of the most famous Etruscan sights are Circus Maximus in Rome, the necropolis and underground tunnel dwellings in Orvieto, the Etruscan gate (Porta all’Arco, from the 4th century B.C.) in Volterra. 

On our first trip to Italy, Volterra inspired me to write that this was a castle and the people were living day-to-day ordinary lives just as the rest of us-except they get to do it in a castle! A walled castle! Going to work, shopping, cooking, sleeping-in a walled city/castle!! Quick wake me up-we just did it! It is as beautiful and historic as Orvieto, just more rustic. We stayed in the wonderful La Locanda Hotel-well, wonderful until the locals decided to have a meeting outside of our windows at midnight-located just inside the city walls.

We spent most of our time here moving between the various Etruscan and Roman sites and museums. The highlights were the Roman Amphitheater and the Etruscan Museum.  And since Volterra is the Alabaster capitol of Italy, the Alabaster Museum. The Alabaster artwork is beautiful, as well as its practical applications. Many churches’ windows were outfitted with Alabaster so thin as to allow light through.

We could only look upon the massive Medici Fortress from the Archaeological Park, as the fortress is being used as a maximum security prison for special prisoners, keeping them far away from their Sicilian families.  (With some serious planning we could probably break Tony out). While the Archaeological Park is a delightful treed green area in town, it is also home to archaeological digs of Etruscan temple foundations going back to 1500 B.C.

Had a snack at a local bar called Vena di Vina whose ceiling was decorated with donations of bras and a VW body! Kind of strange but it worked.  A Rick Steves pick. Found our favorite apertivo spot and re-energized! They have monumental music-La Traviata-this weekend, the Tartuffo Bianco (white truffle) festival, major shopping for all fashionistas and a fabulous restaurant scene. We had dinner at one of the top ones-Del Duca. Oh my! Bo can’t get enough wild boar (Cinghuale) and I had Pigeon (Squab as known to the rest of the world and quite possibly harvested from one of Italy’s pigeon crowded piazzas). It actually tasted quite a bit like  goose breast. We had a local wine that was a blend of Sangiovese and Merlot-mouthwatering! Desserts were equally delicious. Bowen had his favorite Creme Brûlée w/Rhum flavor. I had the Semi Freddo with crumbled amaretti. Both were amazing! 

Next up a brief stop at a Civitavecchia B&B, which we will be using as a base to explore 2 very important Etruscan ruins.  Then enough already with the Etruscans.  We’ll move on to Sorrento and the Almalfi coast to enjoy La Dolce Vita!

Our Friends Saying Goodbye

Volterra Main Street

Volterra Side Street

Volterra’s Roman Amphitheater

Porta all’Arco

Etruscan Museum

Medici Fortress

Vena di Vina

The Heart of Toscano

What a joy-being able to spend a day doing nothing except what you want to! This is the first time we have done absolutely nothing on a trip! NOTHING! Just read, wrote postcards, had an easy lunch, an aperitivo. And then, IT happened! For those of you who read our first blog, you may remember that upon our departure from Cosona, we included a photo of leaving our friends, the sheep. As we left, they came to say goodbye in the field below us.  Today, they came back to greet us and totally surrounded our agriturismo apartment!!  Literally, they surrounded the building! There must have been a few hundred in total, along with the sheep dog directing operations. It was hilarious!  When we first arrived here we remarked that the Cosona family appeared to have been paying more attention to the shrubbery, keeping it properly pruned.  WRONG!  Our welcoming committee of sheep quickly mowed down most everything except the rosemary and the sage.  Since the field below our apartment is freshly plowed, awaiting the planting of winter wheat, they either decided that the meals were better here or they really, really missed us! We prefer to believe they just missed us! Shortly afterward, a huge thunderstorm moved in with very heavy rain and hail. We were so relieved not to be out driving or sightseeing. It made everything a little more cozy! You may not hear anything for a while, as this is the place where we completely shut down. What vacation means.

Well we ventured out after a day of rest.  Unlike our last visit to Tuscany, we decided it was time to see Siena.  Not a completely simple task since pretty much all of the city is in a ZTL.  But we finally figured out how to enter a parking garage that was reasonably close, actually inside the old city walls.  In case I haven’t mentioned it before, ZTL’s are very stressful!

Once parked we made the walk to Il Campo, the most unique piazza that we have ever seen.  It was constructed as an amphitheater with city hall on a side and the merchant buildings and restaurants fronting the rest of the square.  It has been described as Siena’s living room.  That description seems accurate with people lounging on the bricks everywhere! Anyone who uses a crayola, knows the color “burnt Sienna” and it certainly is! The most interesting thing, regarding the piazza, is that the famous Palio horse races are held here every summer.  This is a competition between a selected ten of Siena’s seventeen neighborhoods. Apparently 60,000 people are crowded onto the square to observe what is a no-holds-barred medieval moment. The race is three circuits of the piazza, approximately one kilometer.  The winning neighborhood-contrada (cohn-TRA-da)- apparently goes berserk.  Sigh, we wish we here to see it. Next time!

While there are many sights in Siena, the two that most intrigued us was the Il Campo and the Duomo. This church reminds me of the Duomo in Orvieto-which is my all time favorite-but is definitely in  the top 5. The outside is magnificent in white and green striped marble-as are the multitude of pillars inside. The current structure was started in 1215 and was under construction and artistic decoration for over 300 years. There are enough Renaissance paintings and statues to house a museum. Michelangelo, Bernini, Donatello, Nicola Pisano (the Giotto of sculpture), Duccio, to name but a few. Every piece in the Duomo was one artists centerpiece.We have seen a multitude of beautiful churches and each one has had one outstanding feature. The feature of this Duomo was the incredible marble floors! I have never seen anything like them-anywhere! For nearly 200 years, artists paved the floors with scenes from the Old Testament and allegories. It was difficult to pay homage to so many of the famous artists who's work was all around us. There is much more of Siena to visit, but for a first time we saw exactly what we needed to see!

Ah, Orvieto! A favorite of hill towns! The scenery from below, driving up and inside the town is quite dramatic. Tuscany is justifiably famous for its hill towns, this one, however, is in Umbria. The town sits a thousand feet above the valley floor, majestically rising on its tufo throne. Tufo is a light tannish-yellow colored volcanic rock. It is soft enough to carve out caves and to make dwellings and then hardens after exposure to air. Many hill towns (including Rome and its famous landmarks) are on tufo. Orvieto is my favorite not only for the beauty of the Duomo and the town, but because of its Etruscan heritage. Thousands of years ago, the Etruscans began building hill towns-for protection. It is said that the first king of Rome was an Etruscan. They were, in part, responsible for teaching the Romans the terracing of wheat and vineyards. More on the Etruscans later. This was our 2nd time in Orvieto. Rather than driving up like last time, we took the funicular. Fast and easy-not the hair raising twists and turns of streets not built for cars!! Since we had pretty much seen and done everything last time, we just went to the Duomo, had lunch, saw an Etruscan temple ruin and fort and went ceramic shopping. Orvieto is famous for its ceramics. You can see/buy ceramics most everywhere in Italy. If you look at the label, it will say Orvieto. Just can’t say enough! If Italy is in your future, this hill town is a must!!

Bowen was absolutely brilliant-for a change-yesterday (ieri). We wanted to stay close to Cosona, but visit some wineries in Montalcino.  But through his use of Google Maps he saw that there were a few out of the way wineries shown with links to their websites.  So with much bravery, he called a couple of them in the morning.  Of course none of the answering parties spoke English.  But, the accomplished Italian speaker that Bowen is, he was able to communicate well enough to set up an appointment for an afternoon tasting at one of them.  When we showed up for the aforementioned appointment no one answered the door.  However, the winery next door let us in for a tasting of their excellent vino.  After we had purchased a few bottles of their wine we encountered the original winery as we were leaving.  (They were literally on top of one another). So we had yet another (and originally scheduled) tasting.  As it turns out, both wineries are related (from the same family) but do not get along.  We think that the first winery poached us from the second.  After two tastings it’s a good thing that Toscana roads are so curvy. Otherwise someone might have thought that we had drunk too much vino!! We are so elated to be in the Crete Senesi (CRAY-tay-see-Nay-say), again! The panoramas in every direction-reminds us of the Palouse in eastern Washington.

Our Friend Welcoming Us Back

Why does the sheep dog look like a sheep?

Il Campo

Duomo

Orvieto

Orvieto Duomo

Orvieto Street Scene

Lucca

Being in Piemonte is always a joy. Being in Piemonte during the fall wine and white truffle festivals is a dream come true! It is with heavy hearts that we move on. The weather is agreeing with us-from sunny and high 70’s to 50’s and complete white-out fog overnight. It makes everything soft and misty, quietly hushed. The hazelnut groves are shrouded in the mist and look like creatures  from “Mars Attacks”! We make our way south, to Liguria. Just on the outskirts of Genoa (Genova), The sun breaks through and we have a complete view of the Bay of Genova and the Ligurian Sea!! The water and sky are the same color and the horizon is simply awash in azzurre.

Lucca is a city that we visited 3 years ago, on our way from the Cinque Terre to Firenze (Florence).  We only spent a few hours and vowed to return. Now we are here overnight. Lucca was a part of the Roman Empire from 180 BC. It is Italy’s most impressive fortress city-despite the fact that it has not been involved in a war since 1430. There is a perfectly intact wall that still surrounds the city. This is a WALL! You can walk around the entire city. The wall is as wide as a highway! Such a sight to see and then to look out. Lucca has a population of around 90,000 and numbers 70 churches. That is a pretty hefty ratio! One of the most beautiful is the Cathedral of San Martino. It hosts gothic arches, Renaissance paintings and stained glass. In the style of the 11th century, the exterior is of striped white and gray marble and matches the interior columns. The ceiling and nave frescoes are still bright and colorful. Truly, one of the most beautiful in all of Italy!

Unlike when we last visited Lucca, we had enough time to partake of an event that is unique to Lucca.  We attended a one hour concert of Giacomo Puccini’s operas, at Chiesa San Giovanni (which is the family church of the Puccini’s). Lucca, being Puccini’s hometown, is now home to the world’s only permanent festival-Puccini e la Sua Lucca (Puccini and his Lucca)-celebrating one of the greatest opera composers of all time.  While we haven’t ordinarily been big opera fans, it was an extraordinary event, nevertheless. Jan’s father, Ralph, would have been pleased and very surprised! This one’s for you, Dad-just wanted to make sure you knew that she loved it!  The tenor, Stefano Cresci, was simply incredible.  How does any person voice such range and power?  As an aside, our limited Italian actually allowed us to understand some of the lyrics. 

We ended the evening blown away by the music and the food afterward. We had dinner at Al Corso. It was recommended to us by a local chef. Mama Mia!! What a fabulous treat! Every part of the menu was local and organic! We had a local Sangiovese wine which was fruit forward and yet soft, with a very long finish. A new love! We split a warm seafood salad which had so many Mediterranean delicacies. Bo, of course, had the Bistecca and I had suckling pig-cooked almost 24 hours! I have never, ever in my life had such pork!! I am going to work on this recipe at home. I may have to build an outdoor spit! Worth it!

So, we have traded hazelnut groves for olive groves. We are ready for new adventures in Toscano and think Toscano is ready for us!! Our favorite agriturismo, Cosona, has welcomed us home with open arms. I just want to cook and drink in the countryside of this amazing part of this amazing country. So blessed to be able to spend so much time here!

No More of Our Favorite Road

Hazelnut Grove

The Wall

Cathedral of San Martino

Puccini Concert Setting

Guinigi Tower

Old Town Lucca Street

So Much To See, So Little Time

Before visiting our friends at Podere, Ruggere, Corsini we stopped in Castiglione Falletto and tasted at Livie Fontana Winery. Livie is the 8th generation to operate the cellar and make the wine (1820). They make the typical wines-and more-from the Langhe region. That would be Dolcetto, Nebbiolo, Barbera, Barolo. Spent a little time wandering around the sights in Barolo and then on to Montforte d’Alba (where we actually caught an exhibition of Chagall etchings) to catch up with Lolly and Nicola at their winery.

We wanted to take them out for dinner, but Lolly insisted on having some friends over and dinner at their house. Very interesting group of people. Hannah and Henrik, a couple from Denmark, who live in Montforte part time and two friends from Torino, Phillipo and Roberto. Roberto is a nurse and Phillipo a medical equipment facilitator. They go into 3rd world and war-torn countries and set up temporary hospitals to treat people with diseases and wounds from the afflictions of war. They have been to Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria, areas of the Congo and soon to South Sudan. Their work is akin to “Doctors’ Without Borders”. We wished them good health and safe travels-they will surely need it. Was really a lovely evening, filled with travel stories, remembrances, much laughter, good food-and, oh yes-wine! Ci piace tanto i nostri amici! (We enjoy our friends so much!)

Because we are in Piemonte, the capital of the Slow Food Movement, we have been exploring the meaning and the towns where this started. Carlo Petrini and a group of activists founded the movement, in the 1980’s. Initially, it was to defend regional traditions, good food and a slow pace of life-along with gastronomic pleasures. Today, it has become a global movement, involving  projects such as fair trade, sharing agricultural information and traditions, sharing the connections between plate, planet, people and culture. The Langhe and Roero regions are UNESCO Heritage areas and the communes involving the SFM have, also, been included. All the towns are important in their contributions, but we only had time for a couple. 

We began in the ancient Roma citti (Roman city) of Pollentia. Today known as Pollenzo. Actually, it seems redundant to say ancient Roman city-they all are!! Pollenzo became a fort in the 2nd century B.C. There are ruins of a cemetery, an arena and parts of walls. Today, it is home to the University of Gastronomic Sciences (Universita deli Studi di Scienze Gastronomiche). Say that 3 times quickly! They offer a 1 year degree in Italian cooking, 3 year undergraduate degree and 14 month master’s level in cooking. However, there are degrees in food in the world, agricultural sustainability, Italian wine culture and more. I actually took some time to speak with a student. We may have to move here so that I can continue my degree! As a plus, the campus is gorgeous with all the medieval buildings and churches. Down the road is the commune of Cherasco-home to the really slow movement of the Slow Food Movement. It is the town of snail farming! Who knew? I thought that was in France. Live slow and learn! This little place is internationally known for its hybrid techniques breeding and raising the snails or chiocciole (kee-OH-chee-oh-lay) in Italiano. The town symbol is actually a snail. Just charming. There are other towns that tie in, but these two meant the most to me.

Finally, we come to Cuneo. It is called the mini Turino and justly so. The main Piazza di Galimberti looks almost identical to the magnificent Piazza Castello. Adjoining the piazza is a traffic free zone that includes Via Roma.  We spent most of our time here exploring the many shops and other sights on this boulevard.  Cuneo was founded in 1198 by the local population-not by the Romans! Throughout the years, however, it was dominated by different feuding states. In 1382, Cuneo was acquired by the Duchy of Savoy. It was maintained as a part of the house of Savoy until the Napoleonic Wars. Cuneo became the capital of the province in 1859, when Italy was unified. During WWII, it was one of the main centers of the resistance against the German occupation of Italy.

University

Cuneo

Piemonte

Well we’ve made it back home.  Home in Italia that is.  We are staying in a different agriturismo this time.  The road to get here is most interesting.  Definitely not for the faint of heart.  Very poorly paved single lane road, with step drop offs and many totally blind tight switchbacks.  I guess that I had better watch the vino consumption. Once up on the top, the Langhe Valley spreads out below with miles of vineyards, in their beautiful array of fall colors! The vineyards literally come up to the back door!

When we checked in on Saturday, our host, Carmen, greeted us with an incredible assortment of cheeses, salami, vino, grappa and dolce (sweets, cake).  I would never have expected such a welcome!  Since our lodging here is a full apartment, complete with kitchen, we did need to stock up on groceries.  But after the imbibing upon our arrival, coupled with the treacherous road, that task had to wait until Sunday.

We took a different route to the mercato on Sunday in hopes of avoiding the worst of the roads.  Fail!  But we did encounter several hunters out looking to bag a wild boar-Cinghiale (ching-GUAL-ay).  Apparently, every Sunday in October is open season on them.  I have long had a desire to hunt Cinghiale in Italy, but I guess that I’ll have to settle for eating them in the local ristorante.

After stocking up on groceries, we drove to Barbaresco to partake of Piacere  Barbaresco (we like Barbaresco), a festa where the local wine producers present their wines for tastings.  We happened upon this event three years ago and were looking forward to attending, again. It did not disappoint. Although, it was much more crowded this time around. This is the 11th year, for this festival and I guess the word has gotten out! For around $25 you can taste up to 50 Barbarescos. The wine can only be called Barbaresco if it is from here and made with the Nebbiolo grape. We managed to find some wine to purchase!

Monday we drove to Alto Piemonte, for a scheduled tour, at the Proprieta Sperino winery, in Lessona.  This is a region that we have not visited in the past. It is about 2 hours north of Alba. At one time it was a thriving agricultural and viticultural region. After WWII, the majority of the farmers abandoned the area and moved to the cities to work. It was much less demanding of their time and effort and they made more money. There was virtually little to no farming until the 1960’s. A few people came back to reclaim and rediscover the wine making traditions of the 1800’s and early 1900’s. Thanks to our friend, Renato, we were able to meet with Luca De Marchi and his wife Francesca, who now are rebuilding the winery. Luca is the grandson of the Sperinos.  We received a tour of the historic family estate (which is currently undergoing a restoration).  The family estate centers upon what is the town castle, although much of the castle no longer remains.  Our tour included the original wine cellar and production room of the castle, and the “hell room” containing bottles from the early 1800’s-that are still drinkable!! The Sperino family is imbued with a passion for making the best Piemontese wines. Of course Nebbiolo is the foundation of the wines they make (it is called Spanna in Alto Piemonte), along with Vespolina and Croatina for blending. They, also, make a rose and grappa. It was a truly meaningful visit to be able to learn so much about the area, the wines, and one families’ passion!!

View From Our Agriturismo

It Really is a Farm

 

Piacere Barbaresco

Sperino Family Estate

Hell Room