Spontaneous Gardens

spontaneous sidewalk gardens 

Along with  Northern Lazio ‘s   numerous  majestic, historic gardens with  pedigrees going back hundreds of years,  there are  humble sidewalk and piazza gardens which are the spontaneous labor of love of the  inhabitants.  

the giant jasmine climbs the wall  on Vicolo del Sole 

Here are a few examples  I noticed  this week, all within a few minutes  of my home.

Piazza S. Egidio (or Piazza Garibaldi ) 

jasmine  thrive on the sunny corner of the piazza 

Adriana  takes pride in her  corner of Piazza S. Egidio, caring for  plants such as this  azalea left behind by previous owners  who  returned to America.

Adrianna's  azaleas 

Marcella and  husband Spartaco are the self appointed guardian/gardeners of  Piazza del Sole.  A white azalea, once belonging to Marcella’s  mother, along with hundreds of roses and other plants  beautify the piazza thanks  to the personal care  of this couple in their 80s.

Franco's wall garden   

Marcella of Piazza  del Sole 

American visitors in Piazza del Sole  with Angelino and Spartaco (right)

Some towns  have flower festivals and  motivate  citizens, often with cash prizes,  to beautify  their  streets thus attracting tourists.  Spello in Umbria is an example along with  the mid-June  Festival of Fiori in Finestra e Cene in Cantina here in Vetralla. 

 Luckily  most citizens do not wait for official recognition nor annual festivals for they look after their spontaneous gardens all year round.

an abandoned corner  

Sometimes  a spontaneous garden  blooms not  with flowers. 

a bombed out building 

became  a  quirky  garden 

This half wrecked  building on a side street of the historic center,  has been left in ruins since  World War II  and was nothing more than an eyesore and dumping ground. 

a wall of memories 

That is until  a fireworks technician  with a well developed aesthetic sense  came to live  nearby.

  Lately  the area has been  transformed  by  the hard work of one   anonymous neighbor who cleaned up the rubble, transforming the  area into a quirky  garden. 

the  cantinas were cleared  of rubble 

found in the wreckage, 

Using  bits and pieces  found  on site, he created a wall of memories, setting  the stones  into  piles and inserting  objects found among the rubble   along the  walls.  

Monday:  stop  press!
Just met the "gardener"  on the street and he let me take this photo while he was eating a panino.  He told me a bit about  how he  worked for 8 months digging through  60 years of garbage and junk  to clean up and arrange the rocks and rubble into something more pleasant to look at. Bravo Emidio! 

Emidio 

 Now  if only  the  owners of the  building  will get their act together this section of town  will be a decent place to live.   

Please leave a comment  about  any spontaneous gardens   existing in your town. 

Bramante's Papal Stables in Viterbo

precarious column 

 Most   know  this Bramante  building,  Il Tempietto, on the Janiculum hill in Rome....
  but  very few people  are aware of another  hidden masterpiece of the Renaissance architect located in the center of Viterbo. 

As a resident here  for  the past 20 years I was surprised  to discover the existence of this gem designed and built by architect  Bramante   between  1506-1510. 

smack in the city center but hidden from view 

The magnificent  stables  hidden  in  piazza Sallupara were  commissioned by  Pope Julius II   to house about  100 horses of the papal entourage.

the main hall of the Papal Stables 

 And they were kept in style, in a  majestic  hall  with vaulted ceilings   lined with  24  pillars.

The building’s existence was unknown  not only to me, but to most of the townspeople eventhough it is  close to the historic center and  the Albornoz fortress , seat of  the local  Etruscan museum. 

Pro Loco  opened the Bramante stables for the first time 

Thanks to the new  Pro Loco  of Viterbo  the site was opened and   guided visits  were given to illustrate this, one  of city’s  least known  sites.

Viterbo's  well known  Fontana Grande 

The building has been used diversely  over the centuries: for storage, as a tobacco barn  and then  in  1822  it became  the city prison. 

During World War II it was one of the many buildings of Viterbo  to be destroyed by Allied bombs and since then it has been an  eyesore of the historic center.  

 Unexploded bombs  were recuperated from the site even  last  January. 

Now it is  finally being  restored  with money made available by a local bank and the Lazio Region and will eventually become a civic  and cultural center.  

stones and columns  lined up 

Pro loco  members Davide, Michele and friend 

Here is an article in Italian about  the  papal stables http://www.bibliotecaviterbo.it/rivista/1990_1-2/Buchicchio.pdf

Have you visited Viterbo?  What is your favorite place in the area?  Leave a comment  in Italian or English and share with friends by clicking on the Facebook or Twitter icons  just below. 

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For other information about the Viterbo and Northern Lazio area see my website.

Italy's Unusual May Festivals

May is  the best time to visit central Italy especially if you are an anthropologist. Here there are many unusual festivals  that include the marriage of two trees,  a race  honoring a horse man and   a procession of snake charmers. 

foreign visitors  at  the Wedding of the Trees 

The  period between Easter  and the month of May  abounds with festivals having  a fertility  significance such as  the Wedding of the Trees  held in Vetralla  and  the Barabbata  in Marta.

Sposalizio dell'Albero, May 8th in Vetralla 

Serpari festival, Cocullo, Abruzzo  (Pro loco Cocullo)

May 8^th is also the festival dedicated to  St. Domenico Abbot in the Abruzzi town of Cocullo. Here the serpari or snake charmers parade through the streets  handling  snakes just  awakened from their winter hibernation.

at the finish line 

Another unusual festival happened this morning here in Vetralla:    the 16^th edition of the  Uomo Cavallo  race  with 180  men and women contestants from all parts of central Italy . 

watching the racers arrive 

finish line  in Piazza della Rocca 

The  10 kms. itinerary is a figure 8  snaking through the town  center and includes  many murderous  hills .   

runners from southern Italy 

refreshments at the end of the 10 km. race 

Domenico Baghini known as Uomo Cavallo 

The race is named for  Domenico Baghini of  Vetralla  (1867-1943) who as a youngster learned to run as he rounded up the cows on the family farm. When the first train came to town he competed against it and won. With his incredible physical stamina, he continued his winning streak competing  against horses in  20 km runs.   

nutella, crostate and water   at the finish line 

He ran many races all over Italy, Europe and even in Tunis in the years 1900-1910. When a national sports newspaper  paid his way to Paris  to participate in a marathon, Baghini  pocketed the money and traveled to  Paris on foot  doing 80-100 kms a day. Needless to say, he won the race, with 10 minutes advantage over the second place. 

(foto-Proloco Acquapendente )

 The Pugnaloni festival  of Acquapendente, on the Lazio-Tuscany border, has been  held annually for over  800 years. It sees groups from different parts of town competing to  create  huge   mosaics  made from leaves and flower petals which are  displayed throughout the year . This year it will be held on Sunday  19^th May. For more on I Pugnaloni check the pro loco website.

(foto-proloco Acquapendente)

What is your favorite, unusual Italian festival? 

Indepth  information on local life, traditions and celebrations in Northern Lazio can be found in my publications .
Order a signed copy for yourself or for a friend  planning a trip here. 

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Picturesque Ischia di Castro

Vignola's loggia ,  Rocca Farnese 

It was a bright, sunny Saturday  when we drove  north towards Lake Bolsena  to attend a conference  held in the icy cold  main hall of a castle  under restoration.  

view from the Rocca 

  When the drafts (and the long-winded speakers) became unbearable I escaped to the sun filled piazza to wander through  the narrow streets  of the oldest part of Ischia di Castro, the part the local residents call “di dentro”.

beyond the Duomo  begins "di dentro " 

Farnese lily  and laundry crown this portal

Lilies  (or iris) carved above many of  Ischia’s doorways remind us that this was  once  a Farnese stronghold.

 The huge Rocca Farnese, designed by Vignola,  was one of the first  “homes” of the Farnese. As they rose to power family members commissioned other Farnese palaces including the fabulous Palazzo now the French Embassy in Rome and the   pentagonal palace in Caprarola.  

stairway to the Rocca 

Under the Rocca’s shadow lies a labyrinth of tiny  lanes hung with  drying laundry. 

Cats snooze in the sun  and   keys   are left dangling in the door locks.  

 Inside a former bread oven/ cantina  we met a bee keeper preparing  his beehives.

wine cask transformed into bar 

a wicker baby carriage  pre-WWII

in the magazzino 

Comparable  to  a cellar or garage, the magazzino  is where families store discarded furniture, old bottles, the wine supply and anything else  not urgently needed in the home.

 Visiting a family’s magazzino  or cantina  shows what happens in a country where garage sales do not exist.  After  a few generations  the old cast offs  have become  antiques.   

Ischia   is   one of the less well known of Viterbo province’s   60 towns, each  with its own  personality and history.

 A stroll through the picturesque historic center is a perfect  respite from the stress of modern city life.

curious cats  

During summer  Ischia becomes more cosmopolitan for many of the  modest houses have been purchased as holiday homes  by  Romans wishing to escape the Eternal City‘s stifling heat.

conversation corner 

 There is also a small foreign community appreciative of the town's laid back lifestyle and inexpensive real estate.

shrine connecting two buildings 

Fascist period  doorhandles  and Cactus Madonna 

Excellent  food at honest prices 

entrance to Gigiotto trattoria

pappardelle al cinghiale 

Where to eat  in Ischia di Castro? Definitely  Gigiotto, on the main piazza. 

 Do you have a favorite small town in Italy? 

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