Living in a Castle in Italy: Proceno

Castello di Proceno  from the town hall

When  the sun burns down and the humidity levels rise,  the  naturally cool, dark interiors of a medieval castle offer  a welcome solace; thus July is  the perfect time to  visit friends who own castles and historic homes here in central Italy.

town hall entrance 

Last week after a stop to see the Archives in Acquapendente (more in a future post), we drove further along the Via Cassia  connecting  Rome to Siena and Florence to the  hilltop town of  Proceno which straddles  the border separating  Lazio  and the former Papal States from  Tuscany.

Nearby is the old  customs house  of Centeno (cento=100  miles from Rome ) where travelers including Galileo (in 1648) and  Nathaniel Hawthorne  (in 1845) underwent quarantine  and  had their bags  searched for anti-Papal literature.

At the hour of our arrival, Proceno was deserted except for  a butcher’s cat but the town hall -Palazzo Sforza - was open to the breezes and offered sweeping views over the  town’s cotto tile rooftops, the Paglia river  valley below  and the neighboring hilltowns of   Radicofani  (in Tuscany)  and Torre Alfina, famous  for  artiginal  gelato.  

the  formidable Town Hall,  Palazzo Sforza 

There was a distinct difference of temperature inside the Castello  thanks to the brick floors and thick walls. 

 We were welcomed by owners Giovanni and Cecilia Cecchini Bisoni,  and their two dogs. 

with Cecilia and Giovanni

the castle dogs are named after Roman gods

The entrance hall houses  an  antique  printing press  (torchio)  and many other interesting implements once  used in the Cecchini family’s printing business in Siena. 

Giovanni and Cecilia  open their castle to visitors who  stay in  comfortable self catered apartments,  take cooking classes and enjoy the area’s fine wines at the  castle’s Enoteca. 

The castle is also a resort,  for in the lower gardens  guests may  enjoy the  marvelous swimming pool and  restaurant serving top level cuisine and wines. 

cooking in the castle kitchen

Spring and summer bring visitors from around the world  who come to  enjoy the pleasures of living in a castle  plus  local people who come to enjoy the  well known  concert series. 

You can find out more about the area of Proceno, Onano and Centeno and it's remarkable Irish connections in my books about the area, which are available also at the Castello di Proceno. 

These wonderful places in central Italy are too special to keep secret, so share  your knowledge with friends  using the  Facebook and Twitter icons below. 
 Please leave a comment  below and let me know if you would like to join me in visiting other historic homes, castles and palazzi in central Italy. 
Other castles  we visit often are : this one in Mugnano, near Bomarzo and that of Vignanello.  

Irish Trivia Quiz for St. Patrick's Day

  St. Patrick’s Day  is coming up soon (March 17^th) so I am giving my readers  a chance to win a  prize while learning about the many connections between Ireland and Italy. 
Here is a chance to test your Irish  I.Q.  so grab  a Guinness (or a bit of  Jameson) and start searching for the answers of this Irish-Italian Trivia Quiz.  

All fields of knowledge are covered: arts, literature, history and some special questions concerning Italy's links with the Emerald Isle.

A very special prize*  will be awarded  to the  first entry  with all 15 questions  answered correctly.   

You have l week to send your entry, but remember the prize goes  to the first correct entry received.

Write your answers  only as  a comment to  the blog, at the bottom of this post. 

I will check the various entries but comments (your answers) will not be published until the week is finished: Sunday morning  March  24^th, 10 a.m. Italian time.

Did you know an Italian began Ireland's bus service?

The entries and the Winner  will be published here on Sunday  evening, March 24. Subscribers to the blog will  know immediately on Sunday evening if they have  won. It is easy to sign up as a subscriber, just leave your email at the very bottom of the page.

You may use  Anonymous, to leave your answers/comment but be sure to add  your email so I can contact you (if you have won). Answers may be in  either  English or Italian. 

 Using Google  and Wikipedia and maybe even some  real books and personal knowledge of  Irish culture,  these 15  Irish Trivia  questions  will be easy to answer.   

Did you know that Irish soldiers fought in Italy's Risorgimento? 

           1.   When is Bloomsday  and where is it celebrated? 

       2.   What Roman street is named after the Irish?

       3.   The Nobel prize for literature  has been awarded to 3 Irishmen.  Name two of them.

       4.   What film did Walt Disney make about Ireland?

       5.   What  Roman school, now closed, had a statue of the Irish    Christian Brothers’ founder, Edmund Rice in the entrance? 

       6.    Where in Ireland is St. Patrick’s Purgatory?

       7.    Where in Italy is the Pozzo di San Patrizio ?  

       8.    What Italian created Ireland’s bus service? 

       9.    Who was John Field and in which country did he live for over 30 years?

      10.   What is the “Gardai”?   

      11.   Who founded Dublin's Trinity College  in 1591?

      12.    Which Irish bridge is as wide as it is long?

      13.    What Irish man  is known as the Father of the U.S. Navy?

      14.    According to legend what Irishman sailed to America in 550 A.D. ? 

      15.   What two Italian cities were  residences of  James Joyce ?

If this sounds familiar, you can see  where and when it  was first published, on my Bibliography page.

 If you don’t know the answers, maybe a friend of yours  does, so  share with your friends on Facebook  and Twitter, just click on the icons  below.

*The Grand Prize: a copy  of  the book of your choice, signed by the author. Paper copy to Italian address or if the winner is outside Italy, the E-book format of Etruria travel, history and itineraries in central Italy or The Irish and English in Italy’s Risorgimento.

May  the Luck of the Irish be with you!