Chocolate and Cinema in old Viterbo

Viterbo's main street 

chocolate show at the cinema 

 The Italians  love for chocolate  and cinema is celebrated together at an historic theatre located  in the center of Viterbo. 

King Kong in chocolate 

ticket booth unchanged since 1948 

The Genio theatre was one of the first  examples of post-war reconstruction and its moderistic style is evident in every  detail: the ticket booth, the glass showcases, original chairs and the curved lines of the ceilings. 

Older residents tell me that it was the town’s favored place for entertainment  in the days before TV. 

Many were  introduced to rock and roll music  in the 1950s  thanks to films seen at  this  elegant movie house. 

salami, cheese and eggs made from chocolate 

During this month  Viterbo's chocolate  shop Casantini  (I wrote about their  erotic themed chocolates here) has filled the vintage foyer  with giant chocolate creations  based on  films  such as King Kong.   The exhibit and sale of chocolate masterpieces  continues throughout the Christmas season.

This historic cinema can be hard to locate  for it is hidden away inbetween two narrow medieval lanes. 

1950s vintage jewellery 

The easiest way is to take Via Roma (see first photo)  to  central Piazza delle Erbe and  then  follow the red carpeting flanked by stalls selling vintage jewellery, handmade  art and clothing set up especially for the event. 

  At the end of the tiny Via S. Maria Ezigiaca  you will find   Cinema  Genio, surrounded by medieval buildings.   

Rome- Monti Vintage Heaven

entrance to Mercatomonti 

When you move house, you clear out the old stuff, right?  

Unfortunately I made the mistake of  getting rid of a  half dozen handbags by stylist Roberta da Camerino  back in the  70s and now these handbags  sell for   400 euro each on ebay.

Another mistake was to rottamare my  32 yr. old  FIAT 500 (Roma D9 license plate) just before  the laws were changed, allowing them on the road as  Auto d’epoca or  vintage cars. 

So this time, I decided  to study up before releasing  a houseful  of inherited vintage clothing, furs and antiques. 

The first stop for vintage in Rome is  Monti, the area of Rome written about by  colleague Elizabeth Minchilli . 

 Mercato Monti, located in a hotel conference hall, on Via Leonina (Metro stop Cavour)  runs every weekend   (except in full summer) and hosts  about 30 sellers  with tables and  racks of quality artisans’ work, vintage clothing and objects.

Francesca's   design jewellery

Most of the sellers are Roman while others hail  from Naples and  Aquila. Tall willowy  Lisa from  Amsterdam specializes in long, floral dresses while  Francesca  creates unique jewelery and heart themed objects of art.

Vintagedalisa  is   on Facebook 

Melissa drives up from Naples each weekend with a cache of vintage clothing for men and women. Luxury brand shoes and bags  run  from  80  to 100 euro with sconti and bargaining being  part of the fun. 

Melissa's  vintage shoes 

My Rome based friends have suggested   other vintage places  in Rome, so next week  I’ll check on Borghetto Flaminio. 

80s jacket from Rome boutique 

Astrakhan  fur  coat 

 Another source to study  is "Lo Scopriocccasioni"  or  "Designer Bargains in Italy" guidebooks that have listed addresses for spending less for fashion in Italy since 1992.  

never worn Church loafers size  37 

Meanwhile my collection of 80s  boutique fashion is beginning to dwindle, thanks to fashion conscious friends who want to own a piece of the 1980s.  Feel free to share with friends who love vintage. More   photos of vintage fashion are available.  

Money Saving Christmas Shopping in Italy

Fighting off the commercialism  of Christmas is easy  in small town Italy where the buzz words have always been  handmade, local and  thrifty. 
We are mailing out signed copies of our books  daily  to be sure they arrive in time for the holidays. You can save on postage costs to USA by  ordering  a copy of Etruria-travel, history and itineraries  together with a copy of Olio e Ricordi in Cucina.  Order directly through my website.  

Here in the hill towns of Etruria,  an hour north of Rome along the Via Cassia,  the atmosphere is light years away from the frenzy of  commercial malls and big city mega stories.

With the olive harvest just finished, these first weeks of  December  are dedicated  to celebrating the new  extra virgin olive oil. 

In restaurants and homes, bruschetta doused with the new oil is offered and  in former churches, cantinas, piazzas and tiny artisans’ workshops  there are  markets and exhibits of  objects created by local artisans.  

Anna Meloni crafts  macrame jewlery 

elegant pieces  by Marisa 

Diana Biscaioli 's  designer objects in felt

In the past 24 hours we visited the first of  these  artisans’ shows. As Christmas nears several others will be happening on weekends  in Viterbo and surrounding towns. 

diarte.wordpress.com   felt vase covers 

 If you know of other Christmas fairs and artisans'  exhibits  in  other  parts of Italy, please tell us about them in a  comment at the end of this article. 

Yesterday we drove to the next town,Capranica, just as the Christmas lights were being  turned on, creating  a holiday atmosphere for  the craft show in the ancient church of San Francesco. 

view of Capranica  historic center

Overlooked  by the 15^th century double Anguillara funerary monument, were  tables  full of   locally produced crafts in wool,  felt, ceramic, wood and sculpted  stone.

Anguillara  double funerary monument 

elegant  cradle and table 

Daniela Andreotti's ceramics 

Roberto Ceccarini of Artepetra 

The excellent prices are a further  benefit of buying locally and directly from the artisans themselves. 

With little or no overhead, the crafts people can offer hand painted cushions at 10-20 euro, ceramics and paintings at 5 to 20 euro, hand fashioned jewelery  and key chains  starting from  5 euros.   

Besides  olive oil, the area is also famous  for  hazelnuts and derived products, samples of which were offered  at the stands of    local farmers' cooperatives.   Christmas baskets  of  gourmet food   are an intelligent gift to suit anyone on your gift list.

hard to find apples

From Caprarola, crafts and edibles

crafted leather  earrings and pendants 

fashion accessories by Laura 

Antiques  and vintage objects  are  often  found in these pre-Christmas  markets.

 I found a vintage straw-work box from Russia (10  euro) to add to my collection of boxes. 

Fiorella  came from Canino  with antique boxes  and knick knacks  

Copper, glass and  other  knick knacks  as well as  decorated furniture, vintage clothing, bags, books and jewelery beckon  from various shop fronts along the main street of Vetralla. Next weekend (Dec 8-9)  the fair  will be repeated. 

Daniela Carnevali's floral compositions 

Cristina's vintage  clothing

There are always surprises during these weekend festivals: a group of parents had set up a bake sale  in the town hall to benefit their kids'  school. We happily purchased a crostata, biscotti and  cakes  wrapped in cellophane. 

Piazza S. Egidio, Vetralla 

Copper  pieces, La Fenice of Fiorella Tassoni

Simona & Simona crafting Christmas ornaments

Another  unexpected  vision was this vintage fridge topped by an antique map of New England. 

What better way to  keep warm than hand knitted wool and mohair  caps, gloves and  scarves like these found next to   wood and ceramic crafts made by members of the same family.  

Iria's wool caps 

wooden owls  

 

Weekend of Vintage and History

The first really warm weekend  here in central Italy saw many people heading for beaches  and countryside pools  to catch their first quota  of sun tan.   Others avoided the lines and crowds  in the  hamlet  of Blera  or the historic center  of Viterbo where  lots of cultural  happenings were in store. Here is a sampling:

marble insert above San Nicola doorway 

Blera -a wall with  a history 

 In Blera artisan Eva welcomed visitors to her tiny  shop full of goodies from Gubbio .

 and  hand made jewelery   while across the narrow  main road   Swedish and Italian  archeologists  convened to discuss  the importance  of the sheep in ancient times.
Speeches were given, poetry was recited/ sung, photos were admired and  ricotta and cheese were eaten at the end of the evening.

 The tiny altar and marble inserts adorning the exterior wall of the  Sala San Nicola  give an idea of the  town's   antiquity and   flavor.

 On Sunday  there were numerous artisans  showing off  their wares and tables full of vintage bags  and knick knacks in the former  convent  of Santa Teresa in Viterbo's Piazza Fontana Grande.
The venue was used  as a courthouse  in the  1950s  and  the  writing on the wall  above the prisoners' cage still  says  "La Legge é uguale per Tutti".

Valerio and his fantastic fashions and bijoux

Giusy and her friend show off their wares

One tiny room held  delightful lamps  created from 

 old wine containers and   hand painted screens  that  Massimo  and his partner Paola have made from discarded window shutters

Don Quixote lamp 

Nearby  in the San Pellegrino medieval quarter  the magnificent Palazzo degli Alessandri hosted    a group of costumed  knights  and soldiers  who   were roasting  in the  hot noon sun  under  the weight of their  armor .     They were inaugurating the Templar's mansion, a sort of living history experience, which will be  open on weekends  to enliven the quiet  medieval quarter  for the next three months. 

Thanks  to the collaboration of Gianluca di Prospero and Bruno Scardozzi  the  group  "La Contesa"  have recreated  a  Templar Knights' habitation  right down to the swords, bread plates, beds of straw and  hand made candles.