Gastro-tourism at Vetralla's Cene in Cantina

 the cooks at Emergency's  cantina 

For the past  18 years the town of Vetralla, 65 km northeast of Rome and a short drive inland from Civitavecchia port, has been celebrating the beginning of summer with  Fiori in Finestra, Cene in Cantina (Flowers in the window,  dinner in the cantina) festival.

Opening  the festivities are oxen  and horsemen  

antiques & handicrafts   galore 

Piazza S. Egidio  is always beautiful

 On  two successive  mid-June weekends (17,18,19  and 24,25,26 )  local cooks show off their skills and the town is hopping  with happenings to please young and old: parades, magicians, music and   tiny shops with local handicrafts.

 The piazzas and balconies   are decked  with flowers while  in May  blossoms are used to decorate the cobblestones for  several religious processions.

The main focus of the Cene in Cantina festival is of course the  eight cool cantinas beneath the town's historic palaces which are opened up and filled with long communal tables for   lunch and dinner during the two weekends.

stone steps lead down to a cantina

inexpensive  home made food in  a "cool" cantina

Vetralla's best cooks  compete to produce tasty four-course meals  with flavors of the past.Check the menus  written in dialect   on the  website of the proloco www.prolocovetralla.it  and call to book your table.
 The traditional dishes include truffles, pork, hand-made pasta  all cooked using Vetralla's excellent extra virgin olive oil and washed down with abundant local wine. All profits benefit  local volunteer associations.

Exploring around Civitavecchia

Walls  of the port and  Duomo 

For  those  adventurous cruisers who prefer to explore   the area around Civitavecchia port on their own  to  get a glimpse into the daily life of the local people, an inexpensive alternative is  now available.  

Duomo  of  Civitavecchia 

With a bit of foresight and planning a day ashore can be  enjoyed  on your own for  a  few  euro.
The port of  Civitavecchia is continuing  to grow  exponentially with more than 2 million passengers disembarking  here annually.
  Thanks to the free shuttle bus  that criss crosses the port continually, passengers are safely transported  to the port's main exit dominated by the magnificent 16th century fortress designed  for  Pope Julius II  by Michelangelo .

Michelangeo fortress -where shuttle buses  stop 

 

looking  down from the bus stop to the Info  kiosk and shuttle bus stop  

Its been about  2 years now that  the information kiosk has been set up  here  to dispense brochures and  travel information.
 It is  run by the Lazio Region  with multi lingual hostesses  who  give out free information, sell tickets  for  the train, bus and  tours.

ask the girls  for information...they speak English !!

After dodging  a few persistent  taxi drivers  offering outrageously expensive  transfers to Rome, a short walk along the   palm-lined  boardwalk brings to the train station (15 minutes along the sea) or around the corner  (5 minutes walk)  to the white facade of the city's main church and the local bus stop.

You can also  purchase  bus tickets at the tobacconist shop or newspaper kiosk  nearby. 

bus stop  in Civitavecchia to Siena, Aquila, Viterbo.etc.

From here for a few euro (I paid  1.50 for a one-way ticket home)  one can travel independently to the lovely  nearby towns of Tarquinia, Tolfa,Tuscania, Viterbo and Vetralla  using  the  inexpensive  blue  buses of the Cotral  transport system.

Don't expect  air conditioned luxury   for these  fast buses   are used mostly by students and non-drivers  commuting to school or work.

Check   the timetables carefully beforehand online -rarely are they posted at the bus stops- and remember to allow ample time to return to the dock. Our usual  bus home to Vetralla leaves at  9:00 am but we are always a bit early. 

Beware of the terrible word "sciopero" which means the buses are on strike.
 Find out  when the bus will return and learn to say the name Civita - vecchia- not just "port" which may be misunderstood as "airport".

At  the bus stop...overlooking  the cruise docks

Even better have a postcard showing your ship and the phone number  of the ship company's port liason with you. Buon viaggio!

           

Northern Lazio's Gorgeous Gardens

Climbing roses  and cypress trees at Michelini

        On  the outskirts of Viterbo within  a twenty kilometre radius, four historic gardens have been enchanting visitors to the area for centuries. Each  is unique  and worth an entire day's visit  but  two state-owned gardens,Villa Lante in Bagnaia and the gardens of Palazzo Farnese at Caprarola,  a half-hour's uphill drive away, could be done  on the same day. They are open every day but Monday.

Cypress trees  are found usually near cemeteries

 Two other historic gardens -Sacro Bosco in Bomarzo and  Castello Ruspoli   in Vignanello- are privately owned and charge more for  entrance.  They are an interesting  contrast with the younger, modern  gardens such as  the  University's  Botanical Gardens (celebrating its 20th birthday this year) and  the Tarocchi Gardens with its artistic sculptures located in nearby  Capalbio, Tuscany.


 Hidden near  the hot thermal pools   of Le Masse di San Sisto and Bullicame near  Viterbo, the  Orto Botanico is  famous for  its  collection  of  gigantic cacti.

Orto Botanico   in Viterbo

a 300 year old olivona    at Michelini

                                                               

                    

Villa Michelini  and  owner  Tiziana 

            

Garden experts  including  Sofia Varoli Piazza    

Lavender  rules !

Lavender  is big time here, just as in Provence, and the perfumes, soaps and objects produced by the  consortium of  local  lavender  farmers can be found in the newly opened outlet  shop,  Essenze d'Etruria  in Tuscania . 

  

Read  about  the annual  festival in honor of lavender 

Looking for  flowering gardens ?  Check out  Vivai Michelini     a nursery specialized  in decorative trees and landscaping.

Another magical spot is the  privately owned peony gardens in Vitorchiano   
  that offers  free  guided tours in the months of  April and May. 

Much more about the area's   modern and historic gardens  in "Etruria-travel,history and itineraries in Central Italy"  which can be found in local bookshops and tourism information points . For  signed  copies  order   directly  from the author through my website .   Feel free to leave your comments  and  suggestions for  touring  gardens .  

Easter Rites in Northern Lazio

The small towns in the territory north of Rome, previously the Papal States,  are an antropologist's dream for many ancient ceremonies connected to the rites of Easter  still happen here each year.


One of the oldest  is the traditional visit  to the sepulchres - sepolcri - which takes  place on Holy Thursday.
How many  of  my readers remember    visiting   seven different  churches on this evening  as children ?


Check out the dark, underground crypts of churches like San Francesco in Vetralla  and you will see these archaic "crops".

sepolcri  grow in the dark crypt of San Francesco, Vetralla

About  a month ago vases with wads of moist cotton were sprinkled  with seeds  and grains  and then kept in the dark until the seeds  sprouted.  These sepolcri range in color from white filaments to light green and red, depending on which type of seeds were sown.
 They are the perfect symbol for the Christian Easter  celebration of  resurrection and also  connect the local population with  its  Etruscan   heritage.

San Francesco, Vetralla, crypt 

The use of the sepolcri dates to pre-Christian times  and  symbolizes   the renewal of life in the spring.

 See the story on my website about the recent discovery of the  sanctuary of goddess Demetra in Vetralla. 

Good Friday  procession  of barefoot penitents in Tuscania

  The many processions which take place   on Good Friday  night at  9 p.m. are another ancient ritual  still to be seen in the towns of Orte, Bagnaia near Viterbo and Blera . 


 In this last town  the procession consists of groups of black-garbed  men and women  chanting ancient litanies (a use found only  in the town of Blera) as they proceed along  candle lit alleyways, and  horsemen  dressed  as Roman soldiers . 
It  concludes  with a realistic crucifixion  scene in front  of the main church.
Photo of the procession  in Tuscania  courtesy of Agostino Cecchini. More about local Easter  rituals  in "Etruria-travel, history and itineraries  in Central Italy".

Italia in Tavola

Vendors  from  many  parts of Italy  brought   the best of the country's foods and  handicrafts   right to our doorstep this weekend .     
Biscotti  and carta musica, a thin, crispy  Sardinian bread  could be found  as well as huge round wheels of  Altamura  bread. 
 We stocked up on  mirto, a sweet liqueur distilled from Sardinian    myrtle-berries each January and  rich red   Cannonau  wine.

  

 Cheeses  and  salumi  from Trentino in the far north were  lined up next to Umbria's   gastronomic  delights  such as truffles   attracting   visitors  who were surprised  to find  such variety in the improvised market  -Vetralla's  main  parking lot . 

Antonella  and  Marco  showed off their  hand decorated Deruta wares including   Easter eggs, dinnerware, clocks,  umbrella stands  and even a giant  dog house .

 peperino  from the Viterbo area

  Deruta   hand-painted  ceramics  come in all  sizes, shapes  and uses  from tiny  pendants    to huge, heavy  tables  made of volcanic  stone

hand painted   in Deruta 

        

 and covered with ceramic- the perfect "tavola"  for  a terrace or garden since it can withstand extremes of temperature  and need no maintenance.

Here  is  my   olive  motif  table on the terrace, purchased  from  another  Deruta  manufacturer, Domiziani .

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.