Do you remember the Greek myth about a young nymph, punished
by the sorceress Circe, jealous because she
had stolen her love, Glauco, and turned into a six dog-headed monster, that
used to terrify every ship crossing the Strait of Messina?
Today we will talk about a little town near Reggio Calabria,
in the very south of Italy : Scilla, named after this ancient legend, narrated
by Homer and Dante.
Scilla captured the attention of another famous writer,
Alexandre Dumas,who was impressed by the unique position of the town, that, turning
like an S, from the mountain descends to the sea, in the stunning Violet Coast,
so called because of the color reflected by water at sunset.
Because of its strategic position, Scilla was fortified by
Greeks during 4th century B.C. to defend the population against the many raids
by Tyrrhenian pirates. Over the centuries this fort, called Oppidum Scyllaeum
by Romans, became a military district occupied byNormans, Angevins and Aragonese, till 1533,
when it became part of Ruffo family estate. Today it hosts a lighthouse controlled
by Italian Navy.
Near Ruffo Castle you can find Marina Grande, the touristic
area: here you can walk by seaside, swim, or admire the Holy Spirit Church,
example of Italian baroque. If you come in Scilla during Saint Rocco
celebrations, in August, you can assist to an amazing fireworks show that takes
place on the beach.
Here we are to the reason why we fell in love with Scilla:
Chianalea, the enchanted fishing village where the houses, built on the rocks,
overlook the sea, and they are brushed by the waves over and over again.
Infact, this village is known as “Little Venice of the South”, and it’s one of the most poetic and romantic
places in the South of Italy. If you come here in a placid summer night, the
experience become magic : you can walk
down the alleys, smell the sea between the houses and admire the starry sky
reflected in it.
Food: In Calabria you can taste both fish dishes based on
local products like swordfish, shellfish, octopuses, and delicacies from mountains
like cold cuts, cheeses, vegetables and meat sauces for handmade pasta (maccaruni).
To end your meal you shouldn’t miss
traditional cookies made with honey, almonds and dried figs. (mostaccioli,
piparelle, petrali)
There are differents tour but we decidet to select the most interesting, it could be a long trip so you’ll find differents paths in different post, but before there is a short history lesson about the Editto di Saint Cloud ( Decret Imperial sul les Sepultures) by Napoleon
This edict established, extended to the Italian Kingdom too, that the graves were placed outside the city walls, in sunny and airy places, and that they had to all the same., it was clear the intention to solve hygenical problems ( healthy air ) and an ideological and political motivation.
A commission, composed exclusively by magistrates, could decide, for illustrious figures about, an epitaph on their grave.
This cemetery is the “house” of burials since the Romans, due to the existence of the Santa Ciriaca’s catacombs. It was founded near a consolar road , Tiburtina, by the Verani’s family ( this is the reason of its name), the cemeretery was entrusted by Giuseppe Valadier , and consacreted in 1835.
The construction continued also during the advent of Rome capital of the new Italian Reign and incoporated new differents area.
This edit and these tombs are the starting point for this tour
Photo By EH101, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=2660574
The Verano Monumental Cemetery, with its heritage of works of art, is an open-air museum that has no equal for the quantity and the particularity of the testimonies
Tour #1 Fatherland and freedom path
Let’s start from the Risorgimento (Resurgence), a politcal and social movement that built the Kingdom of Italy , it was completed when Rome became capital of Italy in 1871.
In this tour you can live the vicissitudes of the protagonists buried here, the common national feeling culminating in the events of the Unification.
Goffredo Mameli's monument, pic by Luciano Tronati from Wikimedia Commons
Location Main entrance: left side, between panels 1 and 3
The first monument is dedicated to Goffredo Mameli (1827-1849), poet and patriot, author of the Italian National Anthem, bu the remains of Mameli were translated into the Mausoleo Ossario Garibaldino at Gianicolo,built to collect the remains of the fallen of the Roman Republic.(we’ll write about it later, and i’m proud to talk about it cause my father worked here for many years).
He died for the wounds reported in the famous battle of Vascello. You see a young hero wrapped in a flag and spread over an urn
Our Risorgimento was an incredible political movement , started wit the Spedizione dei Mille ( an expedition created by thousand young volunteers) promoted by Giuseppe Garibaldi.
The purpose of the expedition was to support the revolts broke out on the island and overturn the Borboni's government. The volunteers landed on May 11 at Marsala and, thanks to the local population, strengthened with many other southern volunteers and moved north, increasing in number for the landing of other Garibaldi’s shipments, forming the Southern Army.
After a series of victorious battles against the Bourbon army, the Garibaldi ‘s volunteers managed to conquer the whole Kingdom of the Two Sicilies allowing their annexation to the nascent Italian State.
In the middle of these iunderdog heroes you will discover the monument dedicated to Rosalia Montmasson, the only partecipating woman to the expedition.
Location: Scogliera del Monte, e Scaglione E, row 4, n. 26.
An other heroic patriot woman is here buried, Giuditta Tavani Arquati, she prepared a riot to set up Rome against the goverment of Pope Pius IX and help Garibaldi, but the zoaves, papal troops, attacked the place where Giuditta and other people were. The conspirators tried to resist the fire. Someone tried to escape but they were killed.
Giuditta Tavani Arquati's grave
Location: Al Monte, box 42 (Archconfraternity Chapel)
Mattia Montecchi. He was in Carboneria, an informal network of secret revolutionary societies active in Italy from about 1800 to 1831, the chief purpose was to defeat tyranny and to establish constitutional government, that’s why he was arrested as on of the leader, He remained in prison for a long time, before being sentenced to life imprisonment by the Sacred Consulta on August 21 1845
After the fall of the Republic, he went first to Geneva and then to Lausanne with a British passport, where he stayed with Mazzini and Saffi. Subsequently, forced to leave Switzerland due to Austrian pressure on the Swiss government, patriots exiled to London.
He was memeber of Parlament in the new Italian Kingdom
.
Next step Gaetano Tognetti, Italian patriot and revolutionary.
Tognetti, with his friend Giuseppe Monti, on October 22, 1867, during the pontificate of Pius IX, he carried out an attack against Pontifical Zouaves located in the Borgo district,
They wanted provoke an uprising by the roman population and faciliate the Garibaldi’s occupation, during this bomb attack 25 people were killed, included civilians. The uprising nevar became real and Garibladi was defetead, because the bomb attack consequences, in the Mentana battle
Silvio Spaventa was an Italian politician and patriot and a senator of the Kingdom of Italy in the 16th legislature.
He was influenced by the Hegelian conception of the State, Spaventa was one of the most original liberal theorists in nineteenth-century Italy: he was a supporter of a strong but non-authoritarian state and firmly supported the strict separation of the political sphere from the administrative one; in polemics with the transformation of Agostino Depretis, he advocated a bipartitism as the English system
I want to introduce you to
Montecorvino Rovella, a little town surrounded by the Picentini Mountains, near
Salerno, in Campania.
landscape
Astronomical Observatory
Montecorvino is known as “City of Astronomy ”, because of the presence of the AstronomicalObservatory Gian Camillo Gloriosi, located on the hills at the top of the town:
it’s a lovely place, surronded by nature, where you can take a look to the
wonders in the sky above us. If you decide to visit it during the summer, you
could assist to “Universus”, an international meeting that made our observatory
famous worldwide.
The origins of Montecorvino are due to Roman victory against Picentes: we can find ruins of the ancient Nebulano castle, built
by Romans in 4th century, and occupied over the years by Longobards, Normans,
Angevins and Aragonese. A funny legend flourished among farmers in 1800, because
the famous neapolitan writer Francesco Mastriani set his novel “The
noctambulist of Montecorvino” in Nebulano castle: a story about a misterious
treasure that can still be researched walking through Mount Nebulano, in the place
famous as “Devil’s cave”.
Nebulano Castle
Speaking of Longobards, surely Saint
Ambrose’s Churh deserve a visit! It’s located in the countryside between
Montecorvino and the neighboring Giffoni Valle Piana (famous for an Internationalfilm festival, by the way) and it’s an amazing example of Longobard religious
architecture, dating from 9th-10th century.
Saint Ambrose's Church, external view
Saint Ambrose's Church indoor
Fresco inside Saint Ambrose's Church
commemorative plaque inside Santa Maria della Pace
You probably do not know that Shakespeare
may have inspired here to write the famous tragedy “Romeo and Juliet”: during
15th century, Montecorvino was devastated by the conflict among two powerful families,
D’Arminio and Damolidei. Their heirs, Davide and Maria Teresa, unexpectedly
fell in love, and their lives were saved by a franciscan friar, Padre Bernardino Denza, who led the two families to peace. To mark the event they edificated a
Church, that we can visit today, dedicated to Santa Maria della Pace.
picture inside Santa Maria della Pace church
Santa Maria della Pace, front door
Another legend, and another Church,
the Sanctuary Madonna dell’Eterno, dating from 1623, is about the epiphany of
the Holy Virgin to a peasant who was grazing his cows: to show the place where
she asked him to built a Church, she took snow in August! Every summer in
Montecorvino take place a commemoration of the event, with both religious and
civil celebration. You can take a look to the cave of the epiphany, surrounded
by a pinewood with a pic-nic area, where you can restore yourself while
admiring the landscape.
landscape
the Sanctuary Madonna dell'Eterno
the cave of epiphany
pinewood and picnic area
Food: Picentini mountains are the ideal place to taste lots of traditional dishes, derivated from the generosity of mediterranean nature. Because of the breeding of cows, goats, sheeps and pigs, many recipes include meat, cheeses like "caciocavallo" and "pecorino", cold cuts like "soppressata", accompanied by chestnuts, hazelnuts, truffles and mushrooms. Hazelnuts, in particular, are the ingredient that made Montecorvino's ice cream famous; they are also used to prepare a special coffee, and many kinds of biscuits and desserts, like "moretti", "croccante", and "spumone", a typical ice cream cake.
During Christmas time you can taste "pasticelle", a kind of sweet, fried ravioli filled with chestnuts and chocolate cream. Every family has its own secret recipe.
Pasticelle, a typical Christmas recipe
A special mention to the most famous product of Montecorvino: the "Braciola", a delicious meat roll filled with herbs and spices, cooked in tomato sauce. It's the star of sunday lunch, used to accompany handmade pasta like fusilli and ravioli. To this fabulous recipe is dedicated "Sagra della Braciola", a summer festival organized by "Pro Loco", where you can taste it with pasta or sandwiches. If you accompany it with a glass of local wine, it will even taste better!
Sagra della Braciola
You can reach Montecorvino:
Driving your car
- Salerno-Reggio Calabria highway, Montecorvino-Pontecagnano sud exit
- SP 164
-Follow the signals
By train
- Rome\Naples\Salerno\Reggio Calabria route, stop in Salerno or Battipaglia
We talk about Bevagna, a little town in Umbria. I loved at first sight. It's a real journey through time, especially during " Festa delle Gaite" a challenge between the gaite ( San Giorgio, San Giovanni, San Pietro, and Santa Maria) the four differents quarters.
The next festival is during the 22 - 23 - 24 in June.
Street view
Church interior
The word Gaita derives from Longobardo language a term used to indicate the quarters and surronding area.
During this festival you can live an incredible experience because they will show you the social life and the economic activities of ancient Mevania ( ancient name of Bevagna).
Every Gaita challenges the other in four differents categories :
Arts and crafts
Market
Banquet and medieval dialogues
Archery
Ancient paper mill
The four gaite will be judged by a jury composed by three university professors of medieval history.
The judges will give them a score for each individual test and they will ultimately determine the winner
There is the Podestà, he is the administrator of the town together with the four elected consuls, we have news about them since1187, Podestà remains in charge for two months.
Old press
We visited Bevagna last week end, during the preparation of this big summer event, They are preparing the town for this, for example they already actived the old water mill to prepare the sheets with hemp and linen. Watch the video
Candle factory
Colors for frescos
Manual writing
Frescos
Colors
Food We are in Italy and you have to taste their delicious recipes. It's a difficult choice: the delicious truffle and the genuine olive oil of the area accompany the first and second dishes.
As an alternative, porcini mushrooms and wild asparagus give flavor to strangozzi and tagliatelle.
Tagliatelle
Bruschette
Salumi
and tortellini and gnocchi , every kind of pasta handmad, lamb, wild boar , pork, grilled and much more.
Wines....there are a lot of white and red wines accompany every dish but the real boss is Sagrantino, a dry wine created by a millenary cultivation of grapevines in the this land.
Craftbeers..yes ! Beers! I'm a beer sommelier so i can suggest you some breweries nearside Bevagna, you have to taste their bee, because italians brew better !!
Acquapendente is a little town in the province of Viterbo, in Lazio, not so far from Rome.
It’s also called the European Jerusalem because for its Duomo ( in italian Duomo di Acquapendente, Basilica Cattedrale di San Sepolcro) a Roman Catholic cathedral dedicated to the Holy Sepuchre.
The crypt contains a blood-stained stone said to come from the Holy Sepuchre , whence the dedication.
During the Middle Ages the church was very popular as a destination for pilgrims and cripples seeking miraculous cures. It was made a cathedral in 1649 as the seat of the Bishop of Acquapendente
The town was settled by etruscan and later by romans.
Today again pilgrims and tourist follow this path and travel on foot, on horseback or by bicycle on the Via Francigena, there a lot of structures for accomodation along this route.
By the way this post in not dedicated to the town but to an ancient tradition, The Pugnaloni, this festival is an old folk celebration
The feast of pugnaloni is a festival that is celebrated in Acquapendente (VT), the third Sunday of May. It is one of the oldest folk celebrations of Tuscia, and was originally also called Festa di Mezzo Maggio ( feast in the middle of May).
The origin of the festival dates back to 1166 d the dominion of Federico Barbarossa, two peasants would have witnessed a miracle, the blossoming of a dry cherry tree: they went to report the miracle to the other villagers, who considered the event a good omen and rose up, armed with prods and work tools, hunting the sovereign and destroying the castle. The party therefore celebrates the reconquered freedom
During this celebration there are differents events, a fair and the “Pugnaloni” parade
The Pugnaloni are mosaics made with flowers and leaves, composed on wooden panels of 2.6 by 3.6 meters. The leaves are cut to the art and glued on the drawn panel, in order to color the work; on them are then applied the flowers, arranged the night before the show.
Rugarella - 2018 Winner
Acquaviva
The tradition of pugnaloni derives from the ancient custom with which the peasants celebrated the feast, parading behind the statue of the Madonna with stings decorated with flowers to commemorate the arms of the battle against the sovereign and the cherry blossoms.
These Pugnaloni are made by differents groups, actually these are still active :
Food typical products are Chestnuts from the Cimini Mountains,Caciotta with hazelnuts, Pecorino cheese,Hazelnuts, hazelnuts cream,lentils, potatoes, beans, chickpeas, lake fish, and much more....
