Sabina (again)

After just over a year we found ourselves in the Stimigliano station parking lot waiting for our HelpX host, Pauline. We had such a good time here over two weeks last September that we wonder if it can be as good again? The short answer - Yes! Casale Benedetti is Pauline's home in the country sporting first-class accommodation, a stunning view over the old hill town of Tarano, and a wide slope of giant brambles to clear!

The standard of accommodation we have to put up with ...

Those views from the house ...

Tarano from our bedroom window in the evening

and in the morning ...

Pyromaniac at work ...

Despite us having cleared about a third of the brambles last year, and other helpers in Spring having partially re-cleared it, it all had to be done again. Though progress was initially fast as we were redoing areas, it slowed once we hit the primordial forest. Needless to say we were both very sore, tired and scratched all over. And suffering from numerous bitey insects. But there are benefits - we are getting stronger and Vicki is in her element lighting and feeding numerous fires.

Happy strimming

Unhappy strimming

An olive tree rescued from the brambles

Missed a bit ...

We had expected to be picking the olives here this time (we were too early last year). But they have been badly hit by the fruit fly this year (as have many throughout the Mediterranean area). The fly lives in the soil and lays eggs in the individual olives which then ripen too quickly and fall off. It is a constant problem but this year is much worse, possibly due to a wetter than normal Spring. If there are only a few olives damaged this way then they can be harvested, though the infected olives may taint the oil. One neighbour has 1500 trees which he makes his living off. He was in tears as he won't harvest any this year. There also appears to be a bacteria hitting some of the trees in Italy, the only "cure" being to chop off infected branches or cut down the trees. We're expecting the price of oil to rise next year due to the very low harvest. Vicki did have the job of filling plastic bottles with a mixture of vinegar and washing liquid, putting small holes in them and stringing them from  the trees in the hope that they deal to some of the fly.

With Pauline, Maurizio and Corrado 

All this work is far outweighed by the benefits of being here. Once again we find ourselves with a very good cook who is also prolific. And plenty of dinner parties too! We’ve had a couple of groups over for dinner and been out to other people’s places several times. As is common with ex-pats living abroad most of their friends appear to come from the ex-pat community, though they are of very mixed nationalities they all speak good English – which makes conversation very easy for us.

How Italians eat pizza ...

This seems to be the norm outside of restaurants: for takeaways just spread boxes out on table and cut yourself a wedge with scissors. No other utensils required.

The end of another day in  paradise

The weather remains dry and warm. Still minimal rain since we arrived in Italy back in September, and the temperature just warm enough to take a dip in the unheated outdoor pool and laze in the sun after work. Love being in shorts and sandals for months on end.

Another birthday passes and we’re lucky enough to be invited to our friend Corrado’s for an evening meal. Superb food and plenty of Prosecco. We shared it with Corrado and Pauline plus Gaby (American) and Stefano (a real Italian). We had been to a pizza evening at their place the previous week where Stefano presided over the outdoor pizza oven

Orvieto snapped from the motorway

This is certainly an area we would love to spend more time in. Very rural but within easy reach of Rome (1 hour by train) and many interesting villages and towns. Orvieto is a great example of a beautiful medieval town set dramatically on cliffs with the main access being by a funicular. The cathedral frontage might even (just) eclipse that of Siena’s for beauty. A highlight was having coffee in a bar on the cathedral piazza and having the waiter – seeing us with our cameras – invite us down to the ancient cellars. It was full of racks of dusty old wine bottles, vats of wine, and old barrels that must still be full as many of them were covered in a white mould.

Detail on the cathedral

Orvieto cathedral

The bar above ground

The bar below ground

Mould!

It was sad to depart from San Giorgio for our flight from Rome back to England (where we were greeted by heavy rain – but that is another story). A big thank you to Pauline for looking after us so well and taking the time to explore the region with us. By the time this gets posted she will have been to the middle east, NZ, Australia, and then due to head to the Galapagos and back via the States. One of many epic trips for her.

And a final memory – popping down to the local supermarket and bumping into friends Frank and Sharon at the conveniently attached bar in time for superb food and wine for lunch. Ahhh, the Italian lifestyle is so good ..

Ciao!

Festas

Many villages throughout Italy manage to have a festival day (or weekend) sometime during the year. The summer weekends can offer many choices so, provided you have transport, there are always options for attending a festa. We were lucky that our host in Sabina – Pauline – took us to two and a half. The first (the half) was at the little old village of San Polo, just down the hill from Pauline's home in San Giorgio. The reason it only qualifies as a “half” is that we got there at midday and it was all over! And it wasn’t a true festa either. A group of Roman photographers (if you don’t want the image of people in togas carrying wax tablets then think of photographers from Rome) are making a year-long study of four historic villages, including two from near us: San Polo and Tarano on the other side of where we are staying. They turn up every so often and photograph the inhabitants and the buildings. The village turned on some “scenic” activities for them including horses in the streets and opening up the wine cellars.

Maurizio (left) getting our "glasses" filled

Though we missed the main event we, with the help of an Italian friend, Maurizio, were shown around the cellars of a house where wine was being bottled. Of course we were “forced” to sample some and I’d have to classify it as somewhat agricultural. Full of flavour indeed. We were then invited into someone’s house where Maurizio was having lunch, and duly made to sit down and provided with the best lasagne we’ve ever had - apparently made by someone's elderly Mum. And plenty more farmyard red (which I’d develop quite a liking for). It wasn’t awkward at all as there must have been 20 or so people including most of the photographers. The usual wonderful hospitality we’ve found here.

At San Polo

San Polo clocktower

Italian fashion, circa 1350

Our first real festa was a visit to the town of Civitella San Paolo. We knew this was a big event when we saw people walking along the roadside before we got near. And this is serious as you never want to walk along a road in Italy unless desperate – the roads are very narrow, poorly maintained, no footpaths, and full of psychotic wannabe F1 drivers in old Fiats. They had managed to put on a park-and-ride and, for the first time in Italy, we saw people forming an orderly queue.

The old parts of the town are surrounded by a castle wall and inside the inhabitants were dressed up in medieval costumes selling traditional goods at stalls. They even had a vat of boiling water containing silk worms from which the threads were picked up and attached to a spinning wheel. The event finished with a sound-and-light spectacular depicting an event in history where the townspeople beat off invaders who supported an alternate Pope. All a bit lost on us with our lack of Italian.

Traditional board games

Citta della Pieve

Judging at the theatre

Our second big outing was to a saffron festival at Citta della Pieve. We rented an apartment in the old town with Pauline and a couple of American friends Meg and Chris. While it wasn’t a big event there was a market with stalls selling all sorts of food flavoured with local saffron, from cheeses to chocolates. Unusual for this area the walled hilltop town is made of brick, reminiscent of the east coast towns. 

One highlight was a music competition featuring two teenage boys in an old theatre. The only audience was the five judges and a few onlookers like us who had sneaked into the boxes.

Chris, Meg, Pauline and Nigel getting their morning caffeine fix

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Inhabitants of Citta della Pieve

"Kisswoman Alley" - one of the narrowest alleys in Italy

Discussing shoe sizes at the market

And a couple more of Civitella San Paolo ...