About Abruzzo

Interior of Chapel of San Pellegrino 0

Mountains / Province of L'Aquila

The Sistine Chapel of Abruzzo

The Oratory of San Pellegrino at Bominaco A good rule to follow in Italy, I have found, is never judge a building by its cover. So I am not particularly put out that the Sistine Chapel of Abruzzo looks no bigger than a bungalow from the outside. Luckily there is a porch, which is where we take shelter from the August sun.  We have to wait our turn here as only a few people are allowed in with the guide at a time. While we wait, I check out our surroundings.  Opposite is a rugged hill topped by a cylindrical tower from where I assume the views over the...

Trabocco at sunset 3

Province of Chieti / The Coast

Wonders of the Trabocchi Coast

My Trabocchi Coast Itinerary …in which we reflect on a dark period in Abruzzo’s history but then experience the lightness of being with a refreshing swim and lunch, restore body and soul at one of the region’s most stunning sacred sites, and end up at a nudist beach, but with our costumes and modesty intact. Here is our typical itinerary, highlighting five wonders of the Trabocchi Coast. Moro River Canadian War Cemetery Yes, I know the Canadian War Cemetery is not right on the coast. Neither is it a typical highlight on a day trip to the seaside. But our road from the north brings us here and there...

baked pasta dish 0

Cuisine

Mamma Ginetta’s Timballo

It is a Saturday afternoon in April and Easter Sunday lunch is looming. I am to help with the timballo. Because, says my mother-in-law, referring to her elder son, for Easter Sunday lunch that’s what he likes to eat. I mean no disrespect when I say that here she got it wrong. My husband appreciates good food but, untypically of the men of his region, he doesn’t really mind if it’s not traditional. Which, as he didn’t marry an Abruzzese, is just as well. Still, timballo seems like a good option for a festive lunch and I am here to learn. We lay everything out on the table in...

Basilica 4

Treasures of Abruzzo

San Giovanni in Venere

After swimming, seafood and too much sun in San Vito, we are in need of repose and sustenance for the soul. We head for San Giovanni in Venere. On our short drive southwards down the Trabocchi Coast we catch glimpses of the bike path just below us, and beyond, the dazzling blue Adriatic. But just prior to the turnoff to the abbey before Fossacesia, the road dips and we pass wooded land where the forest has burned on both sides of the road. There is nothing left but charred tree stumps and blackened earth. An acrid smell still hangs in the air. Such sights are sadly not uncommon in...

Santo Spirito Hermitage 1

Mountains / Province of Pescara

The Hermitage of Santo Spirito

It’s ten kilometres to the Hermitage of Santo Spirito from Roccamorice.  The road takes us from the airy green foothills of the Maiella and plunges us deep under the leafy archways of an oak and beech forest.  Sunlight filters through the upper branches and spangles the road as we drive along.  The road ends in an open space and there, backed onto a rocky outcrop, is the Hermitage. Oh for the contemplative life. No wonder the poet Petrarca mentioned this place in his De Vita Solitaria as being conducive to asceticism. Even the most arid soul must surely be nourished by such beauty and silence  – silence, that is,...

cemetery 3

Province of Chieti / The Coast

The Canadian War Cemetery

A Grave Encounter I am fascinated by graveyards.  When I worked in an office in Edinburgh I used to eat my lunch in one.  In general they are peaceful, green places full of birdsong and rich in stories. And some headstones are small works of art. This interest of mine does not always go down well with Italians, who have a different perception of cemeteries. I found this out the hard way when, while poking around a graveyard on a trip to Scotland with Italian friends, I sat down on a bench and produced our picnic lunch. I can still recall the shock on their faces. War cemeteries have,...

Arrosticini 1

Cuisine

Arrosticini

Arguably the dish most associated with Abruzzo is arrosticini. Which is unfortunate for vegetarians. Simply put, arrosticini are barbecued pieces of mutton on slim wooden skewers. But those are just words. They fail to do justice to the time, effort, care and attention – not to mention the art and tradition – that go into their production. The first time I ever had arrosticini was on a raw winter’s day. We were on our way back from a day’s skiing at Passo Lanciano when we spied a vendor on a street corner cooking meat on a grill. Ours was the kind of gnawing hunger that comes after a day...

tomato sauce 0

Cuisine

Tomato sauce

Hitting the bottle 5am seems sbsurdly early to be starting the day, even at the height of summer.  And yet here we are, a little bleary eyed, on our way to do the ‘bottiglie’ – the bottles of tomato sauce which will keep us in good supply over the coming winter. The venue is the garden of my mother-in-law’s childhood home and much of the work has already been done.  A hundred bottles have been gathered and washed in the huge sink in the stone outbuilding. Materials for the fire have been assembled, and crates of tomatoes brought in from the family plot. We light the fire and fill...

silvi paese with outdoor tables 4

Province of Teramo / The Coast

A Tale of Two Silvi Part 2

Something is up. As we approach Silvi Paese late on a summer’s evening we can’t find a place to park. We drive upwards and down and roundabout and eventually squeeze into a slot half-way up the hill. Could it be, someone suggests, the Festa di Paese? Light streams from the open doors of the Church of San Salvatore but this is not unusual. On summer nights anyone can wander in from the street at any time to pray or just quietly sit.  As we near the Belvedere, it becomes clear there is an invasion afoot. What is curious is that the invaders of this normally rather staid village are...

Silvi Paese, house with sea beyond 2

Province of Teramo / The Coast

A Tale of Two Silvi, Part 1

There are some towns in Italy that I think of as having two souls. Like Silvi, for instance. Down at the shore is the high-spirited, slightly brash extrovert; overlooking it from the hill above its more reserved other half. This is a tale of two Silvi. Silvi Marina It is surprising how many Italians I have met from other regions who are familiar with Silvi Marina from their childhood. This is probably because its many attributes read like an advertisement for family holidays: reasonably priced accommodation, a summer programme of concerts and events, a plethora of restaurants and gelaterie, and a safe, sandy beach (one of the ‘seven sisters...