Spoleto Italy Vacation Rentals Presents Listing #12855

La Romantica

Apartment w/ 1 Bedrooms - 1 Bathrooms - Sleeps 3

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Vacation Rental Description

See many more photos below. And, please ask to see my personal website, where there are many more  
properties, some with pools, in and around central Spoleto (in the middle of Italy), many more  
photos and lots of information. 
 
This very pretty part of a 16C Convent was bought about 8 years ago by an architect who very  
sensitively restored and converted it into 2 elegant apartments while retaining many of its original  
features. The private entrance, by way of its original and impressive iron gates, leads to the heart  
of the Convent where the library and the prayer rooms used to be – hence its 8 huge arched windows  
through which the nuns would contemplate the stunningly natural beauty all around.  
 
When we first saw it and entered, there was absolutely no question in our minds that we had to have  
it…and, we’ve seen many an old building, having owned and restored our own house within the walls of  
the nearby hill-top 10C San Mamilianese fortress some 17 years ago.  
 
On one side of the Convent is a small farm-yard consisting of ducks, geese and roosters. Up the lane  
is Bazzano’s main and very beautiful church. On the other side of the Convent live an Italian  
family. So, at any one time, you may hear roosters crowing, Italians chattering and bells ringing –  
a cacophony of Mediterranean sounds. At other times, silence !  Living in the Convent is not like  
living in a make-believe picture postcard version of Italy. What you are about to experience is as  
real as it can get.  
 
The local Italians, all of whom are very friendly, will be fascinated by you. So, best learn the odd  
word such as, “Piacere” ie “Pleased to meet you” to show willing ! English is not spoken around  
Bazzano. It is spoken occasionally at the posher restaurants in Spoleto and, of course, increasingly  
so in the more touristy places such as Assisi and Perugia. But, unlike Tuscany, where English is  
spoken everywhere, Umbria has retained its Italian identity and has remained authentically Italian. 
 
La Romantica, a snug apartment of about 70 sq. mts, is exquisite. This fairy-tale apartment is below  
and to the side of La Passionata, the other of our Convent apartments (please see on my personal  
website - details sent to you automatically in reponse to an enquiry), and its entrance is hidden  
from view. It has 1 double bedroom, a compact walk-in wardrobe, 1 shower-room, a kitchen/diner (a  
fully equipped kitchen built into the rocks with a wood-burning stove – seats 4) and a small sitting  
room that can be used as an extra bedroom. The main “wow” factor here are the 2 wall-sized arched  
windows. One is in the bedroom and overlooks the gentle panoramic countryside rolling towards  
Assisi, fringed by the Sibbiline mountain range; and, at night one can lie in bed, stare at the  
vastness of the universe and wonder at the moon and the stars. The other is in the kitchen/dining  
room and looks out onto the terrace, Tuscan pines and the gardens.  
 
This apartment can sleep up to 3 people (or 2 adults and 2 small children – z-beds available). But,  
1 couple is optimum for maximum comfort. 
 
Neither apartment intrudes on the privacy of the other in any way. And, each apartment has its own  
terrace with garden furniture for added privacy.  
 
The guests share the large garden, which has a spectacularly old pergola used for eating under in  
the summer months, day or night since the garden is lit, as well as a BBQ. 
 
The beautiful garden is easily big enough to accommodate everyone and retain privacy. Here, there  
are sun-beds and garden furniture and, guests can relax amongst the Tuscan pines, chestnut, olive  
and fruit trees. There are also areas to sunbathe.  
 
It should be noted that there are about 60 steps up to La Passionata and about 50 steps up to La  
Romantica. The steps are shallow, wide and there is a hand-rail most of the way. So, they are quite  
easy to negotiate ! 
 
Usually, it is possible to park outside the Convent but there may not always be space because the  
hamlet is so tiny. However, a minutes walk up the lane, there is plenty of parking in front of  
Bazzano’s main church. 
 
There are 2 very economically priced restaurants, Due Querce and Il Ristorante Antico, that are just  
1 - 2 miles drive along beautiful country lanes that weave through olive groves and poppy fields.  
Due Querce is a very big restaurant that has a very diverse menu, including pizza. In the summer  
months, you can eat outside of either of the restaurants but, because Due Querce has large gardens,  
it attracts the crowds and, you can often spot the occasional celebrity enjoying an evening here  
away from the bright lights and the intrusive lenses of the paparazzi.......and, the prices are the  
same as any other country trattoria, their owners valuing their less wealthy local customers just as  
much. Indeed, one of our biggest boasts is that some years ago the press excitedly reported that  
Prince Charles had bought a holiday home in this area in order to be close to his beloved Spoleto,  
quoted as being “his favourite place in the world”. Fortunately for him, his address is our local  
secret. 
 
While you are in Umbria, you must sample the most famous Italian dish of all….tartufo ie truffles.  
Umbria is the centre for truffles.....black truffles are common all around here and the white  
truffles are a little further afield, towards Norcia. 
 
Just 10 minutes outside of central Spoleto, Bazzano is a wholly Italian enclave and heaves with a  
history reflected in many of its wondrous old buildings, its awesome church and its grand palace  
nestling amidst the olive groves.  
 
Bazzano is famous locally for its walking territory. Albeit untouched by tourism, it's a little more  
sophisticated than its neighbouring villages, particularly regarding its small country roads that  
meander up and down the surrounding hills and join the upper part of Bazzano with its lower part.  
Strolling back down to the Convent with the stunning panoramic views changing at every twist and  
bend in the road and enjoying a glass of cold Orvieto at the end of your walk can best be described  
as a dream-like experience.  
 
Bazzano is  also close to all the “hot-spots” eg Assisi, Perugia, Orvieto, Bevagna, Trevi, Spello,  
Norcia, the Gran Piano, Montefalco - all places you must visit ! And, about 1 hour from Rome. 
 
Not to be missed is a drive across the Sibbiline mountain range or through the Apennines to the sea- 
side on the Adriatic coast (about 2 hours), or to Norcia and, then, on to the Gran Piano (about 1½  
hours) – this is a drive through heaven!! And, you MUST eat in the tiny hick town of Castellucia  
that sits on a hill in the middle of the Gran Piano. Italians come here from far and wide to taste  
the speciality lentils, faro and white truffle. And, while the restaurants look nothing from the  
outside, they are wonderful inside, all with spectacular views. Indeed, many very seasoned  
travellers have described the Gran Piano as being the most beautiful area in the world. Certainly,  
it is very dramatic ! 
 
The Convent in Bazzano is sufficiently off the beaten track to have remained relatively undiscovered  
and, therefore, it is unusual to see other tourists here. Yet, you still have easy access to all the  
main attractions.  
 
Local shops and many trattorias are all within minutes to half an hour by car. Eating out in the  
summer months is highly recommended. It would be difficult to pay more than 25 - 30 euros for a 3  
course meal with as much wine as you can drink in the local eateries. Of course, the more “flash”  
places in Spoleto and the more touristy places can cost more. However, all pizzerias tend to cost  
much, much less. Eating al fresco on a warm evening with the sun setting behind mountains  
silhouetted against a pink-streaked, azure blue sky takes some beating.  
 
In summing up, I’d say that both La Passionata and La Romantica are to be most appreciated by those  
who love walking in woods and mountains and enjoying the beautiful scenery which looks up to the  
mountains and over the surrounding valleys. In the surrounding woods and olive groves, there is a  
diversity of wild-life: foxes, black squirrels, wild boar, porcupine etc. and many different species  
of birds, including nightingales. Occasionally, especially at night or of an early misty morning,  
these animals can be spotted on the roads leading to Bazzano.  
 
The Convent and its surrounding area is perfect for those who wish to savour the atmosphere of a  
bygone era in a relatively unspoilt and beautiful part of the world while, at the same time, having  
the world’s major Italian tourist attractions on your own doorstep.

Vacation Rental Amenities

La Romantica is furnished with high quality fixtures/fittings and furniture. It is also equipped  
with a SKY SAT TV, whuch shows BBC World, Sky news, CNN and Fox news as well as all the english  
speaking film and documentary channels. 
 
The lovely, stone tiled, kitchen is fully fitted and equipped with fridge/freezer, microwave, hob,  
oven.....everything you would need for your holiday although, there is no dish-washer. 
 
The cantina, just a few steps down from the apartment, contains 2 washing machines and the bikes. 
 
The following items are also included in the rental rate for each of the 2 apartments : 
 
- sun-loungers; 
 
- BBQ (for common use in the garden but if you wanted a "private"  
one, please just request it); 
 
- bikes; 
 
- cutlery (inc bottle openers), pottery, glasses, linen, towels,  
sheets, duvets etc; 
 
- ironing facilities; 
 
- a hair-dryer; 
 
- unlimited hot water and all the utilties...gas, electricity, wood  
(where appropriate); 
 
- a Welcome Pack consisting of wine, bread, rice, fruit, pasta, olive  
oil, all the condiments, tea, coffee, sugar etc - enough to keep you  
going while you find your bearings.

Activities and Attractions

As well as the prestigious Spoleto festival featured in the Bigitte Bardot film based on her young  
life as a star, there are many other big festas, ranging from the less prestigious, but still  
spectacular, festival at Todi (Spoleto’s unofficial rival), the specialist Flower festivals at San  
Gemini and Spello, the Water festival at Piediluco (all within 1 – 2 hours)....as well as hundreds  
of more modest festas  where you can dance, eat and drink all night and it will cost you practically  
nothing. Italians know how to love life to the full!  
 
Further information on any of these festas can be got off the internet or from the tourist offices  
in Spoleto, Terni and Assisi when you get here. 
 
About an hour away is the Piediluco lake which was famously painted by that great impressionist,  
Turner. Here, also, there are many bars and restaurants. Indeed, for the serious swimmer, there is  
an Olympic sized pool next to Piediluco lake. On the lake itself, there are all the usual boating  
facilities (though speed-boats are not allowed) and sun-bathing areas.  
 
There are 3 local outdoor pools close to the Convent – one in Spoleto, a 50 metre one in nearby  
Pissignano and a 50 metre pool in Scheggino, another very pretty village well worth visiting with an  
all-day pizzaria and a restaurant. 
 
For those who prefer to explore places only accessible on horse-back, there are riding stables close  
by and day-long pony treks can be arranged across the mountains at special rates. Treks also take  
place on full-moon nights.  
 
At Marmore Falls, the largest in Europe – about an hour away, there is white-water rafting. And,  
rock-climbing and hang-gliding is on offer in the hills. 
 
Then, about 1½ hours away is the relatively undiscovered plain of Rieti. In this area are to be  
found the original worship places, in tiny monasteries dotted around, of St Francis who lived in  
this area when he first left his privileged existence in Rome to spread a less conventional Roman  
Catholicism in the rural areas of Umbria, before settling in Asissi. Some of his “churches” in this  
area are to be found outdoors, a simple assembly of wooden benches and an alter beneath the trees. 
 
And, last but not least is 10C San Mamiliano, the oldest inhabited village in Umbria, where we lived  
until recently, when we moved to Spoleto to be nearer to the majority of our apartments. This tiny,  
walled fortress, with its fifteen or so Italian inhabitants, whose history embraces a time when the  
Pope used to stay here (San Mamiliano marks part of the boundary of the Vatican state), is perched  
just below the snow line, often above the clouds, on a hill that faces the Apeninnes and that  
overlooks Ferentillo in the valley below. If you visit the tiny Italian community of San Mamiliano,  
please mention our names in the village and you will be responded to as one of the extended family ! 
 
 
FURTHER INFORMATION ON THE LOCATION OF BAZZANO-DI-SPOLETO 
 
Castellucia, in the middle of the famous Gran Piano (with fantastic natural flower displays across  
this giganic plain around about Easter) is just over 1 hour. Castellucia, itself, is tiny and hick  
but has about 3 amazing restaurants that serve up the local lentils, faro and truffle and, that  
Italians visit from far and wide - such is this area’s reputation for its cuisine.  
 
Nearby is Norcia, which is also worth a visit and where most of our white truffle is to be found  
(our area is abundant with black truffle all the year round - consequently, it's cheap to dine out  
on truffle, one of my favourite dishes, at around 10 - 15 euros for a bowl of ciriole al tartufo !).  
 
However, all around us are small towns eg Todi, Trevi, Spello, Orvieto, Narni, Bevagnia and  
Montefalco that are all beautiful and fascinating. Benigni, for instance, often stays nearby and,  
indeed, lived in Coliscipoli (about an hour away) while working on the films, Life is Beautiful and  
Pinnochio, both of which were filmed locally. 
 
This is also the St Francis area and there are numerous monasteries round about, where he has  
stayed - although you'd have to research as to where they are since I've only visited 2 or 3 on foot  
via mountain roads and I was led there by friends but, while I could only tell you how to get to 1  
of them in Greccio, I know that others are reachable by car. Actually, there is a map at Greccio  
that shows how to get to 5 or 6 others by car or on foot. And, in all of the numerous churches, to  
be found in every tiny hill-top village as well as every town and city, there are frescos, most of  
which have been restored.  
 
Most of the places further than 1 hour by car can be quicker to get to by train and it can be a lot  
less hassly eg taking a car into Rome or Naples would not be everyone's first preference and our  
local train station provides an excellent and regular service to almost everywhere you'd wish to go.

Vacation Rental Rates

March 2008 | 390 euros/wk  
April, 2008 | 450 euros/wk  
May - Oct, 2008 | 550 euros/wk 
 
The weekly rate is for the whole apartment, to include up to 3 persons, and is inclusive of all  
utilities, linen, towels etc plus a Welcome Pack. 
 
In response to an enquiry, you will automatically receive info re my personal website, where you  
will  
see many, many more photos and more information about 30 other apartments in and around central 
Spoleto as well as the booking conditions, how to attract a discount and the cancellation policy. 
 
Any day arrival/departure. You can book on a daily basis.