La Romantica in Spoleto

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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 have 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 2
hours). This is a drive through heaven!! And, you MUST eat in the tiny hick town of Casteluccio 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 would 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.

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 documentary, music, geography and history channels.

The lovely, stone tiled, kitchen is fully fitted and equipped with fridge/freezer, microwave, hob, oven.....everything you would need for your holiday.

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.

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 to 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 office in Spoleto.

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 inSpoleto, 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 90 minutes drive 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.

Dec - March 2008/9 | 390 euros/wk
April, 2009 | 390 euros/wk
May - Oct, 2009 | 490 euros/wk

The rate is for up to 2 persons - a 3rd person is 50 euros/week extra.

NO DEPOSIT REQUIRED : booking secured with credit card details, not debitted except in circumstances of cancellation or no-show.

CREDIT CRUNCH RATES + DISCOUNTED OFFER !!

5% discount off the 2nd week of a 2 week booking OR a 15% discount off the 3rd week of a 3 week booking OR a 25% discount off the 4th week of a 4 week booking.

For bookings longer than 4 weeks, then, each subsequent week will attract an additional discount of 5%.

This is a limited offer and may be withdrawn at any time - however, I will guarantee this offer for 2 weeks from the day I reply to your enquiry. This offer overrides discounts offered in the Booking Information sent to you in response to an enquiry.

In response to an enquiry, you will automatically receive info re my personal website (which you can access by placing the words, Umbria Holiday Rentals into a Google search and the website of Umbria Holiday Rentals will appear on the left hand side of Page 1). On my website, you will see many, many more photos and more information about 30 other apartments, some with pools, 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.