Casa Rosa holiday apartments in Assisi

CASA ROSA is a traditional stone farmhouse set high in the green hills
of Umbria, central Italy, some
10 km (6 miles) north-east of Assisi. The house is divided into three
holiday apartments - one large
apartment occupying the whole of the first floor, and two smaller
apartments sharing the ground floor.
It is surrounded by woods and farmland.
The hills and forest hide martens, porcupine and wild boar, all of
which have been seen on the farm.
The wealth of bird life includes buzzards, goldfinches and hoopoes. In
spring the meadows, fields and
verges abound in wild flowers, among them poppies, cyclamen, wild
gladioli, and many types of orchid.
From May to July fireflies dance in the night, and through the summer
the Farm is home to thirty
varieties of butterfly. Along the river are waterfalls and natural
pools where one can bathe in the
summer. The hills, woods and valleys offer many possible routes for
walking.

THE FARM stands in a regional park, on a spur above a small river,
with breathtaking views over the
Tescio valley and across the hills to Mount Subasio. The owner, an
English painter, lives on the
premises. The immediate area is one of great natural beauty. The hills
are covered by forest, mostly
oak, and by small farms with their olive groves, pastures and fields
of wheat, barley and oats. Far
from any main road, it is a very quiet and peaceful place. For most of
the day the only sound is the
singing of birds and crickets and the river in the valley below.

The hills and forest hide martens, porcupine and wild boar, all of
which have been seen on the farm.
The wealth of bird life includes buzzards, goldfinches and hoopoes.

In spring the the meadows, fields and verges abound in wild flowers,
among them poppies, cyclamen,
wild gladioli, and many types of orchid. From May to July fireflies
dance in the night, and through
the summer the Farm is home to thirty varieties of butterfly. Along
the river are waterfalls and
natural pools where one can bathe in the summer. The hills, woods and
valleys offer many possible
routes for walking.

ASSISI, the nearest town, is the home of St. Francis and his female
counterpart, St. Clare. For
seven centuries Assisi has been a focus for pilgrimage, and the area
is rich in traditions
associated with the saints. The town itself has been carefully
preserved, its steep medieval streets
winding between churches and houses of rose-coloured stone.
The town's calendar revolves around traditional festivals - the
commemoration and celebration of
Holy Week in Easter, the Calendimaggio (a three-day recreation of the
medieval celebration of Spring
when much of Assisi dons medieval dress for street theatre, music,
dance, and a series of contests
between the upper and the lower parts of the town), and the Feast of
St. Francis in early October.

The great Basilica of S. Francesco, built over Francis' tomb, contains
frescoes by Cimabue,
Lorenzetti, Martini and Giotto, the painter who heralded the
Renaissance in Italian painting. The
Upper Basilica was damaged by tremors in 1997, it has been fully
restored and is open once again to
the public.

For modern pilgrims Assisi offers cafes, restaurants, shops and a
swimming pool. Larger supermarkets
can be found in the neighbouring towns of S. Maria degli Angeli and
Bastia. Paragliders fly from the
top of Mount Subasio.

UMBRIA, known as the "Green Heart of Italy", lies between Tuscany, Le
Marche and Lazio. The region's
forests and farms are famous for their truffles, olive oil and pork,
the town of Deruta for its
painted earthenware; Orvieto and Torgiano for their wine.
Within a 60 km (40 mile) radius of Casa Rosa are the ancient hill
towns of Gubbio, Spello, Cortona,
Spoleto, Orvieto and Todi, each with its medieval centre. Perugia, the
region's capital, is 25 km.
(15 miles) away, a stylish university city with striking medieval
architecture, important Etruscan
remains and major works of art.

To the West, Lake Trasimeno offers swimming and water sports for most
of the year. To the South and
East lies Umbria's wildest scenery - the forests and gorges of the
Valnerina, the mountain peaks and
remote alpine pastures of the Monti Sibillini. Umbria holds many of
the great artistic treasures of
Medieval and Renaissance Italy - the most celebrated art and
architecture are at Assisi, Perugia,
Orvieto, Spoleto and Todi, but churches across the region contain
stunning frescoes, and even a very
small town can boast a masterpiece. Almost every town in Umbria has
its own 'festa' - from colourful
traditions rooted in the Middle Ages to modern celebrations of music
and the arts.

PRICES 2009
(prices are inclusive of cleaning, linen, gas & electricity. Heating
is charged separately if
required)

LOW
01 Mar 2009 - 09 May 2009
04 Oct 2009 - 31 Dec 2009

MID
10 May 2009 - 27 Jun 2009
06 Sep 2009 - 03 Oct 2009

HIGH
28 Jun 2009 - 05 Sep 2009



U.K. POUND STERLING

Apartment 1 - Giotto

LOW £510
MID £825
HIGH £900

Apartment 2 - Lorenzetti

LOW £390
MID £520
HIGH £640

Apartment 3 - Masolino

LOW £310
MID £440
HIGH £560

Deposit 30%