Loreto Aprutino

Loreto Aprutino is a small hilltop town some 28km west of Pescara. Surrounded by olive groves and basking in the sunshine it is an attractive and little-visited spot with a superb hotel and some fabulous frescoes.

The Hotel Castello Chiola, originally a ninth century castle, stands at the summit of the hill at the head of Via del Baio, itself lined with palazzos. Our room was vast and luxurious. We enjoyed excellent food in the vaulted restaurant - although the only Italian wines available seem to be those from the Abruzzo. We made good use of the swimming pool on this trip, forcing ourselves to devote at least a couple of days to relaxation - days with lunch by the pool and a good book. It was very hot while we were here so the shade of the poolside umbrella was most welcome. The only drawback for me was the wedding receptions held in the interior courtyard which were disturbingly loud late at night.

The church of Santa Maria in Piano is well-worth visiting for its very beautiful 14th century frescoes of the Last Judgement.

Saepinum

The drive to Saepinum (in the Molise) took over two hours on mountain roads - great driving, especially the ascent above Pettarono (not so enjoyable if you're of a nervous disposition though). Saepinum is worth the effort - little visited so mostly devoid of tourists and "the best example in Italy of a provincial Roman town" (Rough Guide) - mainly because it was never very important, reaching its peak in the first 200 years AD. It owed its original significance to the two major routes on which it lay: one north-south used by herdsmen as they moved their stock seasonally between the Abruzzo and Puglia; and the second a major east-west route from the sea into the mountains. When eventually abandoned the town simply decayed back into the landscape. Originally it was surrounded by a wall but this has mostly long gone and the edges of the site are overlapped by small, present-day farms creating a bucolic atmosphere.

The town is small and can be explored fully at a leisurely pace. The forum in the centre of the town, where the two main streets - the cardus maximus and the decumanus maximus - cross, is easily identifiable, flanked by the remains of major public buildings.

Porta Boiano

At the western end of the decumanus maximus lies the well-preserved gate Porta Boiano. The statues flanking the arch are of prisoners captured after battle and the inscription is to Tiberius, the step-son and successor of the Emperor Augustus.

There is a small cafe here where we had a very acceptable lunch of sandwich and a beer.

Villa Adriana, Tivoli

A two hour drive brought us to the immense Villa Adriana just outside Tivoli, about 40km north east of Rome.

Completely deserted the day we visited - and incredibly hot as the morning wore on - the villa is an impressive collection of ruins which take some time to explore fully. It was built by the Empreror Hadrian for his retirement in 138AD and designed to include replicas of some of the buildings he had seen during his travels and which he most admired.

The Canopus consists of a long rectangular pool with, at one end, the arched colonnade and statues of a Temple of Serapis, a copy of the sanctuary of Serapis near Alexandria, Egypt.

Canopus

The Maritime Theatre (on the right) is on a more human scale: a circular pond with an island in the centre - a secluded retreat for the Emperor.

Leaving the villa we had a very late but truly excellent lasagne at the Restaurant Drogo as we approached Alba Fucens. We only spotted the restaurant perched on the hillside and it was a real find.

Alba Fucens

This is a wonderful place. We were just going to make a short stop on our return from the Villa Adriana but spent some time just wandering about - it helped that it was cooler later in the afternoon. It was deserted apart from us and the ruins were unfenced and we found ourselves wandering over what looked like unexcavated mosaics!

Alba Fucens was a Roman garrison town founded in 303 BC to keep surrounding tribes under control and of great strategic importance. It lies in a flat valley at the foot of Mount Velino. There are excellent views from the Romanesque church but this was locked when we visited.

Atri, Bominaco and Ascoli

A pleasant drive to visit the famous frescos of Andrea Delitio in the 13th century cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta in Atri. These 15th century works of art are beautifully colourful and full of detail of the local landscape and domestic life in which the religous scenes are embedded. The Slaughter of the Innocents is quite horrific! I would recommend a visit for these frescoes alone for anyone who appreciates Renaissance art. The cathedral is built on the site of a a Roman baths and a mosaic floor from the baths can be seen through a glass panel set in the floor of the cathedral.

Two beautiful churches are the reason to visit Bominaco south of L'Aquilla. The Abbey of Santa Maria del'Assunta has the three apses typical of the Romanesque style, simple and elegant, and an interior graced by beautiful white marble columns. The smaller San Pellegrino is of much more basic architectural design but the frescoes inside are stunning. These are from the 13th century and thought to pre-date Giotto in their use of perspective and human expression. No photography allowed, of course.

We drove to Ascoli via the motorway - thank heaven for air conditioning. The Palazzo dei Capitani del Popolo in the Piazza del Popolo is a very attractive building and the town is quite pleasant to walk around. We had come with the aim of visiting a recommended restaurant and the famous Roman bridge which is indeed huge. Lunch was not a sucess apart from a wild boar pasta - my wild boar main course being mostly barley which I detest. Not, for us, a place to come back to.

Campo Imperatore, Castel del Monte, Rocca Calascio and San Stefano

Drive west from Loreto Aprutino, via Penne towards Gran Sasso, and you climb up into the mountains, Suddenly the landscape flattens into a vast, prairie-like plain - most bizarre this high up.

On the southern edge of the plain is the medieval village of Castel del Monte which we found not so forbidding as the Rough Guide describes, although we were ripped off on a bottle of wine here.

From Castel del Monte we went on to Rocca Calascio, a deserted hillside village with a crumbling castle at its peak. We had our picnic at a fountain in the shade just before the ascent to the village.

As we toiled up the hillside we came to a restaurant, closed, but from the window Figaro's aria from the Barber of Seville was loudly playing. We sat at a shaded restaurant table and thoroughly enjoyed this beautiful music in a perfectly atmospheric setting - hot, deserted Italian countryside.

Rocca Calascio is a very atmospheric place to wander around too: we saw ruined houses with pizza ovens and caves at the rear, and the castle is excellent.

Rocca Calascio

Scanno

Amiternum, Lanciano, Chieti.

Amiternum is just north of L'Aquila and has some interesting Roman remains, in particular the theatre and amphitheatre, though there's not really much here. Originally a Sabine settlement it became Roman in 290BC. The name probably drives from the river Aterno. This is another Roman town which owed its prosperity to its situation at the junction of major roads.

We were not impressed by Lanciano - perhaps it was just the heat. But after the visit we drove down the coast, visiting the Sangro River War Cemetery - beautifully kept as always - before a good pizza at Mare Blu. Afterwards we skimmed pebbles in the sea and stopped at the Canadian War Cemetery before driving back to the hotel.

Nor did Chieti appeal, there are much better Roman remains within driving distance than the three Roman temples - though we didn't visit the museum which is said to be of most interest here.

L'Aquila and the Opening of the Holy Door

We made a couple of visits to L'Aquila - driving through Campo Imperatore was something we enjoyed! We didn't find anything particularly appealing in the town itself.

Our first visit was on a Sunday and there didn't seem to be much choice in places to eat so we took the Rough Guide's advice and chose the Stella Alpina. We were not disappointed - a huge plate of penne pomodori particularly good.

Our second visit was to see the ceremony of the Opening of the Holy Door of Santa Maria di Collemaggio. Every year on August 28th the door is opened and everyone who passes through is apparently forgiven their sins. The actual door opening is preceeded by a festival and the town itself is actually closed so it is necessary to park on the outskirts. We walked up to the church where there were mases of people. There was a parade of, we think, local historical societies from surrounding towns and villages dressed in magnificent medieval costumes, some recognisable from renaissance paintings - I spotted a red hat from the Piero della Francesca painting of the Duke of Urbino in the Uffizi. Bands wre mostly drums and there was flag throwing which we'd seen also in Switzerland. Several speeches and too many dignataries and officials and a real live cardinal who seemed to wing his speech in front of a large TV screen of the Pope. The door duly ooened and there was an unholy scramble to get through.