So we (nephews and nieces with spouses) were invited by our uncles to spend a week at this beautiful 800 yrs old Castello di Magrano in the Umbria region of Italy
Built as a country villa by the Magrano family, it later became a fortified stronghold and after changing various hands is now under the Gabrielli family — related to the Bonaparte family (direct descendants from Napolean’s brother).
Nested amongst the dense forests it offers hunting of Boars, Elks and Deer to licensed hunters seasonally.
Umbria, is the smallest region of the 20 regions of Italy, located centrally. The region was breathtakingly beautiful with its green lolling hillsides, olive groves, sunflower fields (All Dead!!… till I googled and understood that the seeds need to dry on the stalk before they can be harvested for pulling oil) small clusters of single Storey houses with their slanting roofs — so reminiscent of the world of Asterix and Obelix.
The pictures just do not do justice to the actual countryside.
Fun Fact: Most dwellings in the region (and in Rome ) that we saw were built with either bricks, stones or a mix of both, built mush like those childhood pictures of houses we drew- square or rectangle in shape, straight walls, with windows equidistant(often with green, white , black or brown shutters) and sloping roofs made with rustic interlocked barrel tiles. The roof was always burnt ochre/ sienna and the walls in various shades of white, cream, brown. Not once did I see a building which was pink or blue 😊
The Umbrian sky was another marvel of nature- cloudy or clear, dawn or dusk the play was unimaginable each day
The Umbria region is really old and has many small, picturesque cities- Each distinctive and with its own history. We managed to visit three of these — Gubbio, Assisi and Perugia (the capital).
The three cities are similar in that the old cities had a central square, buildings were built close together with narrow winding cobbled stone streets, houses were built mainly with white, grey or brown stones, sloping roofs but each had a different character associated.
GUBBIO — also called the City of Stones, dates to the Middle Paleolithic and Neolithic ages.
On the outskirts of the city is the Bottaccione (Eugubian) Gorge mainly made of sedimentary rock. Through rock stratifications geologists have studied the 1000s years old history of the earth and have also found traces of dinosaurs. Traces of Iridium found in the lower layers suggest a meteorite crash and a possible reason for the extinction of the dinosaurs. A museum dedicated to the same is a place of interest.
Gubbio was happening in the past and seems to be happening today as well — going by the billboards and notices for ballets, concerts, movies, literary exhibitions, and such posted on the community notice boards.
Dominating the city center are the buildings shown below — a common marketplace, probably the seat of power. To the left of these buildings is the church of Gubbio (not in the picture)
The other name to fame is the Eugubian Tablets — 7 bronze tablets written probably in the 1st century which detail sacred rituals, sacrifices and prayers to Gods, rules for living etc. When Romans defeated Gubbians these rules were incorporated into their lives and society.
In 1944. Partisans killed a German lieutenant at the caffè in central Gubbio. In retaliation the retreating German troops massacred 40 Gubbio Citizens: the Mausoleo dei 40 Martiri was built to honor them.
Similarly, to honor the 700 citizens who participated in the WWI they planted 700 trees on either side of a city road — called the Boulevard of Remembrance.
Last but not the least is the Famous Wolf of Gubbio– a feral wolf plagued the lives of the citizens of Gubbio till it was tamed by the local saint St Francis (patron of animals and environment) and had citizens feeding the wolf so that he would not eat them.
The church/ residence of St Francis is still there with a statue in front of it
ASSISI — the Place of God’s Grace, where the Light always shines. That is how this small ancient city on top of a hill is referred to by the locals. Built with whitish rocks and bricks this is the birthplace of St Francis- a Patron saint of animals and environment (he is famous for his sermons given to the birds)
Assisi’s way of life, as promoted by St Francis emphasized service to the poor, focusing on the spiritual value of everyday life. This influenced artists like Giotto and writers like Dante and Petrarch, paving the way for the major developments of the Italian Renaissance.
A city many come for pilgrimage to — it boasts of the Basilica of St Francis and the Basilica of Santa Clare (disciple of St F) and many other smaller ones.
With the great weather and the pretty setting of the city walking is such a pleasur that without realising it, one gets enough aerobic exercise simply by walking the city — with its streets which not only have a natural incline and depth but also has sudden stairways leading up and down.
Tried the Pizza con patate here- a potato pizza and contrary to what it may sound as — it was delicious.
The service however- (in all of Rome) is slow — starting from giving the menu, to serving the food and even to bring the bill!
Or maybe it could have been slow as we reached at 2:30 for lunch and that was close to the Italian siesta time- when all restaurants close for 2 hrs.
PERUGIA (पेरूझा)- the capital city of Umbria.
Took a food walk in Perugia- it turned out to be more of a history walk than a food one- bit of a Disappointment. (Tip- pl do not go by what is written in the description of the walk — interact with the host to really understand what is included)
Seems Perugia can be viewed as 4 cities rolled into one-
First the ancient one built by the Etruscans (dated around 900 BC) Romans defeated them around the 500 BC
Second, the Underground city –built by the Baglioni family much like our very own Red Fort. A city surrounded by fortified high walls, enclosing open markets, residences, gardens, places of worship etc. within. The difference being Perugia residences were clustered together; gardens were fewer and had no nearby water body. Traditionally the city was agrarian- farming and livestock.
The Baglioni family rebelled against the rising power of the then Pope of Rome and met their doom. The Pope with his army retaliated and obliterated the city built by the family (leaving just 10% intact) and built a whole new city above this fortress using the same rocks and stones in the rubble of the damaged city. The streets and courtyard are again stone slabs (irregular — so need to watch your step)
Question: All this happened in a period of few years- how does one break down a city built largely with rock and stone and then rebuild a new one in a short period of time — — but then maybe these guys had hidden arsenal- they did build huge things like the colosseum, the pyramids, the Qutab Minar and such all in ancient times.
Incidentally the red Wedding Scene made famous in the Game of Thrones series was inspired by a real-life similar situation faced by the Baglioni family where two feuding branches in the family killed an entire branch during a feast.
Traditionally the city was agrarian- farming and livestock. The central square of Perugia — the hub (the steps seen in the picture below) which ties the whole town together- as it is the meeting place for all, has a fountain (Fontana Maggiore) commemorating this aspect of the Perugian society. It was built to celebrate the arrival of water in the acropolis of the city, by means of the new aqueduct.
The base of the fountain depicts farming, livestock, farm implements, etc. along with the 12 zodiac symbols — representing the 12 months.
The fourth city of Perugia is the modern city which has sprung up around the old central one. Similar to any other city.
We covered only a few cities — there are many more Todi, Spello, Narnia, Deruta, Orvieto and many more. Definitely a must again part of Italy.