October … again a summer season gone by just like that. We’ve had some lovely autumn days in October. Chestnuts are on sale again, grapes have been harvested and here and there one starts picking olives. This year though, it will not be a good year for the olive harvest. Lots of olives in this area have been suffering from a mosque that deteriorates the […]
Friends of mine have a farm in the countryside near Cortona in Tuscany, close to Umbria. I’ve seen agriturismo’s in Italy, but never a farm where people keep Chianina cows, rabbits and chickens! This farm does not have apartments for rent, they live from the produce of their land. The rabbits and chickens live free in the countryside. The Chianina cows stay inside with enough space to move around, […]
Last Sunday, I participated in a 10.5 km race in Fabro, Umbria. A small village in the province of Terni, south Umbria. I was there together with my running team G.S. Filippide. In this period we train a lot. In Umbria as well as in Tuscany you can participate in a lot of races of 10-15 km. It is still too hot for marathons or half-marathons. […]
I look at the calendar and yet another month has passed by. Time flies … and August arrives. In July we had uncommonly cool temperatures and lots of rain :(. But even with the rain, it is pleasant to walk around in small villages or to explore the Umbrian countryside. Paciano is a small well preserved Medieval village in Umbria. It is a walled town with some restaurants and […]
Giuseppe Di Salvio is a good friend of mine. I have met him 4 years ago when I started working in the Spoleto area. Originally he comes from Vietri sul Mare, a small village nearby Naples. Giuseppe is an artist. He has a passion for pottery and ceramics. Since 4 years he has his own ceramic store “La Torre” in the city center of Spoleto. […]
Just wanted to share a curiosity with you. Like every year, I have been busy organising my son’s birthday (8 ! Time flies!). Being Dutch, I am used to children’s birthday parties where parents take their children and either come back later to pick them up again, or the children will be accompanied back home. From the start (1st party organised when he was 3), […]
On January the 6th in many countries Epiphany is celebrated. Also in Italy, but here people often call it “la Befana”. La Befana is a friendly witch who delivers sweets and presents for the good children in Italy. On the night before January the 6th, the children hang their socks near the fireplace with a glass of wine, a tangerine and an orange for the […]
As every year and everywhere in the world also in Umbria the preparations for Christmas are on the way. There are many Christmas initiatives, markets, Christmas cribs inside and outside. In Gubbio the largest Christmas tree in the world has been lit again. At home the Umbrians prepare themselves for the main family event of the year. In lots of families the cappelletti are already […]
Last week we went to Casa Acquasparta in South Umbria . We drove up a small country lane just outside the town of Acquasparta, with wonderful views over the rolling hills, very quiet and peaceful with large Chianina cows peacefully ruminating away while bluntly staring at us. Chianina cows are rather big and the tasty meat is famous in this area, as well as in […]
After totally ignoring this blog for several months (oooops!) … it is time to announce the reason why! I (Willemijn) am leaving Villa in Umbria and am also moving. Villa in Umbria will continue and from now onwards the blogs here will be written by Saskia and Sylvia. I am going to live near Florence and I will have to totally reinvent what I will […]
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