Creative Life Goes to Italy
Janet STRAYER- Dec 17, 2022
- 5 min read
Updated: Aug 21, 2024
Many a trip continues long after the movement in time and space have ceased . (John Steinbeck)
Creative life goes to Italy this month because that's where we're fortunate to be living for two months. The art, the food, the life... are buonissimo! I've been posting short bits on social media ever since we left Canada. There's so much creative life to discover and enjoy.
Getting to experience the life style and pace of a new region by living in it differs a lot from tourism. You shop at local markets and stores, get to know some neighbours, learn about rivalries, recipes, social conventions, stories, art, local traditions and culture. And Italy, land of so much amazing Renaissance art, is so rich in ways to live creatively.
We're living in an old stone house in the rural village of Morruzze in the municipality of Baschi in Umbria. We've stayed in this house and region of Italy several times before and love exploring this central region as well as other parts of Italy.
This post describes various excursions made in Italy over the year. This post also offers a goldmine of links links to others posts on Italy that are worth sharing-- published on Blogger. (click on it or you can enter this url into your browser yourself: https://janetstrayer.blogspot.com/
So let's get on our way!
Creative LIfe in Italy: Umbria
Morruzze
Here's a view of our hilltop village from the road leading to it. You can see the turrets of the castle in the Piazza Paparini.
The secret of Morruzze is that it's a tiny rural village (aout 49 residents) in which nothing happens! It sits in the very green mountains of Umbria, in a rocky terrain of olive and chestnut groves, sheep meadows, and wild boar. Walking the very rocky road uphill from our house, we come to a vista of the towns below (Acqualoreto) and beyond (Todi). The photo I took on a misty day (below) shows nearby settlements rising from lake-like clouds.
Nearby Points of Interest in Umbria
Among nearby spots, Todi is perhaps the largest and best known hilltop town and cultural centre. Perugia and Orvieto are the two best-known cities of this region, both containing art and architectural wonders. Perugia is a city that celebrates its medieval heritage with pageants and heraldry. It's also famous for its chocolates and Perugino Raphael's teacher), the Renaissance painter of sweetly graceful poses.
Not far from our village, the town of Sansepolcro boasts its heritage as home to Piero della Francesca, one of my favourite Renaissance masters of composition .
Orvieto Cathedral and its Terrific Frescoes by Signorelli
Of all the cathedrals I've seen, the one in Orvieto stands distinctly apart. My photos were taken on a cloudy day, but the gilded mosaics on its facade glisten in the sunlight. You can see its intricate stone decorations (rose window) and carvings are unique. Begun in the late 1200s and into 14th C. Gothic style, its distinctive horizontal stripes of light and dark stone (travertine and basalt) can be seen from far off.
Inside Orvieto's Cathedral, the 15th C. frescoes by Luca Signorelli (Michelangelo's painting teacher) are a total delight (even as they depict a terrifying hell, as well as heaven). This artist was a master of human form and perspective . And he was endowed with a sense of humour. Some wonderful trompe l'oeil effects surprise you as you stand in the chapel and look at figures escaping their architectural confines that mimic the chapel's actual columns (see at left).
Freud Was Here
An interesting footnote about the town of Orvieto (especially for me) is that Freud liked spending his vacation time here. He, too, was fascinated by the same frescoes and the many Etruscan finds in the area. Also very likely, he enjoyed the fine food and wine of the region.. Here's a plaque commemorating Freud's stay at a local hotel.
The Silent Villages
Talking with with village residents here, I've learned that the pandemic hit Italy especially hard here. Visiting this rural region now, so soon after travel restrictions were lifted, the sad signs of the many lock-downs and site closures are visible. Several local restaurants where we'd loved to eat are gone, as is some small local stores. Yet, much is also reviving. And you needn't worry about not finding great food! The pasta and pizza here is like nowhere else, as are the local foods, like excellent lamb dishes, wild boar sausages, and chestnuts incorporated into sauces and soups. It's here that I discovered a fondness for persimmons too.
We've spent a good deal of time in this same village over the years, and nothing much has changed overall. For example, the rocky roads are as bad as ever, and there's still no cell phone reception away from the main piazza. But one major change has happened. Morruzze is now on the map! It is one of the villages along the fairly new trekking route named Il Cammino dei Borghi Silenti (The Way of the Silent Villages). Not nearly so famous as the Camino Santiago pilgrimage across the Pyrenees, this new trek presents a substantial commitment. The routes (below) cover 86 km. of footpaths across the mountains and into ancient villages. Il Cammino has become a challenge and inspiration to many. During the summer, the population here notably increases.
Like so many travellers, I've loved visiting Italy repeatedly, experiencing the contrasts of its different regions. Links to other interesting events and hikes in Umbria (the Pascuarela and Getting Lost and Found While Hiking) are posted below.
An entire Creative Life travelogue of illustrated columns on Italy from this itinerant artist are available for you below. Click here for access to all,. Or, click specific items of interest individually., below. All were written before the pandemic imposed travel restrictions and reflect stays of more than a month in local residence. All contain photos and my idiosyncratic focus and commentary.
Next time I write, we'll be back living in Sicily for a month (choosing a different spot than our last sojourn). I'll keep you posted on that.
Travel and Experience in Central Italy: Focus on Umbria
Go Fly a Kite! In Italy -- a fun local event that had us making and flying kites
Life with Animals in Italy -- the winged and four-legged neighbours
Artist En-Route: Italy -- third in series about -packing, art supplies, sights and insights for creative living and travel in Europe
Travel and Experience in Southern Italy: Focus on Puglia and Nearby
Taranto and the Dance of the Spider -- a fascinating column on a malady that became a Dionysian dance, the Tarantella, plus an excellent archaeological museum
Ever Want to Hug a House? You Will in Puglia -- about the unusual trulli
The Oldest Inhabited Cave-City in Europe: Matera -- and this traveller's worst nightmare reality
Travel and Experience in Southern Italy: Focus on Sicily
Sicily -- coming up next is a column filled with the treasures and lessons of this dramatic island visited and stayed in over the years
Travel and Experience in Northern Italy & Adriatic Coast
featuring places in Le Marche, Milan, Fermo, Padua, Mantua, Venice
Sibillini Mountains and Sibyls in Le Marche -- where ranchers herd cattle
Urbino: A Perfect Renaissance City and the Invention of "Cool"-- including a Renaissance food fest
Ascoli Piceno and Jesi: Two Cities in Le Marche -- stuffed olives, a martyr for truth, and the art of Crivelli
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