Don’t go there!

Posted on March 30, 2015 by Debra Kolkka

Road works are being carried out between Ponte a Serraglio and La Villa. Old water pipes are being replaced…a necessary thing.

We have a multitude of signs in the piazza at Ponte a Serraglio to let us know where we can go. The road has been reduced to one way, going towards La Villa.

At some times the road is blocked completely.

The other night, a car coming from La Villa ignored the sign and drove through. By the time he got to Ponte there was a line of cars in his way. There was nothing for him to do but reverse all the way to La Villa.

You have to laugh.

You also have to feel for the road workers who have to cope with the coming and going of cars, people and dogs.

All of a sudden it seemed to be over and all the men and equipment left.

…I am expecting a return.

After the rain

Posted on March 27, 2015 by Debra Kolkka

When the recent rain cleared we were left with a golden light. There was a rainbow briefly over Colle. Rain has other benefits…the pansies on the bridge are growing well.

Colomba di Pasqua

Posted on March 26, 2015 by Debra Kolkka

Annalisa and the team from Il Monaco have been busy baking Colomba di Pasqua…and they are beautifully wrapped for you. Colomba di Pasqua is a traditional Easter cake similar to panettone and pandoro. It contains candied peel instead of raisins and is baked in the shape of a dove, to represent the Holy Spirit.

My friend Maria has told me of an old legend about this dessert. They say that when the King of Longobards, Alboino, conquered the city of Pavia, he requested that all the gold and treasures of the city should be given to him together with 12 virgins.

The poor girls were sent to the castle to await their fate and they were crying in despair. All, except for one, who asked to be given some honey, flour and dried fruits as she wanted to bake a cake. With these ingredients, she prepared a dough and gave it the shape of a dove and asked the guardians to have it baked.

When she was called to see Alboino, she carried the cake on a tray. The king was surprised and thought that the girl wanted to poison him, so he asked her to taste the cake first. The girl ate a piece and Alboino, seeing that she looked so confident, did the same. He found the cake delicious…possibly he had not been eating cake during his campaign. So, as a reward, he ordered his guards to free the clever girl. Nobody knows what happened to the other girls.

The seige of the City of Pavia ended on the eve of Easter Sunday, hence the link between the cake and Easter celebrations.

The girls at Il Monaco have also been busy making the first gelato of the season…spring must be on the way. …what to eat first!!!

This Sunday, 29th March, at 4.00pm at the Teatro Accademico at La Villa, will be a performance of a Folkloric group from Varenna. The tickets are only €5. Call 3396 167580 for more information.

A night of music

Posted on March 23, 2015 by Debra Kolkka

Last night at the lovely Teatro Accademico there was a delightful evening of music. Songs by Puccini, Verdi, Mascagni, Bizet, Rossini and others were performed by some very talented people.

The event was well attended.

The singers were…

Valentina Boi, a soprano with an exquisite voice.

Laura Brioli, mezzosoprano.

Angelo Fiore, tenor.

Franco Rossi, baritone, shown here delivering a rousing rendition of The Barber of Seville.

They were accompanied by Laura Pasqualetti on the piano.

It was a very enjoyable evening. If you missed it there will be another on 12th April. I will remind you at a later date.

Brought back to life

Posted on March 19, 2015 by Debra Kolkka

A famous residence in La Villa has been lovingly brought back to life. The house is famous because it was the summer home for English poets Robert and Elizabeth Barrett Browning in 1853 and 1857.

It has been in a sad state of repair for several years, but fortunately someone has bought it and has set about restoring it. The scaffolding was recently removed from the front of the house to reveal a very beautiful facade.

The work is being overseen by local architect Franceso Rondina and the Art Nouveau decorating has been done by local artist Belinda Pieroni.

Work continues on the rest of the house. Some of the cement has been removed near one of the side windows revealing a different style of design underneath. I look forward to seeing what happens there.

Peering through the gate we could see a lovely old garden wall. I’m sure that will live again too.

Congratulations to all concerned. The house will be much admired by everyone who sees it and will be a happy addition to Bagni di Lucca.

Here are a couple of old photos of the house.

They show just what a great job has been done to bring the house back to the way it was.

Ghostly Granaiola

Posted on March 16, 2015 by Debra Kolkka

Spring will soon be here and that will be great…but I do like the winter landscapes, especially the lovely mists that swirl in and around the mountains.

I don’t have to go far to see the misty views. From my balcony, or from the bridge below, Granaiola puts on a fine show on winter mornings.

It is raining now, which is good for my flowers. So far we haven’t had the predicted heavy falls…and we don’t want them.

Women at the casino

Posted on March 13, 2015 by Debra Kolkka

The Celebration of Women event at the casino in Ponte a Serraglio has been well attended. The opening night was a lot of fun. There were speeches by the organisers and the mayor.

Barbara from Granaiola sang for us beautifully.

There are lots of paintings and photographs to see, but my favourite part of the exhibition is the one put together by Gemma Fazzi and her team. This year it focuses on the bedroom and they have done a great job collecting things from times gone by to show us how people would have decorated their bedrooms.

There are still 3 nights to go for the exhibition….don’t miss it.

For more on the celebrations please go to Francis’ blog. Click here.

Chiesina Alpini

Posted on March 11, 2015 by Debra Kolkka

At the park above Colle is a beautiful memorial to the Alpini, Italy’s mountain soldiers. They are light infantry troops specialising in mountain combat. They are known as Penne Nere (Black Feathers) thanks to the raven feather worn on their distinctive hats.

Unfortunately the little chapel was hit by a tree in the recent storm. Chris, who lives nearby, took the photo.

There is a prayer inside the chapel.

Let’s the chapel will be OK.

A win for Bagni di Lucca

Posted on March 8, 2015 by Debra Kolkka

I am happy to let you know that Bella Bagni di Lucca was awarded Runner Up for Best Single Art and Culture Post for the post called An old tradition in Bagni di Lucca.

The post is about Arte Barsanti, a small, family owned company that makes figurines. It has been in business for more than 100 years. I am delighted that the win will focus attention on this wonderful tradition.

I found out a couple of days ago, but the weather bomb (tornado) seemed a bit more important. This are getting back to normal. Some houses are still without power, but I hope this will soon be fixed. Many roofs will need to be repaired and the fallen trees will all need to be cleared. It will take some time.

The weather has been fine since the wind, which is good, we don’t need any rain just yet.

The village looked so calm the night after the wind, it seemed difficult to believe it happened at all.

A tornado in Bagni di Lucca

Posted on March 6, 2015 by Debra Kolkka

If you read my other blog, Bagni di Lucca and Beyond, you will know that we had a tornado in Bagni di Lucca on Wednesday night. Many residents would have spent a terrifying night listening to the fierce wind tearing up trees and tiles from their roofs.

La Villa was very badly hit and the beautiful little park has been devasted. Trees that are hundreds of years old have been uprooted and snapped off.

The clean up was quick and efficient in La Villa. The broken tiles have all been cleaned up from the streets and the fallen trees are being cut into smaller pieces for removal.

I went for a walk through La Villa and was pleased to see that things were back in order. There is some roof damage in several buildings, including Circolo dei Forestieri, the pharmacy and Villa Ada.

Lots of trees are down in the garden on Villa Ada, but the roof damage doesn’t look as bad from the back of the building.

The trees have been removed from the church in Corsena.

A crane is at work in the nearby cemetery to help with the clean up.

Many roads to the outlying villages are cut by fallen trees. There is going to be lots of work for woodcutters for quite some time cleaning up the mess.

It was a beautiful day here today, the sun was shining and it almost felt like a spring day. It is hard to believe that this strange weather event happened at all.

It has come to my attention that the villages of Gombereto, Veteglia, San Gemignano, San Cassiano and Pieve di Controne have been badly damaged. Francis has been to the area and has some photos and news of the damage.

Click here and here to see his posts.

Bella Bagni di Lucca

A beautiful village in Tuscany

Monthly Archives: March 2015