Bar Italia in Ponte a Serraglio has been closed for extensive renovations. I can happily report that it will reopen this Saturday, 24th March.
There will be opening celebrations from 5.00pm. I hope everyone will come along to wish Annalisa and her team the best for the new start.
This an old photo. There will lots more of the new bar after the opening.
Our area is now so quiet and peaceful it is difficult to think that it was once heavily involved in the battles of WWII. The Gothic Line was a German defensive line built from Pisa to Rimini and it went through the northern Apennine Mountains around Bagni di Lucca. There is still evidence today of the fortifications built in the area.
Charles McNamara has written a novel, Ineke’s Mitten, about two friends, Norwegian Nels Torkle and Italian Alberto Bisio, who are sent towards the end of the war to fight near Lucca, Bisio’s home town.
The novel tell how two men, forced to hide in America from the Germans during WWII join the Tenth Mountain Division and are sent to train in the mountains of Colorado. Finally, not long before the end of the war, they are sent into combat in Europe.
In early 1945 the division is sent to Lucca in a desperate attempt to dislodge the Germans from their mountain strongholds. The commanders rely on the two friends to find an attack route up a dangerous cliff called Riva Ridge. Because of their efforts, the Germans are sent fleeing from their final stronghold in Europe.
I think it is always interesting to read about events that take place in a familiar area. I’m sure Charles’ book brings to life a very difficult time in our beautiful mountains.
One of the things I really enjoy about Bagni di Lucca is occasionally coming across traditional farming activities.
In the area behind Montefegatesi on the way to Orrido di Botri it is not unusual to come across a large herd of goats, with the occasional sheep, being brought in for the evening after a day foraging in the forest.
It doesn’t even matter when the road is taken over for a while.
These goats are milked to make cheese, a labour of love for the couple responsible. I wonder if young people will step up to keep these jobs alive or will they eventually be lost.
The stunning casino building in Ponte a Serraglio will come alive tonight for the opening celebrations of Omaggio alla Donna.
Here is a sneak peak at some of the art on show.
List of artists showing
The celebrations get underway at 8.30pm and lead into 10 days of events.
If you drive, or walk, past Montefegatesi on the way to Orrido di Botri you will find yourself in another world. Ancient forests of chestnut, oak and beech trees shrouded in mist seem from another time and place. It wouldn’t have surprised me if a goblin had dashed out from a hollow tree.
There are the remains of stone metati, chestnut drying huts, unused for decades.
If only the trees could talk and share their stories of the people who once lived and worked here, hard lives, but at times it must have been a beautiful place to work.
I think the trees look beautiful on a cold winter day, but I will be back in spring to see them again when the green leaves appear.
The Casino in Ponte a Serraglio will come alive again this March for the Omaggio alla Donna to coincide with International Women’s Day. For the 6th year there will be a wonderful series of events over 10 days, beginning with the opening celebration on 8th March at 8.30pm.
Of special interest to English speakers will be the talks given by Australian film maker Karen Buczynski-Lee on the New Media, the New Woman & the Advanced Political Courage, and Dr Jocelynne A. Scott from the UK who will speak about the Struggle for Personhood and the Rights of Woman. They will speak at 5.30pm on 15th March.
Entry to the exhibitions is free and open every day from 4.00pm – 7.00pm.
There is something for everyone here…don’t miss it!
Snow fell in Bagni di Lucca today. It was wonderful to wake up to find everything covered in a blanket of white.
This afternoon it began to rain, just a light drizzle, but enough to wash the snow away. It was pretty while it lasted.
“The Beast from the East” is certainly making its presence felt in Bagni di Lucca. It was below zero on my balcony at Ponte a Serraglio this morning.
We don’t have deep snow like Rome. There were a few flurries the other day and fierce wind, but no snow on the ground.
After being shut in the house for a couple of days I decided to drive up to Montefegatesi, the highest of the Bagni di Lucca villages at around 840 metres above sea level, in the hope if finding some snow. Apart from a few patches of snow in shaded areas the village was clear. The temperature was -7!
Montefegatesi looks wonderful whatever the weather. Here it is with its winter coat.
There was little snow, but lots of frozen puddles.
The surrounding mountains are covered with snow.
I visited when I was here in autumn, a beautiful season in Montefegatesi.
Soon it will be spring and everything will look different again.
There is an amazing treasure trove in Ponte a Serraglio. The well stocked shop has something for everyone. The pre loved items are very well priced, you will definitely find a bargain.
The shop is in Ponte a Serraglio, not far from Il Monaco on the road towards La Villa.
The drive into Ponte a Serraglio from Fornoli beneath the gorgeous Tiglio trees is a delight. It is a wonderful introduction to the villages of Bagni di Lucca.
In winter the bare branches form a dramatic arch against the winter sky.
In spring the new leaves appear as if by magic and a beautiful tunnel appears to filter the sunlight.
In autumn the leaves turn gold and fall to the ground. I love driving or walking through with the golden leaves falling around me.
Now it seems they might be cut down. The trees are old and some may be diseased. I really hope this doesn’t happen. This Tiglio tunnel is one of the loveliest things in Bagni di Lucca.
I hope a better solution can be found than removing all of the trees. Surely the best trees can be retained and some new ones planted? It just wouldn’t be the same without them.
