Day trip to Collesciopoli and a Return Visit to 7% town Montefranco

** Full photo onslaught on our Facebook page

May 22 – Day trip to Collesciopoli and a return visit to Montefranco

How did it get to be the 22nd of May ALREADY?? 😮 Italy is indeed a land built of the ages, but I am almost certain it exists in some parallel time warp, as well. Mamma mia.

This week has been a mixture of stay home and get stuff done along with the joy of gallivanting around Umbria. Monday was a day in the most charming town of Narni (story on our Facebook page), and the other days were spent doing laundry, housekeeping, meeting with a realtor (just to establish contact in case any perfect dream house crossed our paths), and meeting a couple of new friends who’ve made Spoleto their home – one from South Africa and one from Florida although she and her Italian husband have lived in Rome for 40 years. Fun to chat and share stories! 

But on to today’s adventures…

We’d read about a spring art festival in the small village of Collesciopoli. Hilltop positioned as proper medieval villages should be, this little town is located just about 15 minutes outside of Terni, one of Umbria’s larger cities. When you arrive to a destination and there are 1.) no ZTL’s, and 2.) no paid parking – well, you know it’s small! Definitely charming and well kept, we set out to explore after briefly studying a map at the ancient gated entrance. All said, we saw maybe 8 people, not one tourist, a small bar and Osteria (both not open), and one tiny alimentari. No sign of an art exhibit or festival, though. 

We wandered, enjoyed the cool breeze rolling through the shaded vias (small pathways through a village), and finally spoke to a rotund fellow watching the day go by as he leaned on a rail. 

An animated conversation ensued, and yes…this was where the art event was, but the doors weren’t unlocked to allow passage into the old convent courtyard until 5:00 pm. Ah well. We thanked him, and decided our hunger was the most important next task to attend to. 

Down into Terni, we found a place to park and set out on foot to a Trattoria we’d seen listed using Apple Maps. Good ratings, open…let’s go. We found within an easy 10 minute walk, and as often seems to happen with Maps, it was closed. Good fortune for us as it turned out. We located a nearby small Osteria — and it was open!  

You know you’ve found a great spot when it’s unassuming, the menu is “del Giorno” (of the day), it’s handwritten in Italian, the place is cozy if a little haphazard, and not one soul inside speaks English. What a lunch! 

We decided since it was convenient, we wanted to return to Montefrano on the way back to Spoleto. One of the 7% towns we’d visited earlier, we both agreed it was worth a repeat look over. Our discussions are still all over the place, but whether we end up doing the 3 month shuffle or eventually relocate, to buy something outside of a 7% zone would cost a substantial amount of excess due to our retirement fund structure. If we picked up and moved full time with no intent to return, that’d be another story but that is not where we are.  

A stiff wind and unsettled clouds filled the sky this day creating a much different mood than our previous postcard perfect sunny day. But the beauty was just as spectacular. The Nera River valley that Montefranco looks out over is an array of lush green that rises into stunning mountains, some craggy, others softened green much like Hawaii’s emerald slopes. Several  villages cling to smaller hilltops, their ancient buildings spilling down as if they’ll crash to the valley floor at any moment. 

We hadn’t noticed before, but the magnificent Marmore Falls are even in view from several vantage points in Montefranco. 

If the natural beauty surrounding this village weren’t enough, the town itself is beyond charming. We were talking today as we roamed the unpredictable pathways; have we seen any village as overall beautiful as this? Perhaps not. 

We had an early aperitivo at the one bar. A brief chat with the barista, and we learned of a medieval festival happening the VERY NEXT EVENING!! I was so “in” to go, but Marty was going to take a little convincing only because it was in the evening and we are taking a 3 day road trip this weekend. 

Another hour or so later and we’d accomplished walking through every portion of the village, or at least as much from what we could tell. The lay out of Montefrano is beautifully terraced which makes for incredible views from most any angle where there’s a window and a little elevation over the conjoining rooftops.

About the time we decided we’d better head back, some sort of music wafted down one small street off to our left. We heard voices, as well. Unusual for a quiet village – let’s go see what’s up. 

A handful of men and several busy as bees women were carrying folding tables and other items from several open doorways. One vivacious woman offered a huge smile and “buona sera”, then came towards us. Did we know about the festival? Yes, we did! We asked the start time, which she shared with encouragement for us to return and join the village for the outdoor dinner and festivities. 

As the conversation grew livelier, she revealed she was the “sindaco” – or mayor. It was obvious she loved her town, and as we told her how charmed we were by Montefranco, her ear-to-ear smile and sincere appreciation gave us equal joy. 

We told her where we were from, where we were staying, and just a little bit of the why. “Can you wait a moment? I have something, a gift from our town I want to give you!” Certainly we could wait! 

She returned with a “I love Montefranco” bag containing two souvenir water bottles and a bottle of local wine. How incredibly sweet – her hospitality truly touched us. We talked more, asked a few questions, and were treated with some fascinating information on the history of the town. We promised her we would return for the festival (and hence, my task of convincing Marty was no longer necessary!) and left with happy hearts. 

Yes, we are doing a little searching on real estate in Montefranco.