In late July, I attended the wedding of two very good friends in Italy. This was my first time in Italy so TK and I decided to make it into a 2 week road trip. We started the trip up North in Lake Como where the beautiful wedding was held, made our way further up to the jaw dropping Dolomites (Italian Alps), then several days in Florence, and finally south to Umbria. Rather than traverse the well traveled roads of Tuscany during peak tourism season, this time around we decided instead to go to neighboring Umbria, a region that is not as well known and thus not as developed for tourism. There is a certain rawness that harkens back to the agricultural past of Italy. Medieval towns dot the region, rising up in all their splendor atop ancient hills, while all around green and gold farmland stretch as far as the eye can see. While we were there the the whole of Europe was going through a dramatic heat wave, so everywhere you looked there seemed to be a golden haze clinging to the landscape adding to the mystery of the place. It is here that I am starting my posts for Italy.

Along with this post, I shot and wrote a piece for food and travel magazine, SAVEUR. I spent an unforgettable morning with the farmers of Norcia and Castelluccio. We were introduced to the black banded pig of Norcia and got the chance to try some of the legendary pig charcuterie of this town. We then joined a little festival the farmers were having to celebrate the first successful lentil harvest since the town was devastated by an earthquake in late 2016. Situated at over 1452 m above sea level on a little hill within the folds of the Sibillini Mountains, Castelluccio is one of the most breathtaking places I have ever been to. The lentils that are grown here are, in my opinion, the absolute best in the world. They are even better than the French puy lentils that everyone loves. I am so excited to share this piece with you. Head over here to read the article!

The drive as you approach Assisi is truly a magnificent one, picturesque plains stretching out on one side and green wooded Mount Subasio rising above. The city is well known for its importance to Catholic pilgrims. But even if you are not religious, which I am not, it is definitely well worth a visit to see the magnificent architecture found here. If possible visit here in the afternoon, the city is so gorgeous when the sun is lower in the sky. I absolutely love the all over golden hue that the sun painted onto the landscape and into my photos. Make sure to climb all the way up to Racca Maggiore, a fortress that watches over the city. While a bit of a steep climb, especially in the 100 degree heat, it was well worth it to see the city from this top down angle with the gold and forest green countryside as backdrop.

A short drive away from Assisi, I was able to meet a family of butchers raising one of the oldest and largest domestic breed of cow, the Chianina cow. Run by three brothers, I was struck by how young they all were. In my ignorance, I was totally expecting men my father’s age. It is not often that you find young people so deeply interested in preserving tradition. The beautiful cows are gorgeously white and absolutely massive. I have not had that much experience being around cows but I definitely don’t recall the normal milk cow being anywhere near so big as the Chianina. If you are in the area definitely seek out this heritage breed.

When we decided to spend a few days of this trip in Umbria, I immediately started doing research. One of the photos that I came across repeatedly was of Castelluccio perched atop a hill surrounded by an expanse of colorful wildflowers in glorious full bloom. Even knowing absolutely nothing else about this place, I knew that I had to make the time to visit. After further research though I was so sad to find out that the timing for my trip meant that I would just miss this mid-July event. But I then read about centuries old farming traditions of this area, in particular the famous lentils, and my interest was immediately reignited. All set to add this town to the itinerary, I came upon articles detailing the devastation that the town and neighboring Norcia had experienced as a result of an earthquake in late 2016, and I was once again unsure. Quite a bit had been written in the immediate aftermath about the destruction but very little since then about the recovery. I wasn’t sure if the town was even accessible and it was annoyingly difficult to find a definitive answer. But man I thought, what a wonderful story this could make if only I could somehow get in and speak to the farmers! I began to reach out to some local guides to see if they could give me a better idea of the situation in Castelluccio and to see if anyone might know of a contact who could link me to the lentil farmers. Though everyone was very warm and friendly, most of these guides focused their attention on the more tourism heavy towns like Assisi and so were unable to help me. After many frustrating dead ends, I was almost in utter despair that this wouldn’t work out. I had pitched the idea to my editor at SAVEUR without any real concrete leads and my trip was fast approaching. More and more it was looking as if the story would not happen. Two weeks before I was to leave I reached out to Letizia Mattiacci, an Assisi local who runs a B&B and cooking school in the area, to see if she would be willing to do a pasta demonstration that SAVEUR had asked me to shoot. As a last resort, I wrote to her about my lentil story idea and asked if she might be able to help. She was able to find the contact information for the head of the lentil farmers co-op. Hope renewed! Finally, here was the right person to contact! So you cannot imagine my frustration when my email to him immediately bounced right back. In the end Letizia was able to get in touch with him over the phone, and a good thing too because he did not speak English. We finally agreed upon a date but beyond that I knew almost nothing about what I would be able to see. The rest of the story is told in my article so take a read here! Even though I missed the mid-July blooming of red poppies, violet blue cornflowers, and yellow lentil flowers, the Piano Grande was still magnificent when I went. I absolutely fell in love with the raw beauty of the place. I also definitely plan on returning another year to catch the rainbow flower show in July. 

We spent a good portion of a day in Orvieto exploring this wonderful town. Situated atop big chunk of tufo volcanic rock, it is home to one of the most stunning cathedrals I have ever seen. The Duomo di Orvieto took over three centuries to complete and no wonder with it many wonderful intricacies. Cotton candy colored with its pinks and golds, spiraled molding and stripped side, it is truly a colorful sight to behold I realized when I walked up to it that I had accidentally matched my striped jumpsuit to its striated pillars. I swear it was totally unintentional. Through the centuries of its construction, it passed through the hands of several architects and it was interesting to see the many stylistic periods that these architects brought to its design. It began as a Romanesque basilica but in early 1300s in the hands of its second and third master the design evolved into Italian Gothic forms. The gorgeous mosaic decoration and rose window were put in the 1350s and then in the 1400s, some Renaissance elements were added. Even though it passed through the hands of so many people and through such dramatically different periods of Italian architecture, there is such a beautiful harmony to the building that you almost wouldn’t know. It is clear that everyone paid careful consideration to how their contribution to the building would work with what was already there.

Beneath the burnt sienna rock of the town lies another wonder that you must visit if you find yourself in this part of Italy. A network of caves that date back to the pre-Roman Etruscans, honeycomb through the city’s underground. While most of the system of 1,200 caves is still owned and used by the private citizens of the city, there a small section of it that is open to the public for visits with a local guide. I typically do not do tour groups but this was well worth it even if it wasn’t required I would still recommend. Our group was very small and the guide was very knowledgeable about the history of the tunnels. As she led us around, she spoke to us at length about the many ways that these tunnels have served the people of Orvieto. Because of the cave’s ability to stay at a regulated temperature of 12-13° C, these caverns were the perfect place to press olive oil. One of the largest caverns still contains the massive millstones and presses that were once used to produce one of the most important products of Umbria. In addition to olive oil, at the height of papal power in Italy, the caves were also used to raise pigeons. The walls of one of the rooms that we visited were pocked by square dovecots and I could easily picture the cooing birds flying in and out of the little room. These pigeons were raised for meat and since they basically fed themselves, they were especially crucial during times of siege. At one point we even saw a well from roughly 7th century BC that archeologists believe is the very first underground tunnelings by the Etruscans. If you look carefully, there are even hand and foot holdings for climbing in and out of the well. The final cavern of the tour brought us to the 20th century, when the tunnels were used as bomb shelters during the second world war. Its amazing to think all the life that has passed through these tunnels.