ITALIAN ADRIATIC COASTManuela Marchetti (36)    Manuela Marchetti  http://www.villaroncuzzi.it Ravenna and Its HinterlandPosted Wednesday, August 08, 2007 (1 year 106 days ago.) Viewed 60 times. FOLLOWING THE RIVERS SENIO AND LAMONE Heading from the Ravenna Riviera along Via Emilia towards Bologna you come to Faenza, synonym of ceramics worldwide, with its innumerable crafts workshops and the prestigious International Ceramics Museum. The city centre is characterised by Piazza della Libertà , where the imposing 15th century Cathedral and 17th century Civic Tower dominate the scene, and by the arcaded Piazza del Popolo, overlooked by the Palazzo del Podestà and the Town Hall (formerly the Manfredi family's palace). From the Voltone della Molinella, which crosses the Town Hall, you enter an internal courtyard which houses the Masini Theatre (1780-1788) designed by Giuseppe Pistocchi. The neoclassical Palazzo Milzetti, with interior decoration by Felice Giani, is also by Pistocchi. From Faenza you take state highway SS302 which, following the hill stretch of the river Lamone, leads to Brisighella. The village is overlooked by three rocky peaks on which stand the Fortress, the Clock Tower and the Sanctuary of Monticino. The Carné Park, in the heart of the Chalk Vein, is of great natural value. By way of a beautiful panoramic road from Brisighella you come to the river Senio valley and Riolo Terme. A town of waters and therapeutic springs, Riolo has also preserved its ancient Fortress intact and today it hosts art exhibitions, shows and events. The spa premises are efficient and renowned and include an elegant Art Nouveau pavilion. Going back up the valley on state highway SS306 you come to Casola Valsenio. Before reaching the built-up area you can admire the Valsenio Abbey (XI century) built by the Benedictine, then the Cardello, for centuries their guest-quarters. It was transformed into a stately home by the writer Alfredo Oriani in the 19th century. Just past the Cardello, following the directions for Fontanelice, you pick up the so-named "Lavender Road". This leads to the Medicinal Plant Garden where you will find precious medicinal, cosmetic and aromatic plants. A glance at the territory The province of Ravenna runs from the Tuscany- Romagna Apennines across the Po Valley to the Adriatic Sea. The landscape is distinguished by an environmental variety which from the coast - included in the Po Delta Park area, featuring pinewoods, beaches, dunes, marshlands and stretches of fresh and brackish water - stretches over the great plain in market gardens, vineyards and orchards until rising to gentle hills and ridges, erosion furrows, caves and the woodlands of the higher ground. The province of Ravenna is visited by tourists from all over the world for its splendid art cities, its millenary history, the beauty of its landscapes, the precious spa waters and the famous beaches. Discovering the Province The variegated landscape and its millennial history are custodians of great traditions such as the art of mosaics in Ravenna, the art of ceramics in Faenza and the salt civilisation of Cervia. Medieval fortresses, Romanesque parish churches, noble palaces, churches, piazzas, oratories and stately villas constitute one of the dominant motifs of the Province's heritage. Bagnacavallo, symbolised by its Piazza Nuova with the beautiful 7th century parish church and the ancient town centre with winding porticoed streets; Lugo with the Rocca Estense and the Pavaglione; Bagnara, a small town on the plain, completely encircled by the Rocca Sforzesca; Alfonsine, birthplace of the poet Vincenzo Monti, preserves the memory of the second world war in the Museo della Battaglia del Senio; Russi boasts monuments such as the Roman Villa (1st century BC); Brisighella and its mediaeval section with the extraordinary Via degli Asini, an elevated, arcaded road; Riolo Terme and its imposing 15th century Fortress; Casola Valsenio, a characteristic village in the centre of the River Senio valley, possesses gems such as the Cardello and the Medicinal Plant Garden. The beautiful and good Street markets, shops, galleries and crafts workshops offer mosaic and pottery items in a mixture of ancient and modern, tradition and innovation. Of special interest are the objects made of wood and marshland plants in Villanova di Bagnacavallo. The gastronomic products of the Province are precious: Cervia salt, Brisighella olive oil and the shallots of Riolo Terme have been used over the centuries for cooking, preserving and seasoning. The typical local cuisine of the land and the sea offers cheese "cappelletti", grilled meat, grilled fish and, for the more curious palates, frog and eel. Ravenna a world famous city of monuments, renowned for its beautiful mosaics and highly impressive historical places. It is well worth visiting: the San Vitale complex, consisting of the Basilica, the Galla Placidia Mausoleum and the monastery which houses the National Museum; the Arian Baptistery and the Neonian Baptistery, the Archiepiscopal Chapel, the Sant'Apollinare Nuovo and Sant'Apollinare in Classe Basilicas, the Mausoleum of Theodoric, the Dantesque area where there is the San Francesco Church and Dante's Tomb, the Archiepiscopal Museum, and the Loggetta Lombardesca, which houses the Municipal Art Gallery. Bagnacavallo preserves an ancient historical centre, which is characterized by a unique sinuous structure, porticoed streets and by nobility and religious buildings. The San Pietro in Sylvis Parish Church (VII sec.) is truly magnificent, adorned with splendid XIV Century frescoes in the apse. Another architectural jewel is Piazza Nuova, the square that was the ancient location of fishmongers and butchers; it is porticoed and oval shaped, and dates back to 1758. Other prestigious buildings are: the San Michele Collegiate, the Municipal Tower, the Goldoni Theatre, the San Francesco Monastery. It is well worth visiting the Le Cappuccine cultural centre, the Pantaleone farming estate and, in the locality of Villanova, the Museum of the Marshland Civilisation. Lugo is where one of the most ancient markets in Italy is held; its symbol is the Este Fort ress, where you can visit the breathtaking hanging gardens . Opposite is the Pavaglione, an impressive four-sided portico arcaded court, which housed the silk worm market. Also to be admired in the XVIII C. town a re the Rossini Theatre and the Chiesa del Carmine. The Francesco Baracca Museum is of striking interest, and during summer the flourishing flowers blossoming can be enjoyed Faenza its name means ceramics in many languages, among which the French fa�ance and the English faience, but Faenza is not only ceramics; its historical centre preserves churches and buildings of inestimable value. Sights to see: the Cathedral designed by Giuliano da Maiano (XV Century), the XVIII Century Palazzo Milzetti, the Masini Theatre, the Chiesa della Commenda and the International Ceramics Museum Brisighella proudly displays the charm of its urban layout with the rarity of the ancient Via del Borgo, above ground level and porticoed. It is also known as the Via degli Asini (Street of the Donkeys) because it was travelled along by the herds of donkeys on the way to the chalk quarries. Not to be missed: the Medieval Fortress, the Clock Tower (1290), the Museum of Farming Civilisation, the beautiful IX C. Pieve del Tho, the Carnè Park, and the Tanaccia Grotto. Alfonsine is the birthplace of Vincenzo Monti, the supreme representative of neo-classicism in Italy. His house, which has recently been restored, is the visitors' centre for the Alfonsine Nature Reserve; historical interest is vested in the Museum of the Senio Battle, a remembrance of the second devastating world-wide conflict. Russi rises up in an area where there was once an ancient settlement, and preserves important monuments, such as the Villa Romana dating back to I Century BC, with precious mosaic work floors, Palazzo San Giacomo, the summer residence of the Rasponi Counts from Ravenna, built at the end of the XVI Century, and the San Pancrazio Parish Church, which is thought to date back to the VIII Century. A visit to the Contemporary Furnishings Museum is not to be missed. Bagnara is a small lowland centre entirely encircled by the Rocca Sforzesca (fortress), which boasts a Museum dedicated to Pietro Mascagni, exhibiting a collection of the letters and mementoes of the musician, that remained in Bagnara by the will of Anna Lolli. Just outside the centre, the Villa Morsiani Park houses an international centre for studying and breeding San Bernardo dogs. bye!! 
Permalink Comments (0) Special Town In Italy Only 10 Kilometers From Villa Roncuzzi Hotel...to the Discovery of Romagna AreaPosted Saturday, February 03, 2007 (1 year 292 days ago.) Viewed 166 times. 
Today as in the past, the town of Ravenna stretches along the Adriatic coast and, with its precious mosaics, it looks like a jewel mounted in a green frame. It is a modern active town, but at the same time rich in glorious history. Ever since the Augustan age, Ravenna was the urban nucleus of the powerful military port of Classe. In 402 it became the capital of the Western Roman Empire; under Theodoric, it was the most powerful seat of the Eastern Roman Empire of the Byzantine period, and such it remained until 751. Ravenna flourished in the 5th – 6th century, when the Byzantine wind spread its magnificence on the Adriatic coasts: in 540 it became the capital of the Exarchate. That extraordinary period is witnessed by several traces: the Mausoleum of Galla Placidia, the Church of San Giovanni Battista, the Neonian Baptistry, the Arian Baptistry, the Basilica of Spirito Santo, the Archiepiscopal Museum, Theodoric’s Mausoleum, the wonderful basilica of San Vitale (an ancient Benedictine monastery, quoted in documents ever since the 10th century), Sant’Apollinare Nuovo and Sant’Apollinare in Classe. Their great mosaics, which were declared World Heritage by UNESCO, make Ravenna unique and famous all over the world; a casket of masterpieces of architecture and of late-ancient and late-medieval art. Ravenna also houses Dante Alighieri's sepulchre, next to the church of San Francesco, as well as the seat of the Accademia delle Belle Arti and a Pinacoteca Comunale with important works of art. There are also important traces left by the Republic of Venice, such as the Rocca (fortress) and the central Piazza del Popolo square. The former 16th-century monastery of Camaldolese monks houses the Classense Library. Many cultural events held in the town are worth quoting: among them, the “Ravenna Festival" is the reference point for summer music at an international level. The pinewoods surrounding Ravenna – San Vitale, Classe, Cervia – give an idea of the territorial dimension of this place where even the environment speaks the language of history. A territory skirting the Valli di Comacchio. SAN VITALE PINEWOOD – WETLANDS OF RAVENNA From the Lagoon to the Nature Reserve From the road SS Romea turn west shortly south of the river Reno, and you will get to Mandriole and S. Alberto town centres. Here, on the bank of the river Reno, the old Po di Primaro, you can take a small ferry (bike and canoe hire centre) leading you to the opposite bank, near valle Furlana, which is situated in the southern part of the Valli di Comacchio: a protected Nature Sanctuary where Herons, Little Egrets, Shelducks and Spoonbills nest and live. Eastwards you can admire the peninsula of Boscoforte and visit the southern Comacchio lagoons by going along the wide lagoons: if you go ahead towards the inland area, you cannot fail to visit the nature reserve of Alfonsine: a habitat rich in ponds and small woods. The Pinewood Reflections From the road SS Romea, turn via Fossatone to enter the centuries-old Pinewood of S. Vitale; go ahead until you reach a wide clearing where Cà Vecchia, the Park Centre of Environmental Didactics (0544 446866) lies. This is the departure point of a route – on foot or by bike – which gives you the possibility to visit the characteristic small church of Madonna del Pino, to cross the small bridges over Canale Fossatone, to reach lowlands where you can admire Herons, Coots and Ducks, and, finally, to discover Pialassa della Baiona, a brackish lagoon rich in fish and avifauna (a long bank allows to go through it). You can also reach Valle Baiona through via delle Valli (area Prato Barenicolo) and from Porto Corsini and Marina Romea. Among green Nature Sanctuaries Going along the road SS Romea, you can easily reach the flooded forest of Punte Alberete, next to Canale Fossatone. Setting off from the large parking area situated along the SS road, you can carry out your visit throughout the Nature Sanctuary. The route lasts about 2 hours and, thanks to the presence of comfortable observation points, it is easy to admire Herons, Pygmy cormorants, Squacco herons and Ferruginous ducks. In the north of Punte Alberete, a little watching tower gives you the chance to enjoy a wonderful view over Valle Mandriole: a paradise for naturalistic photography and bird-watching lovers, since all the European species of herons nest in the area.
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