26 June 2013

Into The Mountains


This past weekend was too perfect not to travel to see new vistas so when my Honey and I were invited by friends to a luncheon up in the mountains about an hour and a half from where we live, I jumped at the chance. A tiny village in the Majella Mountains called San Lorenzo di Beffi was our destination. The drive was glorious and we made frequent stops to admire the views.




The last remnants of snow were visible in the rock crevices.



The restaurant of the Inn which was our destination stayed cool naturally as it was located downstairs in an ancient building now remodeled but with its characteristically vaulted stone ceilings intact.





The Inn itself is called La Corte Locanda (The Court Inn) and the original structure was built in the 1700's.





We decided to stay the night and enjoy the lovely grounds and warm hospitality of our hosts as well as the company of our good friends who also stayed over. Next morning we enjoyed the pool and the sun.



The property had many little spots to catch some shade since the day was hot even in the mountains.





We walked around the area and saw first hand the damage done to local buildings in the last big L'Aquila earthquake in 2009 (just before we moved here). The Inn had been renovated a few years previous to it so it wasn't damaged but their neighbors are mostly gone and homes abandoned or unoccupied with scaffolding around them. The Inn and restaurant have been seriously impacted nonetheless since people in the surrounding area comprised a large part of their business.





It was such a relaxing interlude that it felt longer than a day and a half. I came back refreshed and appreciative of my home in this little corner of the world but more aware of how long the earthquake recovery is taking.

12 comments:

  1. What a lovely little place! I hope they can find a way to stay in business!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I hope so. This trip made real the life impacts of the delay in earthquake repairs.

      Delete
  2. It's beautiful. I love the restaurant ceiling especially. :-)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That ceiling is very characteristic and very charming.

      Delete
  3. I admire the underground architecture of the dining area, and the whole place. I hope you go again, and it sounds like they can use the business after the earthquake of 2009.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Our friends are organizing another trip and I'll go.

      Delete
  4. Lovely! Was this remodeled after the earthquake? I bet there is still a lot of undone work.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. No, it was remodeled about 8 years before and it kept them from being damaged. I went to Aquila itself, the epicenter, and there's nothing done other than scaffolding erected. The city is empty and eerie since it's so large and central just before the quake.

      Delete
  5. You live in such a beautiful part of the world!

    ReplyDelete
  6. wiw...what a gorgeous place...the surroundings, the mountains...but that place...love the arches and ceilings....very cool....

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Many of the buildings in our town have those characteristic ceilings.

      Delete

Let's chat.