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.