Good morning Civitavecchia! We don’t really have to rush this morning as the EuropCar rental office isn’t open until 9, so we take our time with our morning then hit the pier with plenty of time to get to EuropCar for our rental. We definitely are not going anywhere near Rome as the new Pope Leo is still holding his audiences and crowds are still huge with all the different festivities. We have plans to stay out in the countryside, revisiting a ghost town and a new village with fairytale murals everywhere.
While we wait for our shuttle we chat with another couple who tells us they have purchased tickets on a shuttle direct from the pier to the train station. Huh. Really? This is new to us – and we’re not all that convinced it is correct, but lo and behold, there is a “pay” shuttle that takes you straight to the train. Nice! Took them long enough to figure that one out. It is actually run through the train folks, which makes absolute sense. Our shuttle arrives as well, and we wave goodbye as we head off in different directions.
Arriving at the Civitavecchia shuttle stop, we hop off and head to EuropCar, hoping against hope that idiot no-reservations couple aren’t around. Fortunately, we don’t see them. Phew. And even though we took it slow this morning, we are still too early and sit out front of the office cooling our heels for a bit. Fortunately, we were the only people there, so no problem. We were in the car and out on the road a little after 9am, giving us a full day’s worth of exploring – all aboard isn’t until 9pm. Not that we’ll stay out that late…but still, no rush today.
Heading north into the heart of the Lazio region, we pass all the sights with which we are familiar – the circular road out of Civitavecchia, the fields and farmland that stretch forever, the cool old aqueduct on the side of the road, Tarquinia in the distance.
We pass through the little town of Monte Romano with the single lane archway traffic must navigate through, and on into the countryside of the Viterbo province of Lazio before finally arriving at our destination of Celleno. We previously visited here 8 years ago – and oh my! What a difference. What we then described as the “one remaining little café” was jam packed with people, and there was another place nearby. There are tons of cars in the plaza parking area outside of Celleno – and horrors of all horrors – a whole bus tour! Ay yi yi! Before, there was no one around – only the sheep! Wow – how times have changed.
We park and walk up the long sloping lane that overlooks the magnificent countryside – that at least is the same! Then make our way into the courtyard in front of the castello – which isn’t actually a castle, per se, just fortifications that were used as defensive structures back in the day. Celleno was settled in the 11th or 12thC as a fortified settlement with the defensive walls and buildings, gradually growing in population over the years, particularly after the Gatti family (14thC) took control and transformed the fortress into a fortified town. In the 16thC, the Orsini family took over, giving the fortifications the Castello Orsini name. Devastating earthquakes destroyed many of the buildings, and in 1951, the President of the Italian Republic forced all the residents to move to the “new” Celleno which was further downstream. In the 70’s, Enrico Castellani, a famous Italian painter, bought the castle and restored it, living there until his death in 2017 (which is why we had previously said we saw signs of renovation when we visited at that time – which was less than a month before he passed).
Wandering through the courtyard, there are still the same dilapidated buildings and gorgeous views, that hasn’t changed.
But as we explore further, we notice that there are lots of rooms that are open and have been turned into an open air museum! Complete with props and explanation cards. Wow. We can explore inside the fortress – down into the well, a workshop type room with tools and horse bridles, past a wood fired kiln or oven, into a recreated kitchen, and a room containing a model of the whole town in either clay or carved from some soft stone. All interspersed with incredible views across the valleys and photographic ruins.
Wandering around the back of the remaining town walls, we come to a long boardwalk path that looks like it would be a great place to hike (as we find out much, much, much later – this is the start of a walk to Sant’Angelo, our next destination! We might have actually done that had we known….or not…). As we are gazing about, a tour group appears from below on the boardwalk, heading our way, which is our cue to head back into town.
Thankfully, the square has emptied out and we can wander about at our leisure in the peaceful emptiness of the plaza.
Peeking into the old church of San Carlo we are surprised to find the Talking Machines Museum. What? As we begin to leave, a man starts speaking Italian to us. He figures out we speak English, hands us an English brochure and proceeds to show us around a music museum they’ve set up with these old 17th & 18thC music machines. Of course, his explanations are all in Italian, so we just nod and listen and follow his instructions when he shows Ed how to play the phonograph. He continues to walk us around, pointing out different items – then proceeds to play the Barber Shop Accordion for us, and for a finale, plays the 1898 Melodic Piano. Fabulous! Totally fun.
On our way out, we take more stunning photos of the town and surrounding area, then reclaim the car and make the quick 15-minute drive (see, we could have totally hiked here…except maybe for the elevation gains…) along the high road, that gives great long views back to Celleno, and into the parking lot outside the Fairy Tale town of Sant’Angelo di Roccalvecce, the “Paese delle Fiabe” or Fairy Tales town.
A small virtually forgotten town, Sant’Angelo began as a farming town in the 18thC, hosting farmers and shepherds who moved there to work in the countryside. There weren’t many houses, a small church dedicated to St. Michael the Archangel and a square – but not much else. As the years went by, the population naturally began to shrink as young people moved away to find work. Soon the village only had 100 people living there, all elderly and cut off from services and conveniences, and was heading toward ghost town (Civita Fantasma) status until 2 cousins came up with an idea in 2015 to revive Sant’Angelo through art. They formed a cultural association, contacted an artist from Rome to be artistic director and in 2016 began converting the town into the Paese delle Fiabe with close to 50 murals depicting fairy tale scenes. How could you not visit a place like that?
Thus began a magical journey through the little streets of Sant’Angelo. Murals, murals everywhere – as you can see below (FYI – between the two of us, Ed and I took 175 pictures in the streets of Sant’Angelo – what you see below are the heavily curated ones!). Probably the most important was the Alice in wonderland mural, which was the first to be painted. Note the White Rabbit’s clock: it is set at 11:27, the date of the inauguration of this mural (November 27, 2017).
We literally walk all over the town – taking part in some of the more “interactive” scenes, like the King Arthur Sword in the Stone – with a “sword” stuck in a real stone – but more often than not just being amazed at the art. I loved the Jungle Book mural – and the Snow Queen one with Gerda (or Kay?) and the raven – and the 3 little pigs. So many to see, so many to love!
Taking a break, we stop for lunch at Gnomo Golosi – the gluttonous gnome! So fitting!! Because we ordered the special – which turned out to be an Italian charcuterie bonanza – complete with porchetta!!! So perfect. Including the wonderful fairy tale setting surrounding us as we ate.
After that excellent lunch, we continued our wandering, up and down the steep streets to view the remaining murals. Love the Wolf and the Fox, as well as Pinocchio!
Finally, once we are pretty sure we’ve seen all the murals to be seen, we retrace our steps back past the church and to the car. Not to be too trite – but a totally magical visit to the fairy tale town.
Andiamo 