Riparbella

GRANNY NELLA

The sun caresses my cats on the terrace which is the audience to these hills. The sea is down there. I am Caterina but everyone calls me Nella. I was born in this country and I know everything about it. The countryside, I mean. I know every stone, every sound, and every scent of every season. I know these olive trees that dance in the wind and torment us in the month of harvest; I know the trails of the deep woods that I traveled as a child; I know these vineyards, wedged between the forest and the countryside, which are full of hands to make wine.

But now, I live in the village with my cats, between the churches and squares where the old folks still discuss the weather and politics. I’m going to take a flower to my husband down there, to his monument in the cemetery. It is so beautiful and full of peace, that place… You know, at Christmas my grandchildren accompany me to see the animated Nativity. This countryside shines in my eyes and fills me with pride, as pride filled my grandmother’s eyes when I helped her at the country fair. I peeled potatoes when I was a little, but now, with help from Ottorina, Anna, Lucia, Annalisa, and Ubaldina. I cook for everyone, and I am a good cook. My speciality? Pappardelle al Cinghiale. I recommend it: if you have not tasted it yet, come see me at the fair. RIPARBELLA… Do you not hear it? Its virtues are already in the name.

For this, too, you must come

A MEDIOEVAL CASTLE BETWEEN HILLS AND SEA

Built on the summit of a green hill and facing the sea, the village of Rosignano Marittimo is dominated by the castle, well preserved towers, the cistern, and the church of Sant’Ilario. Of particular interest, is the Civic Archaeological Museum with fi nds from prehistory to the Middle Ages. Rosignano has a whole series of trails immersed in the green of the Poggetti Park that open to particular discoveries: the washhouses at the source of the Poggetti, and the Windmill. Rosignano is in the last part of the Livorno Mountains Park that reaches to the sea.

Here, on a small promontory, the ancient Etruscan village of Castiglioncello is today a unique tourist resort with red cliff s overlooking the sea, beaches, bathing establishments, coves, sheltered bays, and a beautiful pine forest. A clear sea bathes the rocky coast between Chioma and Castiglioncello and the beaches between Rosignano Solvay and Vada are famous for their white sands. The hilly hamlets of Castelnuovo della Misericordia, Gabbro, and Nibbiaia off er rural countryside and woods of rare beauty. You can travel through a dense network of trails and ancient paths that lead to points overlooking the archipelago. There are ample oppotunities for sports enthusiasts, beginning with a variety of watersports, with no shortage of moorings for boating excursions. In time, Castiglioncello has inspired artists like the Macchiaioli painters, fi lmmakers, and writers, and has welcomed personalities from the world of culture and show business. Still today, it is a culturally vibrant center.

TOURIST OFFICE
RIPARBELLA
(from June 10th to September 10th)
City Hall Public Library
P.zza del Popolo 22
Tel. +390586.696052
+39 339.4797179
proloco.riparbella@gmail.com;
riparbella@costadegli etruschi.eu