Villas and Grottos and Monsters, Oh My!

We're in the midst of a holiday season here in Rome.  First, last Sunday (April 22nd) it was Rome's 2766th Birthday (complete with parades in the street), last Thursday (April 25th) it was Liberation Day (where Italy celebrates being liberated from the Fascists at the end of WWII), and next Wednesday (May 1) is International Workers Day (basically the equivalent of Labor Day in the US).  A lot of Italians take the week between Liberation Day and Worker's Day off  of work, so between that, the warmer weather, and increased numbers of tourists, Rome has been feeling a bit too crowded lately!

The Town of Caprarola

Fortunately, on Friday Tom and I got the chance to get out of town on an Academy sponsored day-trip in Northern Lazio. Lazio is also the region of Italy that Rome is in, but when you get even 15 miles out of town, it feels like a different world.  So, by the time we were an hour and a half out of Rome (near Viterbo) we were basically out in the country in a land full of green rolling hills, dense forests, and cute little Medieval towns.

Our trip had three major stops:  Villa Farnese, Villa Lante, and, finally, Sacro Bosco (otherwise known as "Park of the Monsters"). Despite the gloomy weather, each place was absolutely spectacular in its own way.

Arial Shot of Villa Farnese (from internet)

In visiting the sites in this order, we moved from places that were more focused on indoor space (that perhaps flaunted the owner's wealth and power), to space that was focused on the outdoors and a connection with nature.  So, the main attraction our first stop, Villa Farnese, was the beautiful villa itself.

In the early 1500s, Cardinal Alessandro Farnese (who later became Pope Paul III), commissioned the building of a fortress, which was also used as a summer estate for the Farnese family.  The building was designed in a pentagon shape, with its rooms situated around a circular courtyard.

Each room of the Villa was enormous, and was covered with beautiful wall and ceiling paintings, often corresponding with the room's use.  (A room used as a bedroom might be filled with dream-like images, for example.)  Many rooms walked out to balcony space around the courtyard, and beautiful giant spiral staircases connected the building's different levels.  Although absolutely stunning, the Villa was perhaps bit too large and ornate for my personal tastes, but I'm pretty sure that Tom is already making plans to move in.

Inside the Villa Farnese

Ceiling of Spiral Staircase 

The Circular Courtyard

But wait... There's more!  Outside, the Villa Farnese has both "lower" and "upper" garden areas (separated by a 5 minute uphill hike).  Even though the gardens seem a bit like an afterthought to the building, they were still equally spectacular, filled with sculptures, fountains, and maze-like garden spaces.

Upper Gardens

Spitting Sea Creature and Garden Maze

More Fountains

Lower Gardens and Casini

Our second stop, Villa Lante, was my favorite location of the day.  Although it was also used as a country estate in the 1500s, the huge outdoor gardens overshadow the physical structures, and encourage outdoor living.  The indoor living space actually consisted of two casini ("little houses"), which are symmetrically situated on either side of the gardens.  

The gardens themselves are situated over several different levels, with each area having its own (but interconnected) water feature and distinct feel.  The lower gardens consisted of hedges sculpted into decorative patters, large ponds, and a beautiful central fountain.  The small second level of the gardens house the large circular Fontana dei Lumini ("Fountain of Lamps), whose jets were designed to look like the flames of oil lamps.  The next level contains a long stone table with a central water channel to keep bottles of wine cool, and the upper levels have additional fountains, and finally a (very mossy) grotto.

Gardens and Fountain

Pond Sculpture

Fontana dei Lumini

Table With Water Channel

More Fountains!

Mossy Grotto

View From the Third Level

Unfortunately, we only had about an hour to walk around the Villa Lante gardens, but I easily could have stayed the entire day- or a lifetime for that matter.  I used the think that the lifestyle of the rich and famous didn't appeal to me (with it's big stuffy mansions with endless rooms filled with uncomfortable furniture), but if I could trade that big mansion in for fancy gardens, I think it would suit me just fine!

Monster in Sacro Bosco

Our last stop of the trip, the Sacro Bosco ("Sacred Woods"), is a large wooded park, containing dozens of oversized statues carved out of the rock. This park, which was originally created in the 1500s, was rediscovered in the late 1800s, and turned into a privately run tourist attraction shortly thereafter.

Because the original pathways are now lost, there's no clear information on what order the statutes were intended to be viewed in, and it's not even clear what the purpose of the space was.  Theories range from the park being a place to philosophically contemplate life  (most of the sculptures are inscribed with thought provoking riddle-like phrases) to being a tribute to the owner's late wife (nevermind the fact that the owner had dozens of mistresses).

Giant Turtle!

Whatever, the purposes, though, it's still a lot of fun (in a Disneyland-esque way) to stroll around the woods and locate all of the crazy statues.  They had everything from giant turtles, to Hercules, to (my personal favorite) the face of a giant monster whose mouth you can walk inside of.

The park also contained a playhouse of sorts that was built at a huge slant so that walking around inside was completely disorienting.  When attempting to stand "straight" you'd actually be leaning at a huge angle, and so moving around was either really fun or completely nauseating (depending on your personal opinion).  

Crooked House 

Me (looking awkwardly scared)

Tom (doing his best Hercules impression- it may need some work)

On days like this one, I feel especially lucky to be part of the Academy community.  Without it, we would likely have never made it to these wonderful sites (since you need a car to get there), and we definitely wouldn't have had the chance to visit these places with so many knowledgeable and fun people.  I don't often post photos of/with these other people (since I don't know who would object to having their photo online), but we really have gotten to know so many fantastic people this year.   Sadly, some of these people will be leaving the Academy as soon as early June, but, as we prepare for our community pizza party and movie night this sunny Sunday afternoon, I'm going to continue to live in denial that any of us ever have to return to the real world!

Alla Prossima,
Erin

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Sun. April 28:  The last few days have been cold(er) and rainy, but today is looking beautiful.  We're expecting sun and temps in the 70s all week.