Navelli... A medieval hill town in Abruzzo

When you tap into Trip Advisor to book hotels or look for restaurants, you never quite know what you are getting into. It is always akin to a flying leap off a cliff....with a few safeguards built in. This is what I did many months ago when I planned this explore in Abruzzo and booked the hotels we have been staying in over the past few days. Yes, I do read the reviews carefully and make my decision based on what other people say. So far we have lucked out and stayed at reasonably priced, clean, friendly and great albergos. These albergos are little hotels and usually family owned. Today we left the Adriatic behind and headed toward the interior...destination:.... Navelli, a small medieval hill town located in the mountains south of L'Aquila. L'Aquila is the heart of Abruzzo, if you are checking the location out on a map. This is what we saw from the state road.... A little village that stretched up a steep hill, crowned with a castello and church.

We had booked night in a B&B owned by an Irishman and his Italian wife. The reviews were fabulous and we weren't disappointed. Jimmy greeted us at the gate and made us feel oh,so very welcome. He is a story teller, friendly and welcoming. We passed personal info back and forth, learned each others "stories" and enjoyed a cold drink together. He and his wife have been married for 4 years and have been through two earthquakes together. Yes, this is an earthquake region. L'Aquila is still recovering from a major earthquake that happened three years ago. We spent late afternoon walking through the little village....up and up tiny, winding roads to the very top where there ia a beautiful old and empty palace/ castle. A few people are renovating houses and there are many elderly people still living in the houses where they were born.

 

 

After reaching the piazza at the very top of the town, we looked out over the plains below and the far away mountains. Navelli is the saffron capital of Italy. That means that the fields surrounding the town are covered with blooming crocuses in the spring... What a lovely vision.

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