June 2014 ~ Lazio Explorer

Ever wanted to take part in local life in Italy? You know, join in with the ancient traditions, give something back while enjoying something that you couldn't normally participate in? Something that has even entered the Guinness book of records?

Well now's your chance...

This coming Saturday night (the 5th July), the little town of Genazzano will be a hive of activity as young and old, locals and visitors, all work together to create masterpieces of art using the humble petal. This tapestry is made every year to celebrate the sacred heart, the week after corpus domini, and given the religious significance, the locals also don various biblical costumes for a solemn procession through the town. The infiorata, almost 2km in length, has even entered the Guinness Book of Records (in 2012) as the longest infiorata in the world.

Genazzano is a small town of around 6000 souls and is located on the top of a tuff spur 375m above sea level, about 45km south-east of Rome. This Saturday, around midnight, they plan to paint the town red, green, and indeed all the colours of the rainbow, using coloured flower petals, salt, and water. In collaboration with Rome-Countryside, tourists can now join in the fun.

The programme is as follows:

Saturday:

Check-in at accommodation.

Evening - each guest is assigned a neighbourhood group and begins their work preparing the infiorata

Guests can continue working until the tapestry is finished, or can go to sleep when they're tired

Sunday:

Lunch at a specially selected restaurant with traditional, local food

6:00pm - procession through Genazzano

Cost per person (2 nights accommodations, Sunday lunch): 80 euros

Cost per person (1 night accommodations, Sunday lunch): 59 euros

It's a great opportunity to join in with a local tradition, experience real Italian life, and get a glimpse of the countryside outside Rome. All-in-all, it sounds fantastic, and if I didn't already have a stag-do to go to on Saturday, I'd be there.

For more information, and to make a reservation, click through to the Rome-Countryside website.

June is a wonderful time of the year in Lazio. While many tourists throng around the many sights of Rome, the more adventurous have many great opportunities to get out and explore the stunning surrounding countryside. What better then, after doing the Forum, taking Selfies at the Colosseum, and queuing around the Vatican, than getting out to a wine-tasting 45km from Rome?

Vino Intorno, in collaboration with Slow Food Lazio, is over two days at the end of June (21st-22nd) and covers both history, culture, and of course, wine. For €79, which includes accommodation for the Saturday night, entrance fees, tour costs and some meals, you can experience a fully immersive weekend away.

Here's the full programme.

June 21, 2014

Arrival and check in

15.00 Meet in Olevano Romano (RM)

15.30 Tour of Villa Pisa

17:00 VINO INTORNO wine and food tasting evening

June 22, 2014

10:00 Meet in Bellegra (RM)

10.30 Visit to the Arch Cave karst system

13:00 Lunch at a restaurant based on local products.

Included in the €79:

Entrance and guided tour of Villa de Pisa

Coupon for a tasting of food and wine at VINO INTORNO

Overnight stay (breakfast included) at a local B&B

Entrance to the caves and caving Guide Arc Bellegra

Lunch on June 22

Socio-card Rome Countryside

The weekend starts in Olevano Romano, with a guided tour of Villa Pisa and the Museo Centro-Studi di Olevano where, thanks to the impressive work of the "Friends of the Museum of Olevano Romano"over 2000 works are collected and stored, including oil paintings, watercolors, drawings and sketches.

At 5pm, the tasting starts, with both locally sourced food and wine, including the locally-grown Cesanese grape. A coupon for tasting is included in the price. Continuing on the Sunday, we meet in Bellegra for a guided tour of the nearby karst system. First explored in 1925 by two cavers from the Speleogical Club of Rome, the caves can be visited more comfortably today via a catwalk. The caves have a constant temperature of around 7-8 degrees, so it's advisable to bring a jacket.

Frankly, it all sounds lovely! For more information (in Italian) and to book, click through to rome-countryside.it

This post has been supported by funds from the organisers of this event and is hereby marked as an advertisement. However, any opinions stated within the post are those of LazioExplorer alone and are independent of this funding. If you have a sagra or festa of your own that you would like to advertise on LazioExplorer, please complete this form.

Lazio Explorer

Build an infiorata in Genazzano this weekend

Vino Intorno - wine tasting in the hills of Lazio