***IMPORTANT NOTICE***
I have noticed I have a number of email subscribers that are Bots, i.e., not really people. I have no idea why anyone would target my blog as it is non-commercial etc. but for whatever reason, they do. SO I am going to go through my list of subscribers and purge the addresses that look suspicious to me. I’m telling you this so you will know that there is an off chance I will delete a REAL person by mistake! So if you notice you are not getting posts in your email from me in the future you may want to check the page and if there are posts you missed, re-subscribe. Sorry for any inconvenience!
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Greetings from Umbertide!
So August is upon us. The time of year when one cannot accomplish anything because everyone is on vacation. So we have enforced down-time which I guess isn’t so bad. It has been, still is, and will be for the foreseeable future very HOT. Staying inside with all the shutters closed. Drinking cool drinks…speaking of that! August 1 is the day everyone has to have a glass of white wine to keep the snakes away…unless the person who told me that was just pulling my leg! I’ll have a glass of wine anyway!
So I’m just catching up on things now that I’m home and idle. A couple of weeks ago we had a magnificent display of flag throwing. The flag throwers were from a small town called San Gemini in southern Umbria. I took a ton of pictures. Here is one.
And about a month ago we had the opportunity to go on a tour of Civitella Ranieri. This is the castle, built in the 1400s, which is on a hill above our town. It is leased by a foundation based in NYC named the Civitella Ranieri Foundation. It is an artist residency program that hosts Fellows and Director’s Guests at our castle. But on this occasion they were opening the castle to guided tours. It is a magnificent building. Here are a few photos.
Entrance.
Ranieri family tree. The family still owns the castle!
Can you see what this sculpture is. Answer at the bottom…***
Fireplace
Grounds
Lady thought her Chihuahua would enjoy the tour. I’m thinking Not so much.
House for sale
And finally, our friends Joseph and Paul, who live just across the Piazza from us have decided to put their wonderful apartment on the market. It is definitely a one of a kind property in the heart of Umbertide. Totally renovated and beautiful from stem to stern. But I will let the websites which show this apartment speak for themselves. By the way, some of you may remember this one from the House Hunters International a few years ago.
https://viadeicolli.com/en/property/clocktower-penthouse/
And another…
https://www.greatestate.it/en/luxury-apartment-for-sale-in-umbria-perugia-umbertide-4223.html
I know many of my loyal followers are interested in someday coming to live here in Italy. And they also may have friends they can pass this along to. So I am showing these listings from my friends as a favor to them. And BONUS! they are offering $1,000 to anyone who finds a buyer that closes.
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***a mama bunny and her babies!