Capena, summer 2022

Last leg: Bologna-Capena

Nicky stayed on for a couple of days after arriving in Capena. We had a pleasant couple of days mooching around trying to keep cool in 40 degree heat.

Memorable 4-course Sunday lunch by the Tiber in Nazzano at EcoTurismo TevereFarfa
Ecoturismo cat

No sooner had Nicky left, than Cammy arrived for more delicious wining and dining in the heat.

It took a 6 am start to beat the heat on the 8 km Fiano walking and cycle track
Lullaby from the staff at Antica Caffetteria (aka Bar Centrale) to close their Saturday night karaoke session

Once Cammy had left, I started clearing out Casa Marconi as I’ve decided to sell. The Polish couple who were renting it before I arrived have already agreed to buy it.

Zio Franco’s 83rd birthday bash was welcome relief from house-clearing

The temperature was hovering around the 40 degree mark every day of the month I spent in Capena this year – or it was so humid that it felt like it. Any exertion brought buckets of sweat and the need to lie down near a fan. Lottie hardly moved most of the time.

Managed a few trips to Piscina Selva Grande to cool off
Cat in a tree at Selva Grande

No trip to Puglia this year since Wenche and Jan sold Masseria Coccioli, but I drove 4 hours down to Caggiano in Campania to see Geoff and Lucy and buy some of Lucy’s mum’s olive oil.

I stayed at the wonderful Grotticelle, where all the food is grown and made on site and the views over Caggiano are amazing. It was a few degrees cooler than Capena and even rained at one point.

View over Caggiano from Le Grotticelle

I found a dog-friendly beach an hour’s drive away in Paestum and whiled away a couple of days there.

Caggiano’s Percorso Culinario (first post-Covid edition) was the evening entertainment.

Caggianese spritz
Antipasto anyone?
Lottie enjoyed catching up with her half-sister Truffle. Same dad, so does that make her a ‘sista from another motha’ in rapspeak?

Once back in Capena, preparations were under way for the 2022 Incontro – also the first post-Covid edition.

Here we go…
Incontro 2022 – never fails to thrill

So it’s arrivederci to Capena, not farewell. But next time I’ll be renting.

Capena’s famous Leone

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