Road Trip and Abruzzo 101

A bend in the road is not the end of the road ...

... unless you fail to make the turn. (Anonymous)

Speaking of roads, my next week looks a little like this:

ROAD TRIP!

         I am hooking up with my friend in Assisi tomorrow who is also a huge fan of change.  In her own quest to see something new outside her native Tuscany she has ever so gracefully obliged my desire to explore Abruzzo, or what I call "The land of my people," via Umbria and a little bit of Marche.

We will do our best to: 1) Stay out of jail; 2) Not wreck the car or kill anyone (or ourselves) along the way; 3) Post some stuff.  Getting lost is a given. 

Meanwhile, I dug up a few fun facts on Abruzzo during my Abruzzo & its Wines assignment one semester which you may (or may not) find interesting.  For example, you may be wondering:  

  Q: Where exactly is the land of your people, Val?

            A: Well, it is less than 50 miles from Rome, actually! The Abruzzo region is defined by the Italian Apennine chain to the west, and the Adriatic sea to the east, with approximately 100 miles of coastline.  The Marche region is to the north, and to the south is Molise (considered as one and the same as part of the Abruzzo and Molise region until 1963).   

  

            Q: Since you aren't fooling any of us and we all know you'll be drinking your way around Abruzzo, what can you tell us about the wine? 

            A: It is important to note first of all that the Montepulciano d’Abruzzo is not to be confused with Vino di Nobile (or Rosso) di Montepulciano wines. The Nobile di Montepulciano wines are named after the town of Montepulciano in Tuscany and are produced from Sangiovese Grosso (called Prugnolo Gentile). Montepulciano d’Abruzzo is an entirely different grape with intense color, a little sweeter, and with softer tannins. The red wines are dark in color, but not especially complex – they are often easy-to-drink and fruity. From the Montepulciano grape come two subdenominations under the Montepulciano d’Abruzzo DOC appellation:  Rosso and Cerasuolo (a rosato or rose'), which I first tasted at VinItaly last year and cannot wait to get my lips on this year with a big plate of traditional maccheroni alla chitarra!  Don't worry, there are whites too!  I'm very curious about the Cococciola.

Source: ecotour.org.

               Q:  So besides Abruzzo being the land of the Giansante, Caruso, Petrarca, & Pieroni clans, what else is in Abruzzo? 

     A: I'm glad you asked!  Did you know the only place in Italy bears can be found is in Parco Nazionale d’Abruzzo, one of Italy’s largest national parks?  That's right!  I've even provided a handy-dandy link  if you'd like to learn more!
(Speaking of bears, - I'm having a bear of a time with blogger formatting today - apologies for this sloppy posting - but I'm rolling with it - and I have packing to do.)

 Q: Wow, Val - who knew? What other useless information can you tell us about the land of your people?

 A:  Since you are such a curious bunch today I can tell you that not only does Abruzzo provide a natural habitat for bears, but is also the home of Italy's highest point in the Apennine chain.  In the Gran Sasso mountains is Corno Grande at about 2912 meters (9553.8K feet). I know, to my Colorado friends who bag 14-ers (14,000+ foot peaks) for fun this is nothing, but it's a must see in my book!

And? And? DeCecco pasta also comes from Abruzzo.  So there's that.

One final bit of trivia regarding the beautiful, rugged land of my people:  There is a small hotel called Albergo Campo Imperatore at 7K feet at the top of a chairlift from the Village of Assergi, below.  It was here at this hotel where Mussolini was held here after King Vittorio Emmanuele III arrested him in July 1943, until the Germans “rescued” Il Duce on 7 September 1943.  Who knew, right? 

Here's what I do know: 
- I'm looking forward to this trip we've planned out.
- I'm blessed to have a travel buddy who gets that this is Italy.  
- One of life's greatest lessons can be learned by spending a year here and that lesson is that we can plan all day long but what's going to happen is going to happen.  You can downshift, navigate the turns and enjoy the view, or you can resist, bitch and be miserable because things aren't going as expected.  
- Only one thing in this life is certain: change.  
I choose to roll with it. And drink whatever I can get my lips on take pictures along the way.