A wonderful place: Villa d' Este

Going around L' Aquila

Steep, narrow streets, small arches ans ancient walls: L' Aquila is a stage on which we catch glimpses of other eras of history from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance. And not too far away, beyond the city and the houses, we find the majestic Gran Sasso massif dominated by sporting facilities, a place for fun and amusement.

We walked a lot along the cobbled streets in L' Aquila and the centre is really beautiful. We saw the fountain of the ninety-nine spouts, we admired the churches (Saint Maria of Collemaggio, Saint Silvestro, Saint Peter and Saint Bernardino) and we went inside the thick walls of the fortress. The caves at Stiffe were impressive with the two underground waterfalls, but taking photographs was not allowed inside the caves.

It's a pity that these magnificent buildings are now in ruins, but let's hope that they will soon be restored.

"Golden Hands" PILLOW LACE of L' Aquila

Lace has always been a women’s craft practised to make clothes more beautiful and to decorate homes. In L’ Aquila, this craft is particular, as pillow lace is made, an art handed down from generation to generation for five centuries. I.T.A.S.S. is the school that used to teach girls how to learn this old profitable craft and it still has the equipment carefully preserved.

We attended a demonstration by a skilful specialist and we admired the way she handled all these bobbins and pieces of thread. It was a wonderful experience.

Christina and Ismini are trying their skills on the pillow. They produced their own lace!

Katerina took a video of the demonstration with her camera.