About Abruzzo

Tagged: Ortona

Castello Aragonese, Ortona 0

Province of Chieti / The Coast

Ortona

Gateway to the Trabocchi Coast It’s a fickle kind of day and as I roam the grounds of the Castello Aragonese in Ortona the sun skulks behind fat clouds.  Far below, the changing colours of the Adriatic reflect the moodiness of the sky. Castello Aragonese Like Vasto, Ortona is built on a clifftop and the Castle commands magnificent views up and down the coast. Built on a previous structure in the fifteenth century by the Aragonese, the latest in a long succession of invaders, it eventually became a noble residence, only to be destroyed during World War II. Entrance costs nothing and roaming the grounds high above the sea feels...

Rigging of trabocco and sea beyond 1

Province of Chieti / The Coast

An Evening on the Trabocchi Coast

Fruit always tastes better when it’s stolen.  I don’t know who said that but I know of no reason to doubt it. Which is why I find myself ducking under the fruit-laden boughs of a fig tree on a warm evening in late summer.  Forbidden Fruit The figs are the ‘white’ variety as opposed to the plump ‘black’ or wine-coloured fruit of late season. Their skins, though, are green. They are also small and hard, a consequence, perhaps, of the recent drought. But when we peel back the skin the creamy fruit inside is pulpy and sweet. And very sticky. Luckily there is a tap nearby where we rinse...

bike path with sea on left and bike in forefront 5

Province of Chieti / The Coast

The Trabocchi Coast, where Biking is Bliss

Let’s go for a spin “When the spirits are low, when the day appears dark, when work becomes monotonous, when hope hardly seems worth having, just mount a bicycle and go out for a spin down the road, without thought on anything but the ride you are taking.”    Sir Arthur Conan Doyle Why, I begin to wonder, as we heave our bikes onto the car roof, nipping our fingers in the process, is ‘going for a spin’ on the Adriatic Cycle Route beginning to seem like a major enterprise?  And why do I feel anxious?  Somewhere I have read that the Ciclovia Adriatica will end up being the longest...