J'AIME FEBRUARY 2020

you have the time, to take you out of the
hustle and bustle and it is so, so beautiful!
It was also a nice stop to complement
our route to Abruzzo. When you visit the
hilltop town of Tivoli, Villa Adriana and
Villa D’Este are must sees. My family and
I visited the latter.
As I am sure you’re aware, in historic
Rome, the wealthiest of the population
were those in the Papal society, so it came
as no surprise to me that Villa D’Este was
created as a luxury retreat by Cardinal
Ippolito D’Este, nephew of the Borgia
Pope. Since then it has worked as a retreat
for the rich, inspiration for the imaginative
and now as an insight into how truly
advance the Romans were for their time.
The enormous villa is stunning, offering
panoramic views over Lazio, renaissance
gardens, beautiful fountains and fancy
interiors. You find the entrance to the villa
tucked down a small typically Italian side
street, it is well worth a visit. After a quick
gelato break, we drove on to Abruzzo.
For the best experience in Abruzzo, a car
is most definitely needed as the road trips
are fantastic. Our two-hour drive took us
through the Abruzzi mountains to Pescara,
Abruzzo’s largest city and home to one of the largest
marinas on the Adriatic. Pescara’s location allows
you to be skiing in the mountains then within half an
hour relaxing on the beach. I believe this makes this
Italian city one of my best kept secrets. With 16km
of beaches, excellent restaurants and buzz of true
Italian lifestyle, it is truly fantastic and my father, for
one, loved being away from the crowds.
THE MAGNIFICENT
VILLA D’ESTE
On our first full day in Abruzzo, my ‘host’ parents,
Silvia and Maurizio, guided us up into the mountains
to their friend’s vineyard. It was stunning and, other
than the workers, we were the only guests there,
not another tourist in sight. We walked through the
long rows of vines, occasionally picking a grape to
munch on, while the owner talked us through his
sustainability efforts and his family’s history in the
trade. We then followed him to the nearest town
where we were guided
through how he made
his family wine. After
our beautiful wine tour,
we all walked down the
picturesque cobbled street
of this small town, with
our new Italian friends to
find our local lunch spot.
A table was placed out on
the street, our pasta was
made freshly in front of us
and we were all extremely
content.
Over the next couple of
days we explored more
of Abruzzo’s Gran Sasso
mountain. We went
kayaking on the River
37