John has always been a real trooper when it comes to our vacations. I do all the planning; buying plane tickets, picking hotels or B&Bs, how many days in a spot, what we do, etc. He does all the driving and we just jump into what is ahead, being very flexible if we need to adjust our day or hotel. Rarely have we had any major bumps on a vacation. There was a biggy a few years back in regards to stolen items, but that is another story with a happy ending. The smaller bumps have been changing hotels, adding a new destination and shortening a stay in one town for another. Easy stuff like that.

In 2010, we began planning our first trip to Italy, to take place in early summer of 2011. As we had never been to Italy, and it was early summer, we decided to go to places not as well traveled, thus avoiding the bulk of tourists. John was game to drive in Italy, so we rented a Fiat 500. I learned never to look behind us when we were on the Autostrada. Kind of self-preservation for my nerves as Italians drive very fast and very close. But it worked well for us not to do the ‘tour’ route, just our own vacation, the two of us.

Somehow the town of Scanno came across my radar and we have never been the same. Experiencing and getting to know this town started a deep seated love for Italy. Scanno is a lovely medieval village up in the Apennine Mountains about 2 hours SE of Rome. An easy drive on the Autostrada, then down a twisting road through the breathtaking Valle del Sagittario.

What first sparked my interest, when researching this town, was the traditional costumes that many of the older women of the town still wore.  Step back to Scanno in the 1950s, here recorded by famous photographer, Henri Cartier-Bresson , and marvel at this capsule in time suspended.  It is true that time marches on and there are only a few of the older women today continuing to wear the traditional costume in daily life. But thankfully, the younger generation is preserving the traditional in exhibitions and annual events.

Some pics from our 2011 trip.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Our introduction to the dear people in this town ‘tucked away in time’ (but definitely not amenities) was with Alessandra Mastrogiovanni of “La Dimora di d’Annunzio” B&B. Not only is her B&B centrally located in the historic center of town, a great place to stay, but it also has historic significance. The famous Italian author, Gabriele D’Annunzio (1863-1938), resided for a few summers here. And the best part is Alessandra. Sweet and endearing, helpful and knowledgeable… now a dear friend.

As I have spoken of before in some earlier postings, it’s the people that make this country great… and there are many here in Scanno that have made this town special for us… Alessandra and her sister Francesca, Angelo Di Masso of scrumptious Pan dell’Orso , Gregorio Rotolo, master cheesemaker, Dario & his dear wife, Antonella of Trattoria La Valle Scanno and many others…You will find that people on the street are friendly..they look you in the eye and wish you a ‘Buongiorno’ or ‘Buonasera’. You’ll be hooked…

There’s much to do in and around this lovely town…winter skiing, summer hiking, strolling around town, relaxing around Lago Scanno (in a heart shape!) just outside of town, enjoying delicious local dishes at excellent family-run restaurants, one of my favorites – eating gelato of course. There are cycle races, cultural & religious celebrations, photo exhibitions, regional crafts…a long list…

One of our adventures was a 1/2 day private cooking lesson with Gregorio’s talented sister, Rosaria. I basically hung around trying to make pasta, while John, with Francesca interpreting, worked alongside with Rosaria.

Just a bit south of Scanno, we met up with a lovely lady, Jessica D’Andrea, who now has her own excursion company, JD Trek L’Abruzzo. Here is her website as well.  A few years back we did a fantastic hike with her, just John and I, up the Val di Rose outside the town of Civatella Alfendena. It was a breathtaking circuit for the day, where we were blessed to see many chamois clinging to sides of the mountains. And of course, some knockout views.

So we fell in love with Scanno and its people. Every trip we made to Italy since 2011, Scanno was on our itinerary to visit for a few days. We would have seriously chosen to live there, apart from the winters. I’m not a winter person. I can handle some snow, but Scanno gets more than its fair share and if you’re not into skiing and other winter sports, visiting Spring – Fall is a better option, at least for us. As we now live only about 1 1/2 hours from Scanno, we finally visited for a day a few weeks back. Of course, we stopped in to say hi to Alessandra, eat at one of our favorite restaurants, check out what the local jewelers were making, have some pastries at Pan del’Orso. Did I get gelato? No, not this time. Way too full from lunch. 😉

We will definitely return….. always… it is very dear to our hearts. A gem… put it on your list!