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Frequent Questions updated April 2007
Museum of the Abruzzo People in Pescara
Archeological Museum in Teramo
Civitella del Tronto - fortress and museum
La Scala Sacra (Sacred Steps) in Campli
Santuario di San Gabriele (Sanctuary of Saint Gabriele) in Isola di Gran Sasso
Castelli- ceramics
2. Is smoking allowed?
Best to smoke outside the house on the patio. Grazie. Keep it legal because the guy two houses answers to "Poliziotto."
Au contraire. Paolo has a store to run and looks after Casale as a sideline. He points you in right direction and gets someone (usually not Paolo) to fix small problems. He speaks English rather well.
If at all possible, arrive during daylight and when Paolo's store is open. His hours are 08:00 AM to 1:00 PM in the mornings and 4:00 PM to 7:30 PM (and occasionally 1/2 hour later during summer) in the evenings. His store is closed Wednesday in the evening and all day Sunday.
Another nearby pizzeria is A Tizzone in Torricella Sicura. See Nearby Attractions. Good pasta at lunch but pizza is only at dinner. You can try (I did) to get pizza before the oven is fired up at 8:00 PM but you will likely fail (I did). Some pizzaioli (pizza makers) dont take a bribe (bustarella).
9. Is the house heated?Si si!! With our new wood burning stufa "stove" as of 03/07. You are going to be toasty. Have not figured out how to toast marshmallows however.
There should (no guarantees) be a bit of coffee and sugar left over from the previous renter. Hey, leave some for the next guy! Both available at Paolos store. Hard to find American coffee in Italy. A reasonable facsimile is just use less grounds. You can order weaker coffee in a bar by asking for caffe lungo (with shot of water through the grounds) or caffe Americano (extra hot water added to the prepared coffee). Except on Mondays, in VSG you can have a caffe with my cousin, Francesca, the friendly barista, at the Bar 90.
There is a stovetop Italian coffeemaker in the house. It unscrews into three parts. Fill bottom � with water. Put the coffee container in and fill it � full without pressing the coffee down. Screw top back on tightly and put onto a medium-low flame. When you hear a gurgling sound that is not coming from your stomach, the coffee is ready. Take off flame. While cleaning the machine better not to bang the coffee holder to get the old grounds out because if it gets bent then no more coffee.
Should be some when you arrive. Serious worriers bring one days supply. Paolo stocks these at his store. Please leave some for the next person. Merci di niveau!!
Add clothes. To save energy and time, best to wait until you have a full load.
Open drawer on upper left hand side of machine. Fill middle section 1/3 to 1/2 way with detergent.
Find the row of three buttons. Push in first button (start). Ignore second button or push in for half load. Ignore third button or push in if you want the machine to stop and wait before completing the final spin (very annoying).
Set temperature dial to minimum (or 30 degrees) unless you want to donate your clothes to orphan children.
Set big dial on right (cycle selector) to "2".
Close door, make sign of cross and machine should start. If does not you should (gently) re-open and re-shut the front door (of the machine not the house). This is most common reason machine does not run. Door will lock while washer runs.
Open some wine. Two bottles later machine will stop. One glass later front door (guess which one) will unlock.
There is clothes rack in kitchen. Clothespins should be in drawer somewhere. Look for clotheslines around the shed. To avoid damage, do not tie the clotheslines to the gutters of the house.
The folks in VSG keep their windows open during the day with no problem. We put screens on the living room and two bedroom windows. Be gentle. The screens are fragile (Managgia!), will break easily (FIAT=fix it again Tony), and were very expensive (Costa quanto?).
To use screens. When screen is open, at top of window you will see a rail. With both hands, pull down gently on the rail until it is at the bottom of the window and you hear two clicks. Voila!
To raise, pull down and out gently on the cord attached to the rail. You will hear two clicks. Then with two hands guide the screen to the top of the window. Italian screens and women appreciate a gentle touch from a strong guy like you.
Would cost a gazillion dollars and not necessary since the walls (but not our wallets) are 18 inches thick. House is cool in the summer if you follow one rule dont let afternoon sun blast directly into the rooms! Around lunchtime close the shutters almost all of the way, keeping them cracked a bit. This blocks sun, lets in a bit of air. You will be cooler than Leonardo's 1964 motorino.
Certo! Take white folding chairs outside for a picnic. Pasquale the dog or a neighbor might stop by. No surcharge for the panorama bella!
Power is 220V/50cycles. American power converters tend to mess things up (mine sent my neighbors TVs on the fritz until they could figure out who to fuss at.). The laws of physics say that plugging a 110V American appliance into 220V socket will give you .2 seconds of use. 50 cycles means that even things that have dual voltage (like certain clocks) will run 5/6 as fast in Italy. You will have extra time to sleep in the morning but, according to most theories of relativity, will not extend your lifespan.
Like most Italian homes, the supply of electricity is limited. If you try to run a couple big appliances simultaneously, bye bye power. Avoid this by conserving electricity and by keeping things plugged into the wall to a minimum. If the power fails, first unplug the things that caused the problem in the first place. Then check the fuse box by the front door. Finally, you can check with Paolo who may have a minute to see whats up or fetch our cousin, Silvio, to assist.23. How do we pay?Cash to Paolo, bankwire (bonifico), American check (yeah!), postal money order, or credit card (boo!). No zlotys.
Maybe, but probably for only part of the trip. One hearty soul made a 11 hour (travel time) day trip to Venice but the word pazzo (3 centesimi short of a euro) comes to my mind.28. Did Madonnas family come from VSG?
No. But they did come the small town of Pacentro, about an hour away, which is also located in Abruzzo
Not mandatory but perhaps a good idea. VSG has only 350 people with few English lit majors. If you want to chill and hang with the locals you could survive without a car. To see the sights you will need some wheels.
30. Is there parking for all?
There is parking on the street. In the past Pasquale (see above)
arranged parking for his friends. Best not to park your car directly next to
thefront door of the
chiesa(church) so as to allow the churchgoers easy access. If you look on
the back of the church door you will see a surprise and will have a much better
understanding of the mysteries of life. Sorry, no hints, you must seek out the
revelation yourself.
The local bus schedules can be checked at: http://ro.autobus.it/ro/asp/RicercaOrari.asp?User=arpa
32. Have there
ever been evil spirits lurking on Via del Casale?
Not to the best of our knowledge. The local townspeople work in
collaboration with higher authorities for protection from evil as well as
blessings from above.33. What slogan best describes
Casale?
We didn't build this house and you are not going to Italy to add
problems to our lives. Take it easy, enjoy the scenary, everything is already
OK...
- Central Location- Located in a a small village 8 km from the regional capital Teramo, a major transportation hub. A great place to base your Abruzzo visit. Midway between the Adriatic Sea and the Gran Sasso.
- Convenient- Fully furnished. Bus service to Teramo. Grocery, coffeebar, and market nearby. Close to restaurants and hiking trails.
- Che Bella!- Terrace with panoramic view overlooking the ruins of an 11th century monastery.
- Comfortable- Nearly new with modern amenities while maintaining the charm of ancient Italy.
CASALE Definition: A rustic house typically found in a small hamlet or the countryside. The property takes its name from its location on Via del Casale in Valle San Giovanni, a small town located about 8 kilometers (5 miles) from Teramo (population 53,000), the capital city of one of the four provinces of the Abruzzo region. It is midway between the Adriatic Sea (25 km/15 miles) and the Gran Sasso (20 km/12 miles), the highest peak in the Apennine mountain range. Rome is about 176 km/110 miles away. An airport in Pescara is located about 48 miles/80 km to the south. Valle San Giovanni is a quiet town of about 300 people. The residents of "La Valle" refer to themselves as Vallaroli and are the nicest people in the world! Many have relatives who emigrated to southern New Jersey and Montreal. Casale sits by itself at the end of a short alley off the main piazza. This provides a sense of serenity when desired while still allowing plenty of contact with the lovely townspeople. In days past friendly Pasquale could be seen looking out of the corner of his eye as you pass by for your passeggiata (stroll). The town has a church ("chiesa"), one bar (Bar Novanta) run by Francesca and Giovanni Marini, a grocery store (alimentari) owned by Paolo Riccioni, Irma’s fruit and vegetable store (fruttivendolo), a post office branch (Ufficio Postale), and a hardware store (ferramenta) run by Leonardo DeCamillis. There are several restaurants within a 3-7 km driving distance. Casale was completed in August, 2004. The interior area is 62 square meters (667 square feet). There are two bedrooms (one with a matrimonial bed and a second with two twin beds), a living room with a couch that folds out into a double bed (this is where Stefano sleeps as it is extremely comfortable, a fully equipped kitchen, and a bathroom with an enclosed shower. There is a wood burning stove for heating and a washing machine. A ceiling fan cools things a bit in the summer. The screens on the windows were expensive but work well. Parking is in the piazza about 90ft/30 meters away. Crime in the town is virtually nonexisitent. Gossiping in the town is plenty existent. This will not be a problem for you but I will hear stories after you leave so behave yourself! Guests enjoy a patio with an unobstructed view of Valle Soprana (no known relation to Tony Soprano!). A bus runs several times per day between Valle San Giovanni and Teramo. Casale is a great place to center your vist to Abruzzo while at the same time a perfect getaway from major tourist attractions. It provides peace and tranquility as well as the opportunity to take enjoyable daytrips to nearby beaches, fortress towns, and mountains. The onsite manager is Paolo who speaks English and will answer all your questions.................
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