A MEDIEVAL NIGHT IN ROTECASTELLO

The festa in Rotecastello has undergone some changes in the last few years. Previously the dinner had been served on the soccer field which sits below the town. There was a kitchen and a giant grill for preparing the food just above the field, and the young people who served it didn't seem to have any problems running back and forth between the kitchen and the field.

Last year things changed. Apparently there were new health regulations in force, or someone decided to enforce the existing ones...here in Italy it's hard to know. We were told that the food couldn't be served on the soccer field, but perhaps the problem was with the cooking facilities. Whatever the reasons, Rotecastello eventually got around the problem by saying "okay, we won't have a traditional festa, we'll just have a dinner for the members of our association", which must have meant that different rules apply. Again, things work mysteriously in Italy. Still, the food was not served on the soccer field, but up in Rotecastello itself.

Everyone who came to Rotecastello last year for dinner was required to join the "Friends of Rotecastello" association. You didn't have to pay a membership fee, although that was certainly appreciated if you felt like contributing. Each 'member' was issued an official membership card, and even though everyone still had to pay for their dinner, things were now legal.

The one good thing to come out of this was that people got to be up IN Rotecastello for a longer period of time. Previously if you came late to dinner then walked up into town for the entertainment, chances were that it was already dark and you wouldn't be able to see much of the town....not that there's much to see, but still, it's cute and takes less than ten minutes to see the entire village.

Tables were set up in several different spots, all near the town oven. We thought the system worked well, and were surprised when it was changed again this year. We later found out that the people who owned some of the land where the tables had been set up were unhappy with the mess that was made/left on their property. Our friends who live in Rotecastello say that there was no mess, that everything was cleaned up promptly, so maybe the landowners were just looking for an excuse to deny the use of their land. That seems a little strange to us since the entire festa is manned by volunteers, many of whom are in Rotecastello for a short time....on their vacation. It must be a labor of love, but perhaps this particular family just wasn't feeling the love.

This year tables were scattered throughout Rotecastello, a few here, a few there...a few more just around the corner or up the stairs. Food was also prepared in a variety of locations, and the servers were kept busy running from kitchen to kitchen, then table to table, and in the end there were quite a few complaints about poor (or even non-existent) service. Yes, I know it's a new system, and problems were inevitable, but this new system seemed like a disaster waiting to happen.....and it did, to quite a few people we know. I hope next year the system is a little more efficient.

On the final night of the festa, the night of the medieval procession, the dinner was a set menu, and after paying for your meal and selected drinks, you then took your ticket to a table that was set up outside the kitchen of Rotecastello's wonderful restaurant, La Locando del Borgo. After a short wait your name was called and you received your entire meal at once....how very un-Italian!

For €12 we received generous portions of panzanella (tomato bread salad), beans with tomatoes, farro salad, foccacia bread, loads of porchetta, veal, and to end the meal, cantucci with vin santo. Jugs or bottles of wine were available along with water and soft drinks. We ordered two jugs of the red wine )€5 each!) for our table of seven and several bottle of water.

After dinner we walked to the piazza to see if there were any seats left. Luckily, we found two seats on the side, and settled in. We've discovered that the only thing that ever starts on time is lunch, and knew that the 9:30 start time for the procession wouldn't happen. As usual Anna welcomed everyone to Rotecastello and gave us a brief history of the borgo, so we knew we wouldn't be waiting too much longer.

Sometime after ten, we heard the drums, signalling the arrival of the procession. The drums faded away as the group marched around the city, then came booming around the corner as the group approached on our right. As usual every class of people was represented from the peasants on up to the nobility.

Once everyone had arrived in the piazza the main characters made their way to the stage and presented a short play. Jesters filled the piazza with music and laughter, and eventually everyone marched back down the hill, led by the drums steady beat. Everyone we spoke to agreed that the medieval procession is a wonderful way to end the festa.

FUNKY ROTECASTELLO

This past weekend was the festa in ROTECASTELLO. We didn't go on Friday night, but were there for Saturday's festivities. The menu listed lepre (hare) on the menu, so our friends in Rotecastello extended their drinks-before-dinner invitation to include dinner itself.

Our flight attendant friend (that's her on the right) was flying into Rome on Saturday morning, and after a flurry of emails we convinced her to come to Umbria for the day and join in the fun with us. We picked her up in Orvieto, fed her lunch, then sent her off for a nap so she wouldn't crash during the festa!


As usual, Keith and Janine's terrace was the perfect place to enjoy some drinks and good company. Many of the people who only come to Rotecastello during August were there, so it was nice to catch up with them and to meet a few new friends as well.




After dinner we walked around Rotecastello, and ended up marching into the main piazza right behind the PERUGIA FUNKING BAND. It was clear from the beginning that the entertainment would be lively!

LUNCH WITH A VIEW

Lunch today was on the terrace of our friends Keith and Janine who live in nearby Rotecastello. We all think summer has finally arrived...we've had two beautiful suny days in a row! There are a few more pictures on our FLICKR PAGE

ROTECASTELLO - THE FINAL NIGHT

We had no idea what type of music the band from Marsciano, called "Disclav Epic Catto", would play, but still wanted one last chance to visit with friends and enjoy the beautiful evening, so off we went.

We stopped to say hello to Anna and her husband Manlio, who were eating dinner with Janine and Keith. I wanted to let Anna know how much we appreciated all her hard work, and to let her know how much we had enjoyed the festa. I also told here that I'd been both writing and posting videos of the festa on my blog (and You Tube), so that she could take a look or share the information with her friends.

As we sat eating our dinner...tonight's menu was tagliatelle with sugo (sauce), rice salad, grilled meats and a green salad...a woman approached our table. She began by saying "I read your blog and just wanted to tell you how much I enjoy it. In fact, we're here tonight because we read about it on your blog." Wow! This is the second time a complete stranger's told me that during the Rotecastello festa. The first was Julia, who lives and works in Rome, but who returns to Rotecastello every summer. The small world just keeps getting smaller.

After introductions were made we learned that Beverly and her husband Ron had a house in Camerata. Camerata....that name sounded familiar, but I couldn't remember where it was. Oh yes! Camerata, just south of Todi, where we'd looked at a house right in the centro for friends a year or two ago. Beautiful area, by the way. Although Beverly and Ron aren't here full time, Beverly said they'd found my blog very helpful when they were setting up their household, helping them to find places to shop for various items.

We asked if this was there first time to Rotecastello and they told us yes. On Sunday they'd been in Corciano where Ron's photographs were on display, and where he's been presented with an award for his photography. You can see some of his work on his WEBSITE.

Ron and Beverly are from Toronto, and had some friends visiting (Terry, Rhonda and Ron), so the seven of us had a nice chat, exchanged numbers and plan to get together before they return to Canada.

As we were getting ready to walk down to the piazza, we stopped to chat with Keith and Janine, and with Craig and his father Neville. We told Craig that we thought the large crowd of peasants standing in front of the audience had hindered our views, and agreed. The initial idea had been that by having the peasants stand directly in front of the audience, the audience would feel more involved, more like they were part of the crowd too, but all it really did was block the view! Oh well, every year is a learning process, and I'm sure there will be adjustments made next year.

I also passed along my suggestion for next year's entertainment, although their price may be more than the local bands. As we sat in the piazza the other night, surrounded by the stone buildings and wonderful acoustics, I thought: BAGPIPES! Yes, I know I'm weird.....I love bagpipes and sitars. I also know that Rome has a bagpipe band: CITY OF ROME PIPE BAND . Personally I think it's a great idea.

Because of all the talking, we didn't get down to the piazza until well after the band had started, and there were no seats left. Oh well, that just made it easier to mingle. Art struck up a conversation with some Brits who'd taken the Orient Express from London to Venice. After Venice they went to Rimini, and now of course they were in Umbria....nice vacation!

While Art was chatting I asked Josepina to give me a tour of the remodeling they'd done to accommodate their soon-to-open restaurant...La Locanda del Borgo. Run by Josepina, her sister Mariella, and her daughter Lucia, the recipes will be regional, from Josepina's mother. There are two small, intimate rooms inside, each with maybe six tables, and also an outdoor terrace. The road to opening the restaurant has been slow (amd bumpy), but the opening is now set for August 23rd.

After the tour of the restaurant I returned to the piazza to listen to the band (a very interesting group!), and to take a look at the merchants who'd set up shop in Rotecastello for the festa. I was VERY tempted by some of the oil paintings, not surprisingly the ones with sunflowers...but I resisted.

After chatting with a few more friends we decided to make it an early night. I think this year's festa, even though the planning was quite last minute and chaotic, turned out beautifully. Having the meals served in the centro was probably a lot more convenient for the servers, and it let the patrons feel the medieval charms of Rotecastello rather than sitting in the middle of a soccer field. We caught up with quite a lot of friends and made several new ones, and enjoyed a variety of music in a beautiful medieval setting. Who could want more?

A HOT TIME IN THE OLD TOWN TONIGHT

Last night was the first night of the annual Medieval festa in nearby ROTECASTELLO . A hard, driving rain earlier in the day had us concerned, but things cleared up and cooled off, making it a perfect night to enjoy or favorite little medieval hamlet, Rotecastello.

Of course I don't have the whole story, but here's what I do know: Rotecastello was refused permission to use the town hall's kitchen to prepare food this year! Maybe I'll find out more in the coming days, but whatever the problem, the kitchen just didn't make the cut. This must have come as a last minute shock to everyone, because a meeting was scheduled for Monday night...posters finally went up on Wednesday, and tonight dinner was served in a new, very creative way.

Because this is Italy, we all know that there's always a way to get around a problem....a way to be right on the edge of the law, or maybe just to bend the law, stretch the law, just a little, to get what you want. Thanks goodness those in charge of the Rotecastello festa are old hands at this sort of thing. Once they were told they couldn't use the kitchen in the town hall, they said "Okay, we're going to have a dinner meeting for the members of our club, THE FRIENDS OF ROTECASTELLO. "Sure, that's fine", responded the powers that be. See how easy that was?

And so, tonight dinner was prepared in the large town forno...a set menu this year rather than the ala carte menu of previous years (and the norm for most sagras). Although the crowd was smaller due to the late promotion, and possibly weather, everything went smoothly. Instead of queuing up at a booth to place your order, you now simply stop at a table, fill out your 'membership' form, are given a numbered membership card, and voila! you're good to go.

We love going to the festa every night because we get to visit with friends who don' t live in Rotecastello full-time. Many, many people live and work elsewhere, yet return to Rotecastello for the month of August. Over the years we've made quite a few friends, and it's always fun catching up. Last night we had a table full of people..some like us live here full time, others were friends and family members on holiday, still others were people who own homes in Rotecastello, here for their annual holiday.

After dinner we walked down to the small piazza to hear the entertainment for the night...a local rock back called zero50dieci...which translates into 05010, the postal code! We were all pleasantly surprised by how good they were! They started off with a Pink Floyd cover, then did a mix of both English language and Italian rock songs. We started to get up to leave at one point, then they launched into "Bohemian Rhapsody", so we sat back down to listen to what turned into a great Queen tribute.

Tonight's entertainment will be string music, accompanied by singing. Sunday will be the medieval procession, and on Monday another band will perform, but I don't know what type of music they play. More YouTube videos will follow! You can find the complete program for the four day festa HERE .