Abruzzo - Gran Sasso - Parco Nazionale d'Abruzzo - L'Aquila [Meraviglie D'Italia]

Abruzzo is a region that reveals unknown treasures at every step where nature and art blend and the sense of discovery and adventure is still a [Music] reality with over 130 km of coastline. Abruzzo is a region where they alternate Headlands and coves, lively, festive beaches and cool, solitary beaches. Pine forests and cliffs. In the great variety of environments you encounter, you can experience moments of true [Music] emotion. The region has a fantastic heritage rich in monuments of art, culture and traditions [Music ] Pescara is located on the Adriatic At the mouth of the river of the same name, nestled between the hills and the sea, the appearance of Pescara, the most important coastal city in Abruzzo, is definitely that of a modern city with an avant-garde vision together with the Palazzo delle Post Office and with the Government Palace, the city palace is a typical example of the Liberty architecture that characterized the urban expansion of Pescara in the first half of the twentieth century. The high Civic Tower covered in red bricks and surmounted by an arched loggia represents the symbol of Pescara citizenship [Music] on the façade of the government palace stands out the imposing portal crowned by a balcony and adorned with large windows on the Binate semi-columns the bases that support four large sculptures by Guido Costanzo stand out. The palace is preceded by a garden that hosts an artistic Fountain [Musica] monument a monumental Cippo with the bust of Gabriele D'Annunzio is located next to the [Musica] fountain the municipality the province on the side Castellammare Adriatico are buildings that form a large monumental square today Piazza Italia the new center [Music] young citizen with an almost immature appearance, this is how Pescara appears from a cultural point of view and yet the most ancient archaeological finds found on the hills surrounding it date the first urban settlements in this area to around 2000 BC the true growth of this center occurred under the Roman Empire when aternum this was its ancient name became the most important port of the empire for the Illyrian coasts and crossroads of all trade between Rome and the Adriatic coastal life it must arrive at the Lombard domination around 'year 1000 to hear about piscaria Which means fish market the most significant of the foreign dominations was undoubtedly the Spanish one around 1500 [Music] the Port area is certainly the liveliest of the city The area is made up of the canal port and from the tourist [Music] port Porto Canale is one of the largest canal ports in Europe. Its construction dates back to the 19th century and was part of the propulsive function of the ports which the Abruzzo road policy wanted to rely on to accelerate the economic progress of the city. engineer Mati also ensured entry to shell boats deeper than those of the fishing boats and also to small merchant ships. Furthermore, to overcome the inconvenience of the phenomenon of the undertow inside the river where the fishing boats would have moored, the two guardian piers were built on stilts the task of breaking the incoming wave motion. The undertow is that phenomenon of waves inside the port which does not allow boats or ships to be moored peacefully along the canal port busy with fishing boats. The trabocchi survive, small wooden houses built on a kind of stilts. and traditionally used for [Music] fishing the sea bridge is a wonderful cable-stayed cycle-pedestrian bridge designed by the architect Walter Pickler. Its construction is an important event for the city because as well as being a physical means of passage, the work achieves the union between the two Marinas between two parts of the city and therefore also among the people for the people of Pescara it represents a symbol a new point of reference as well as making connections more fluid the bridge accelerates the process of recovery and redevelopment of the port area towards a natural vocation tourist accommodation [Music] the bridge is certainly a new architectural language an architecture with expressive geometry that creates new potential and fluid forms perceivable from every angle with its 466 m of length between the shoulders and the 172 m of span of the suspended deck it is the largest Italian cycle-pedestrian bridge and one of the largest in Europe [Music] heavily bombed during the Second World War Pescara was largely rebuilt in a rationalistic style after the war by the architect Luigi Picnato who took care of the reconstruction plan. Currently numerous are the works of prestigious international architects that enrich the urban space and others will soon see the light [Music] one of the peculiarities of Pescara is the fervent life of the city concentrated particularly in the Borgo Vecchio there are pleasant and long paved streets entirely pedestrianized located between Piazza Garibaldi and Piazza Unione full of shops and commercial premises, the streets are a concentration of pubs, wine bars and wine bars and are mainly populated at night when the people of Pescara and the many students from the nearby university converge there to exchange a few chats accompanied by a drink and good [Music] music The birthplace of the poet is an eighteenth-century building owned by the family starting from the 19th century which was declared a National Monument in 1927. It was renovated for its opening by Giancarlo Maroni, an architect trusted by the poet. The birthplace museum of Gabriele D'Annunzio occupies the first floor of the building where the poet was born and spent his childhood still retains the original nineteenth-century atmosphere with its elegant wall decorations and its period furnishings, an atmosphere that often returns in D'Annunzio's work in the form of visions, impressions and related memories above all to the strong value that family affections [Music] had for him Pietro Cascella created the monument to the fallen in Piazza Garibaldi he creates his large-format works often characterized by a profound civil sensitivity [Music] the Cathedral and parish church of San Cetteo it stands in Viale D'Annunzio south of the Pescara river in the area that before unification was called Pescara Porta Nuova. The church is named after the martyr bishop of Amiterno, patron saint of the city who lived between the sixth and seventh centuries but is also known as a national temple of the Conciliation, the name given to it in memory of the stipulation of the Lateran Pacts. The façade, made of white stone, has three entrance portals surmounted by as many rose windows and a rectilinear crown. The central portal is flanked by two sculptures and surmounted by three others [Music] [Music] the Abruzzo coast extends for approximately 130 km and is bathed by a very clear sea framed by a great variety of landscapes and can be divided into the three provinces of Teramo, Pescara and Chieti. The central area of ​​the Abruzzo Coast is the Pescara Coast Center of commercial and fishing activity with a large presence of sailors and the characteristic fishing boats it offers at the same time beautiful seaside resorts such as the beaches of Pescara and the beach of Monte [Musica] Silvano Pescara is an important seaside resort on the Adriatic Sea very frequented by tourists because of the beautiful coastline surrounded by green pine forests such as the well-known Avalos pine forest. The coast is low and sandy. The beach extends continuously to the north and south of the river and in the northern part reaches a width of about 140 m [Music] this location presents itself as a combination of splendid sandy beaches, the clear waters of the Adriatic and an efficiency that allows numerous activities to be carried out for all tastes [Music] the fountain on the ship consists of a rectangular basin in Carrara marble very close to the The beach of the [Musica] beach in the center of the basin is the stylized sculpture of an ancient rowing boat commonly known as Piazza Salotto. The birthplace square is in the heart of the city center. It is the busiest square in the city. It is large and spacious and is totally pedestrianized so you can walk and play, meet and talk. The tall palm trees that decorate them are a legacy of the private villa that stood there. It is surrounded by porticoed buildings on the sides. The square is divided in two by Corso Umberto I and a tree-lined traffic island [Music] today Pescara has a development notable enough to be called small manattan, taking on the appearance of a true Metropolis to which the railway station built in 1988 also contributed and which changed the face of the city which became the most important railway hub along the Adriatic coast [Music] the church of the Sacred Cuore is an exposed brick building which was opened for worship in 1900, still incomplete, to replace the small church of Sant'Anna Sita inside Villa Muzzi on Viale Bovio. Pescara finds its foundation in the historical role that the lands of Abruzzo assumed over the centuries as a connection and obligatory passage between the central and southern regions and in the proximity to Rome which has had its importance since the first centuries of Christianity in the process of evangelization the important historical-religious testimonies place Abruzzo as a tourist hub spiritual from Santiago De Compostela to the Holy Land from Rome to the Holy Land and as an ideal destination for a journey into the many faces of Christian spirituality another peculiarity extended to the entire Pescara coast and the surrounding areas are the trabocchi, a sort of scaffolding on stilts used for fishing for local fish and clearly visible even from afar whose characteristic shape interrupts the profile of the sea on the horizon several times. of piles in the rock typical of the Middle Adriatic and lower Italian coast, simple constructions which, by exploiting elementary techniques of joints and counterweights, have always defeated the furious attacks of the sea. today with charm and perhaps even mystery they embellish the coastline, attracting attention and curiosity, suspended between land and sea, the trabocchi are witnesses of a traditional economic culture of the coastal populations of Abruzzo and of their intimate essence characterized by a continuous integration between fishing and activities [ Music] agricultural the Abruzzo territory constitutes the beating heart of nature tourism with corners of paradise With green areas and solitary valleys Abruzzo between the Apennines and the sea is a land to be discovered, it has long remained distant and secluded but has finally begun to be rediscovered as it deserves as Many Abruzzo towns located along the coast Giulianova is also divided into two residential settlements one the original town on a hill a short distance from the m the other developed in recent years positioned near the beach the monument to Vittorio Emanuele II a grandiose bronze work of rompers was erected to commemorate the visit of the first king of Italy to the city Giulianova was an ancient Roman colony founded in 290 BC At the mouth of the Tordino river with the name of castrum novum Giulianova is divided into a hilly nucleus and in a coastal area the city was designed according to an original and rational urban plan inspired by the Renaissance architectural trend that aimed at the creation of the ideal city. The heart of this utopia was Piazza Buozzi with the Palazzo Ducale degli Acquaviva and the dome of the imposing Cathedral of San Flaviano San Flaviano the octagonal church that we admire today in Giulianova dates back to the 15th [Music] century according to a legend the remains of San Flaviano were embarked at the behest of the empress Galla Placidia to be sent to Ravenna during the journey by ship perhaps after a storm it landed without a crew on the coast of castrum novum piceni, today's Giulianova which from that moment took the name of Castel San Flaviano [Music] the city beach in Giulianova Lido is known as one of the Seven Sisters pearls set on the coast so they are called the tourist resorts of the province of Teramo A kilometre-long blond beach in the shape of a Gulf delimited by the Salinello and Tordino streams laps the Julian seafront for its entire extension and its notable width which often exceeds 150 m [Music] the city of Giulianova takes the name comes from its founder Giuliantonio Acquaviva who began construction in around 1472 and is today an important seaside resort on the Abruzzo Riviera where art, history and tourism blend in harmony. The modern Giulianova Lido area is decidedly dedicated to tourism with numerous hotels tourist villages and equipped beaches developed along the coast characterized by expanses of fine sand, few places in the world can rival Italy for the extension of over 8,000 km of coastline offered by the configuration of the country and the variety of its beaches the roots of the cult of Sun sinks into the history of Italy branching out towards every latitude of the local culture on the eastern coast the Adriatic Sea laps wide and regular beaches Nature Art culture and relaxation these are the characteristics that qualify a truly enchanting Riviera with its low and sandy golden beaches which reflect faithfully the geology of the Middle Adriatic, a large seaside resort, Rosetto degli Abruzzi arose at the beginning of the Noc as the Marino di Monte pagan district between the Foci Del Vomano and the Tordino. Roseto degli Abruzzi is today a dynamic and pulsating city that has been able to link the own name to important events of international importance both in the cultural and sporting fields. In the context of culture, noteworthy are the painting exhibitions that embellish the municipal villa every summer and the Film Festival [Music] the current building of the church of Santa Maria Assunta in ancient times called the church of San Filomena it was built in the early [Music] 1900 the church has a beautiful terracotta altar and you can admire the painting The Holy Family by the Rosetan Pasquale Celommi [Music] the seaside resort is one of the most important of the Abruzzo Riviera one of the seven pearls of the Teramo garden coast known for being among the most beautiful and cleanest beaches on the Adriatic with its wide beaches of soft sand and its shallow waters Roseto In fact it was born 135 years ago as an emanation of the medieval village of Montepagano on the hill [Music] overlooking olive groves and manicured vineyards of the Teramo hills with unusual walking routes between medieval villages and seaside towns allowing you to immerse yourself in the culture, art and folklore of this piece [Music] of Abruzzo near the Cerrano beach in the municipality of Pineto the presence of an ancient tower gives a unique charm to the place the ancient port of Cerrano is in fact one of the defensive outposts of a larger system of watchtowers built by the Spanish in the 16th century in the stretch that goes from the Trigno river to the Tronto, an important seaside resort of Pineto close to the hills of Teramo, owes its name to the shady and lush pine forests that line the coast for over 4 km. The historic pine forest was begun in 1926 when Luigi Filiani decided to plant 2000 pine trees on the land granted to him Then a hamlet of the municipality of Mutignano, later destined to change its name to Pineto to celebrate the well-known poem by Annunziana of The Rain in the [Music] Pineto, the imposing fortified structure with a pyramidal rhythm testifies to the richness that the Teramo Riviera can offer also from the point of archaeological and cultural view Ortona, a seaside town in Abruzzo with the greatest extension of coastline, approximately 20 km, is the point at which the Adriatic abandons the flatness for which it is known to begin to move, giving life to a suggestive coastline worthy of the most surprising Mediterranean panoramas from first promontory of Ortona there is a series of romantic hidden pebble coves including the Ripari di Giobbe the Ripari di Giobbe hamlet is known for the homonymous cove with crystal clear waters with its white pebble beach this stretch of sea can only be reached on foot or by sea [Music] the Ripari di Giobbe are immersed in the Mediterranean scrub that covers the hilly wall close to the cove, the clear water and the rocky seabed make the area ideal for practicing water sports such as snorkeling and swimming [Music] [Music ] the Abruzzo territory constitutes the beating heart of nature tourism with corners of paradise With green areas, enchanting beaches, solitary valleys, waterfalls and immense plateaus and protected areas where it becomes an emotion to experience in all seasons, each with its own colours, its own landscapes and its [Music] perfumes Known throughout the world for its nature, Abruzzo exhibits like a large open-air museum without opening hours or walls works of art and monuments in its peculiar and intact landscape there is no dominant top town that does not have its tower its castle its fortified enclosure the historical reasons are simple a very long period of internal and external danger which forced each community to provide for its own [Music] defense Abruzzo is the largest and most complete Italian open-air museum of In fact, military architecture boasts at least one example of good quality for every type of fortification [Music] known. The Aragonese Castle built in the 15th century stands on the promontory called the Pizzuta which falls sheer into the sea from which it dominates the suggestive Adriatic coast over the centuries it was originally subjected to various modifications and renovations. The manor had a trapezoidal plan with highly scarped cylindrical towers at the corners according to the Aragonese scheme widespread throughout the midday. The wall is made up of regularly squared stones, pebbles and [Music] bricks Ortona originally a Roman municipality it was first burned down by the Normans and then rebuilt by the Swabians and obtained as a fiefdom by Giacomo Caldora who surrounded it with walls and it was thanks to the defense created that the town managed to resist the prolonged siege of Alfonso of Aragon in 1442 in the summer of 2009. After a long and complex restoration work which involved the complete reconstruction of the walls and the renovation of the garden and its paths has been reopened to the public Ortona is a beautiful town perched on a hill that extends towards the sea, once sung by D'Annunzio city ​​and port of the Italic people of the Frentani at the end of the Second World War. The city was the scene of a war event that went down in history as the battle of Ortona, a long and bitter battle carried out with house- to-house clashes and very heavy bombings that almost destroyed entire The inhabited center [Music] the Cathedral standing on the ruins of a temple dedicated to Janus was rebuilt in 1127 after the destruction by Godfrey the Norman the sixteenth-century internal structure is the work of a reconstruction after the fire by the [Music] Saraceni in 1258 was dedicated to St. Thomas following the relics moved there [Music] San Vito Chietino the village of Ginestre as D'Annunzio liked to define it is a charming town on the Frentana Riviera located in a beautiful panoramic position from the Belvedere you can enjoy a wonderful view of the sea and the surrounding mountains [Music] known for its spectacular viewpoints on a monumental coast characterized by the presence of the evocative trabocchi San Vito It is renowned for being a witness to the great passion that D'Annunzio lived in these very places with el Vira [Music ] lions along the coast up to Vasto, trabocchi still emerge, traditional fishing machines made of wooden beams and planks which Gabriele D'Annunzio defined as colossal spiders. The territory of San Vito Chietino includes a coastal strip mainly occupied by rocks and steep descents into the sea that develop south of the town of San Vito Marina with the construction of the Adriatic railway the village of Marina di San Vito developed on the coast, a popular seaside tourist resort [Music] the beaches thin out until they are inserted between the rocks the sand Gives way to pebbles the natural reserves offer unusual spaces made up of promontories and dune systems in front of old fishing structures connected to the land by thin bridges that are only apparently fragile the trabocchi sung by D'Annunzio the promontory of Annunziano San Vito Chietino offers an unparalleled view. The relationships between San Vito and D'Annunzio are linked to a particular moment in the poet's sentimental life, so turbulent due to the writer's multiple experiences and changing sentimental moods. However, one of the deepest and most lasting passions was that for Elvira Natalia Leoni who was called Barbarella by the poet. The meeting between the Abruzzo writer who by then dominated the literary life of the capital and Barbarella La Romana took place in early 1887 and soon this new and overwhelming passion brought havoc to the family life of the poet who, eager to get away from Rome, gladly accepted the invitation for a long stay in the convent of Francavilla, here he found new energy and in just 6 months he completed his first novel The pleasure at the foot of the promontory of Capo Turchino in the territory of San Vito Chietino is the famous Trabocco di Turchino which Gabriele D'Annunzio described in the novel The Triumph of Death as the great fishing machine similar to the colossal skeleton of an antediluvian amphibian. The Trabocco is the great protagonist of the Abruzzo seascape, symbol of the so-called Trabocchi coast between Ortona and Vasto, a historical landscape asset perfectly inserted into the naturalistic context between rocks and a cliff overlooking the sea. Once an indispensable source of sustenance for the populations who lived on the coast, it has always been a commercial city also and above all due to the presence of the port, the town of Vasto is also important for its artistic beauties Vasto has certainly been inhabited since ancient times by tribes coming from Dalmatia from the Romans and in the 5th century BC Crist from the Frentani Piazza Rossetti is the beating heart of the old city The square has preserved Chiara in its curious ellipsoidal plan trace of the existence of one of the oldest monuments of the city the naumachia amphitheater the square is closed From the Bassano Tower which with its slender Mole shows the coats of arms of Aragon and the Vasto municipality the tower dates back to 1427 while the corbeled top is from 1713 in front of the Severa Statue of the exiled poet Gabriele Rossetti absorbed in his reading you can feel the authentic atmosphere of Vasto. the monument is the work of the sculptor Filippo Cifariello and pays homage to the poet of Vasto who was exiled in Great Britain to escape the death sentence for his active participation in the Carbonari uprisings [Music] the Caldora castle built on the hill on which the upper city sits in a point from which it dominates the Marina is a monument with a long and complex construction history. The castle emerged almost unscathed from looting, earthquakes and devastations [Music] built in the 10th century it was equipped with cannons and a tower by Giacomo Caldora in the 15th century it underwent many changes over the centuries used as a prison throughout the 1600s it was militarily reinforced in the 10th century and then used as a residence in 1800 with external additions that changed its military appearance [Music] the history of the name of the cathedral of San Giuseppe is full of events in 1262 Count Rolando Palatino built the church dedicating it to Santa Margherita of which today can be seen on the facade The fourteenth-century portal and rose window, the convent was intended as a military quarter and the church was declared an Insigne collegiate and dedicated to Saint Joseph. The interior with a single nave was redone in Gothic style between 1890 and the 1920s and features a valuable covering with paintings. murals in neo-medieval style with the classic two-tone ism of the fake painted stone ashlars the cathedral of Vasto preserves numerous works of sacred art the bell tower was rebuilt in the 10th century However it has preserved the medieval base recognizable by the large pointed arch Vasto is a treasure chest of art and culture waiting to be discovered, a historical heritage rich in sacredness and testimonies of great personalities enclosed within the walls of a beautiful historic center directly overlooking the Adriatic Sea overlooking the crystal clear waters of the Adriatic protected by a belt of Apennine peaks Vasto It has always been considered one of the most fascinating cities in Central Italy. At the end of the 1400's Vasto experienced the lordship of Nico i D'Avalos who assumed the title of Lord of Vasto. The Davalos family of Spanish origin transferred the splendor of the Iberian Court there and raised a splendid Palace the city for its beauty is called Athens of the [Music] Abruzzi the art gallery contains a sector dedicated to contemporary painting and in particular to that of the 19th century [Music] the birthplace of the poet and patriot Gabriele Rossetti stands on a first structure of the 15th century and was declared a National Monument in 1924 after the war occupation it became the seat of the municipal library strategically positioned in the center of Italy, a hinge between north and south, it has maintained traces of all historical eras in prehistoric settlements and proto-historians of the Italic and Roman civilisation, large cathedrals, abbeys, houses and narrow streets of towns, castles and churches from every century in a variety of cities, towns and small villages rich in artistic testimonies of absolute importance, the church of Santa Maria Maggiore was built in 100, the exterior of the church is dominated by the mighty Mole of the bell tower embellished with elegant Romanesque windows of different workmanship richly carved in white stone in the first half of the 14th century the tower stands on an existing base still clearly visible called the battle Perhaps because it was once used as a special defense point of the ancient medieval nucleus upon entering the church one is immediately struck by the beautiful and elegant balustrade in Valva, the tombs of the davalos and the chapel where the relic of the Holy Thorn is venerated, valuable paintings from the 1500s from the Venetian schools of Paolo Veronese and Titian and the Linea statue of Santa Chiara, a notable work of the Neapolitan school [Music] [Music] the beach is set inside the large Gulf of the same name, a huge moon-shaped arch delimited by the mouth of the Trigno to the south and by the imposing damsel statue called the Little Mermaid it is a very wide and kilometre-long beach of soft golden sand which has a real urban agglomeration behind it [Music] here too, a short distance away in the water the trabocchi rise from the trabocchi platform two or more antennas protrude which make as a support to the large narrow-meshed fishing net called trabocchetto, the different morphology that characterizes the various areas that follow one another along the coast, such as a seabed that is too high or covered with pebbles, has meant that different types of trabocchi have developed in various stretches of the coasts of southern Italy from those present in Abruzzo to those of the Gargano or the lower Tyrrhenian coast [Music] on the eastern promenade that flanks the ancient village opens the ambling Loggia, a splendid balcony suspended vertically between bricks steeped in the history of the city and the underlying countryside of olive trees [Music] The most beautiful corner of the sea in all of Abruzzo is the exceptional nature reserve of Punta Aderci the nature reserve of Punta Aderci is probably the most beautiful stretch of coast in Abruzzo The beach Puntapenna is located near the municipality of Vasto and represents one of the few still wild and free stretches of the Abruzzo coast. It is a splendid beach of soft golden sand, kilometers long which has splendid dune formations behind it which represent one of the best natural habitats. preserved throughout the coast The dunes are dotted with rare vegetation and populated by animals The sea is beautiful Crystalline and transparent turquoise with sloping and sandy seabeds [Music] Abruzzo is a beautiful region where it is possible to truly come into contact with nature with its imposing mountains and its very long beaches and where the tourist has the unique opportunity to experience a land where the sea meets the mountain in the most harmonious way [Music] [Music] the main square of Chieti acquires importance only starting from century when Bishop Theodoric I ordered the rebuilding of the early medieval cathedral the very ancient origins of the city of Chieti date back to the mists of time according to legend it was Achilles the Greek hero who founded the center The civic coat of arms shows Achilles on horseback with the left hand holds a shield on which the four keys appear, symbol of the city gates [Music] on the square there is also the neoclassical Town Hall and the courthouse in pseudo-gothic style [Music] the structure of today's church dedicated to the patron saint of the City However, San Giustino dates back to the 10th century, practically rebuilt in the 14th century and then remodeled several times, it was completed in medieval style in the 20th century. The church is accessed from the portal preceded by a staircase located on the square. The interior is in the shape of a Latin cross with three large covered naves. from barrel vaults, raised transept and presbytery to the main altar, frontal with San Giustino the hermit receiving the episcopal insignia, the religiosity of Abruzzo through the millennia has concretized the expressions of devotion in some great sanctuaries in which the sublime scenery finds the depth of its spiritual instance of a territory made up largely of solitary snow-capped mountains overlooking the sea from silent valleys within which crystal-clear rivers run, making Abruzzo suitable for meditation and prayer [Music] a holiday in Abruzzo not only allows you to discover a territory in mostly uncontaminated but also to appreciate the cultural and architectural beauties