Ponte Simone -Perfetto per Pontelandolfo!

I stared at the defrosted fish, poked at the fresh spinach and then sighed, “I don’t feel like cooking – lets go to Ponte Simone.”  Ponte Simone is Pontelandolfo’s latest new happening spot.  The caffè/bar, tavolo caldo, grocery store, lotto parlor, slot machine parlor and more is the creation of a young and talented duo – Nicola D’Addona and Angela  Varricchio.  They took over a shop located at Ponte Sorgenza – just down the street from the center of town.  Closed the old place for a few months and gave it a make-over. They even made the furniture for the new dining room.

img_5361

Since I tasted Angela’s cooking, I have found a million reasons not to cook lunch.  My first experience was a fabulous farro seafood salad. Since Jack and I are trying not to eat wheat or rice, finding a place that cooked with farro was wonderful.  We often wander in, look at Angela and ask what we are eating today.  I’ve had roasted meats, grilled vegetables, caprese salads, green salads, soups – no matter what she cooks I’ll eat it because it is always perfect.  The price point is also perfect – I hate to make my USA pals  jealous by telling them that it costs us less to eat at Ponte Simone than it would to buy the stuff and cook it in New Jersey!

Angela also makes the gelato that is sold here.  Please don’t let my doctor know that I sampled some – how can I not eat sugar when there is home made melon gelato!  She experiments with flavors that are unique and scrumptious.

img_5364

Nicola is the bar man, grocery man and everything man.  Even though my Italian is sub par, he smiles figures out what I want and it magically appears.  Sadly, for me, every Campari Spritz I order comes with a tray of little noshes.  I beg, I plead, don’t bring me the snacks.  They still arrive and – gulp – I eat them.  I feel like I’m in a little caffè in any Italian city at cocktail time.  Lucky for me I only have to walk down the hill and stumble back.

img_5362

The couple works with other local business and I truly applaud them for that.  In the tiny grocery store I can buy meats from our local butcher, Franco Perugini.  Normally, I go to his shop but if I am in a pinch and he is closed…

Normally, Ponte Simone closes at 8:00 PM.  They put in 14 hour days.  Then there are the nights they produce events – when no one sleeps and everyone parties.  Music, a talent show, ethnic nights – the creative pair are turning this little corner of town into the place to be.  Bravi!

Every Sunday night, I take over a table in the dining room for “English Conversation”.  Whoever is interested in practicing their English that night shows up.  We chat, raise a glass and enjoy the home-town atmosphere of Ponte Simone

The wonders of life in a small town is that everyone knows your name. Growing up in Flagtown meant I couldn’t do anything wrong because everyone knew who I was and would either kick my butt or tell my parents.  Walking into Ponte Simone and hearing “Ciao Midge” reminds me of those days, puts a smile on my face and makes me remember how fortunate I am to be able to spend so much time in a little Southern Italian village.

Ci Vediamo!

Arts Live in Pontelandolfo!

IMG_5072

Streets are being swept, sets are being built, venders are already setting up their stalls.  The jewelry stores in town have stocked Pontelandolfo-esq memorabilia and the back rooms of bars are filled with cases and cases.  As the energy of the arts infuses us all with good cheer, the whole town feels more alive. It is the arts that make this an incredible week for me.

13775758_1221245064566567_1060994111522203998_n

Kicking off the week is a production of  Dramma Sacro Di Santo Giocondina.  This community production, spearheaded by the multi talented Gabriele Palladino, will be live streamed!  The Pontelandolfo News has a great story – it is in Italian but even I can read it – and a link the live stream.  The play is only on for two nights – tickets are a scant €2 each.  I was impressed with the abilities of the local actors.  Their commitment and pride is contagious.  The saga of Santo Giocondino is performed every four years.  Now that I have seen the process, I can understand why!  This group has been working for over eight months. Yes, in the hills of Southern Italy – THEATRE LIVES!

DSC_0135

Comicron Film Festival is something that I am absolutely looking forward to. This year it is on August 4th and 5th. Initiated by the famous Italian Film/Theatre Director and Producer, Ugo Gregoretti, the festival is dedicated exclusively to comedy shorts. They are in all languages and range from the intellectual to the broad strokes of Commedia dell’ Arte.  My only hope this year is that the audience here learns to be quiet and watch the films – last year I found out more than I wanted to know about a middle aged woman’s love life.  Audience courtesy please.  Jack says he won’t sit with me if I keep turning around  ssssssssssshhhing.

Gregoretti spent his childhood summers in Pontelandolfo and wants to put an arts based spotlight on the village.  According to Gregoretti – (from the Comicron Website.)

“Io sono un crociato della comicità e quindi vorrei svolgere la mia crociata qui a Pontelandolfo facendo di questo paese la Gerusalemme del cortometraggio comico.” Tra le nuove idee e le diverse iniziative culturali programmate, è stato costituito il Centro Studi dedicato all’opera dell’autore romano Ugo Gregoretti, che raccoglierà e valorizzerà il suo immenso archivio, conservato presso l’ottocentesco palazzo Rinaldi, che si compone di scritti inediti del regista, lettere di esimie personalità (da Rossellini a Rodari, passando per Napolitano e Guttuso), articoli e manifesti, libri e riviste, premi e riconoscimenti. Si tratta di una grande raccolta, che ripercorre, attraverso la figura del grande Maestro, la storia del Novecento italiano. Una raccolta che Gregoretti ha donato al Comune di Pontelandolfo. Il progetto prevede anche la creazione della prima Accademia Nazionale d’Arte Comica e sarà, altresì, realizzato un progetto di più ampio respiro teso a rendere Pontelandolfo la “Capitale della risata”. Il “Centro Studi Ugo Gregoretti” è aperto a studiosi e appassionati che vogliono esplorare e indagare l’opera gregorettiana.

“I am a crusader for comedy and  I would like to end my crusade here in Pontelandolfo making this town the Jerusalem of the comic short film.” Among the new ideas and different cultural activities planned, the Ugo Gregoretti Center has been created.  It is dedicated to the work of Ugo Gregoretti and will contain such things as the unpublished writings of the director, correspondence from esteemed personalities(from Rossellini to Rodari,  Napolitano and Guttuso), articles and posters, books and magazines, prizes and awards. This collection traces the professional life of the great master and the history of the 20th Century Italian films. Gregoretti donated the collection to the City of Pontelandolfo. It is housed in the recently restored Rinaldi Palace.  The project also includes the creation of the first National Academy of Comic Art and aims to make Pontelandolfo the “capital of laughter”. The “Ugo Gregoretti Studies Center” is open to scholars and enthusiasts who want to explore and investigate the work gregorettiana.

Pro Loco of Pontelandolfo, the local authority coordinates the annual Festa.  I couldn’t find a web-site, but their Facebook page is full of information.  The other events of the week include on August 3’rd traditional music and dance of Southern Italy and on August 7’th Francesco De Gregori in Concert. The mysogynistic Miss Mondo is an event I will happily miss. The host is – well  – a creep.

We will have a houseful of guests next week.  Two from Holland and one from Massachusetts.  Why are the visiting my home town?  Not to see Midge and Jack but to enjoy the rich culture that can be found in Southern Italy.  The FESTA is just another reason to visit Pontelandolfo.

Ci Vediamo!

Festa Della Trebbiatura 2016

This past Sunday, I had a perfect day.  Jack and I went to an event that I not only loved – but drew me back to my childhood.  Growing up in Somerset County, New Jersey when it was still pretty rural agrarian, I experienced lots of farm life.  4-H introduced me to kids who grew or raised just about anything America ate.  Sunday, I thought of my childhood, how much growing up in a farming community shaped me and the work my grandmother did on her subsistence farm.  Festa Della Trebbiatura in the Contrada Montagna in Morcone harkened back to farm days of old and celebrated the contadini – farmers – of the Matese Mountains.  The type of people my ancestors were.

Did I mention mountains?  Those of you that know me, know I clutch the death grip in our Fiat whenever the wicked Jack drives like an Italian around the S curves sans safety rails on mountain roads.  This trip around those curves was worth it.  The views were incredible.

I need to take a moment to praise my Jack a wee bit.  From the town center of Morcone – which is literally clinging to a mountain – we made a left at the Auto School and drove up.  We didn’t know which way to go when the road split.  We opted for the one that looked steeper on the left.  It was really su, su, up, up.  Shit, I screamed as Jack hit the breaks.  The cobblestone street narrow to begin with had cars parked on both sides and didn’t go anywhere.  Jack backed our large car down the hill and didn’t take the mirror off one single parked car. Hugs to him.

Back to the Festa.  We found out about it from Antonella Lombardi, owner of Bar Mix Fantasy, and a member of the Lombardi family that produced the event.  Thank you Antonella for making sure that I knew about what turned out to be a wonderful day.  When we got to the farm and I saw the rows of seats under the trees and the Priest ready to start mass, I smiled and sat down.  Hearing this great speaker do the mass surrounded by mountains, fields of grain, a clear blue sky and floating cotton clouds started the day beautifully.  After mass children went for “hay” rides on the farm wagon festooned with shafts of wheat.  We walked through the exhibition set up by the Museo del Contadino and I kept pointing at stuff that had been in my grandfather’s barn.  Since we sold the family property and all the relics two years ago, it got a little painful to see  the artifacts.

During the day, people could wander through the World Wildlife Federation Preserve in the mountain, watch demonstrations and eat country fare. One of the featured foods was pecora interrata.  Interrata means underground.  Of course that is what I had!  In the evening there was music and dancing.  Since the zanzare, mosquitoes, and I have a love/hate relationship, they love to eat me and I hate them.  We left before it got dark.

The word trebbiatura  means threshing the grain.  There were glorious fields of wheat in this part of the mountain.  We were celebrating the harvest and the people that make sure we have bread and pasta on the table – the farmers.  The first threshing methods involved beating grain by hand with a flail, or trampling it by animal hooves.  The demonstrations included women doing this.  Women were doing lots of the heavy work – this is still not unusual in our little village of subsistence farms.  What was even more fun to watch was the early threshing machine!

(Uggggg – Jack just told me I have a typo in a caption in the video.  Sorry.)

Ci vediamo!

Midge

Dramma Sacro Di Santa Giocondina

Need an excuse to come to Southern Italy?  Here is a great one – a production of the story of Santa Giocondina.  The play is produced every four years – so if you miss it there is a long wait to see it again.  Every four years, residents of Pontelandolfo come together to share the story of this Christian martyr.  The catalyst for the production is a relic of the Saint that the parish is privileged to own .  It is a huge undertaking!  The cast of twenty six plus people rehearse two nights a week for months in the village’s theatre.  Elaborate costumes are made.  Sets are built and the community gathers to see the life and torture of the Saint.  This year Gabriele Palladino,  the artistic director is putting the cast through their paces.

Rehearsal

I snuck into a rehearsal and was impressed with the caliber of actors I saw on the stage.  They were in the moment, took the roles seriously and we’re obviously committed to bringing realism to the stage.  When I mentioned that to Jack he reminded me where I had been a few weeks ago and why the actors were comfortable on the stage.  You might remember, I went to the Scuola dell Infanzia to see an end of year production called “Paese Mio Che  Stai  Sulla Collina.”   In case you missed the story –  5 Year Old Actors Rock The Stage. The ritual of performing is ongoing throughout all grades.  As are class trips not to theme parks but to wonders of art and architecture.  Residents as young as three years old perform with the folklorico dance company – Ri Ualanegli Di Pontelandolfo.   The arts are a part of life in Pontelandolfo.  (Hmm – maybe that explains my families artistic bent.)

During the rehearsal, I heard actors question Gabriele about their motivation.  Gabriele gently led the actors down the path to the through line of the story.  The narrative places in context the antithesis between good and evil – salvation and damnation. I witnessed characters growing under his guidance.  The cast includes a cross section of the community and all take their roles seriously.  Become their FaceBook pal and see more pictures.

IMG_0032.jpg

 

Eleonora Guerrera (I don’t think we are related) is doing a stellar job portraying Giocondina the tortured Saint.  I asked her how she felt about creating the character –

Quando mi è stato chiesto di recitare nel dramma sacro di Santa Giocondina come protagonista, è stato per me un grande onore accettare la parte, nonostante i miei tentennamenti!! Il gruppo che si è creato è molto affiatato, come una famiglia; lo svolgimento delle prove una boccata d’ossigeno; far parte di un gruppo come questo può solo farmi crescere. Sono felice dell’esperienza che sto vivendo e ringrazio Gabriele Palladino per la fiducia riposta in me e per aver tirato fuori qualcosa che non ero al corrente di avere!

When I was asked to perform the sacred drama of Santa Giocondina as the protagonist, despite my hesitation, it was a great honor to accept the part!!
The group of performers that has been created is very close-knit, like a family. The development of the work as been a breath of fresh air for me. Being part of a group like this can only make me grow as performer. I’m happy that I’m living the experience and thank Gabriele Palladino for the confidence placed in me and for having pulled out something in me that I was not aware of having!

Costumes

The 2016 production features Eleonara Guerrera,  Paolo Tranchini, Michela Delli Veneri, Gianmarco Castaldi, Antonio Addona, Giovanni romano, Gennaro Del Negro, Salvatore Griffini, Davide Cocciolillo and Antonio Silvestre.  Angels are played by Serena Romano, Paula Corbo and Margherita Sforza.  There are countless others in the cast in supporting roles.  The assistant directors is Dolores Del Negro. Director, Gabriele Palladino wrote an article on the back story for Pontelandolfo News – which can be read in English.

The production is slated for the end of July – just before the week long festa of San Salvatore.  Buy that plane ticket and come visit Pontelandolfo in time to see the Dramma Sacro Di Santa Giocondina!

Ci Vediamo.

Bravi! 5 Year Old Actors Rock the Stage

Today, I saw a production that had me laughing, literally crying, rocking, smiling and cheering.  I wasn’t anywhere near Broadway or even Rome.  I was in the charming little theatre space below the new church – L’Auditorium Parrocchiale S. Giuseppe Moscati in Pontelandolfo (BN).  Those of you who know me – or worse yet – have gone to the theatre with me know that I have the attention span of a gnat and am critical of anything that doesn’t flow.  Today, my attention was held from the moment I entered the theater.

This morning, however, having been to numerous badly done school plays, overly long boring dance recitals I was not looking forward to the show. “Do I have to go?  Yes, you have to go. You said you would go.  But a preschool and kindergarten play… ”  Putting on my big girl pants I went.    Going down the steps to the theatre, rock and roll children’s music had me energized – wait a minute – a teacher thought to use pre-show music to set the tone!  Right on!  The teachers of the Scuola dell’Infanzia di Pontelandolfo have theater in their bones.  The show, Paese Mio Che Stai Sulla Collina (My Town on the Hill), had all the trappings of really good children’s theater.  Unlike other school events I have seen here, this was a well scripted production.  It dealt with the immigration of Pontelandolfese to America and the traditions they took and those they left behind. The teachers knew how to use the children’s strengths and weaknesses to the best advantage of the overall production.

Now you know that every little 4, 5 & maybe 6 year old waiting backstage was dying to know if their family was there.  They were probably jigging and wiggling with anticipation.  The creative teachers used that wiggle jiggle!  The reason for the pre-show rock and roll was not only to energize the crowd but to give every little actor a chance to check out the crowd.  A little face would appear in the crack in the curtain – the first time it happened I thought “Oh, Oh, that kid is in trouble.”  Then the curtain opened just enough for the little tyke to prance and dance for 20 seconds while his/her relatives cheered.  That hip hopper left and seconds later a different face appeared, looked and danced.  This pre-show was brilliant for the mini actors and the worried parents.  Everybody got to check out everybody else.

IMG_4792

The set was painted by a teacher.  Center stage is the village’s iconic tower and fountain.  The wings on either side represented places that the immigrants travelled to.  (There will not be any pictures of children.  Without a signed release from a parent that would be a yucky no, no.)

What amazed me, is that this is a public nursery, pre-K, K school and the actors memorized lines in Italian, English and the Pontelandolfo Dialect.  Was the English pronunciation perfect – no – did they try their damnedest – yes.  My niece and nephew went to a Waldorf school and children there leaned how to memorize.  This old school method really works and public schools in the USA should think about it.   The show ran about 45 minutes and the dialogue and singing was well disbursed among the 15 or so 5/6 year old actors. The pre-school children were in dances and songs – including the finale sung in English. Again, the teachers worked with the children’s strengths and understood how to capitalize on those strengths.

Traditional dances and songs were woven into the storyline.  Having seen the town’s dance company perform, I knew that the dances had been simplified – again a move by a good arts teacher. There was some side-coaching but generally the production ran smoothly. (No little people stood there frozen in fear scrunching up their skirts.)

The scene that had me rolling on the floor took place in Waterbury, Connecticut.  The immigrants, now living in an American city, were sitting around the breakfast table in robes, curlers and slippers talking about how great the USA was – mostly in English.  Suddenly, they got the itch to travel back to Pontelandolfo and visit.  With a quick change they appeared in Pontelandolfo in sun glasses, shorts, cameras dangling and hoisting suitcases.  They were greeted by locals and stood there looking stunned.  A look I have seen on Pontelandolfese who return to Pontelandolfo speaking the ancient Italian dialect of their grandparents – a dialect that has evolved.  Today, most people speak Italian.

I do not know the names of the faculty.  They all should be commended!  The arts galvanize and unite a community.  Good teachers of the arts give children a gift of a lifetime.  The confidence that has been imbued in these little actors and the visible lack of fear of performing is a gift that will keep on giving throughout their lives.

Ci Vediamo.

Basta! Non Voglio Eolico! 

DSC_0011

Enough!  I do not want to see another ugly wind mill on one Southern Italian Mountain!  They are putting up more and more around Pontelandolfo, Casalduni and Morcone.  What I discovered is that the local community doesn’t benefit one iota from the ugly things.  I thought they could tax the landowner – who is getting rent.  Or the town got a piece of the revenue generated – or even a break on the electric bill.  Nada.  Niente.  Nothing.

Those of you who have followed me for a while know that I have been talking about the turbines for a number of years.  First I thought they were wonderful.  Than, I thought they we’re ruining the south’s chance to get a piece of the tourism pie.  I mean would you want to sit on the terrace of a charming agriturismo and stare at the whizzing blades and hear the ongoing whoosh of the colossal metal whirligigs?  Now, my anger has intensified – they are defiling mountain top grazing lands.  The mega corporations are the only winners.

My ire increased last summer when Jack and I finished a mini vacation in Northern Italy.  We drove on A7 through the mountains in Liguria and noticed high tension electric lines transmitting power but not one giant windmill between Milan and Genoa. Not one.   Staring out the windows I realized that I also hadn’t see one gargantuan whirling edifice in the hills surrounding Lago Como, any where in the regions of Lombardia, Toscana or Lazio! Hmm, the trees were flowing in the wind.  Perhaps that was an anomaly. Obviously, the wind has stopped blowing in Northern Italy.  I’ll bet those ski slopes never feel the slightest breeze.  The hills of Rome must cry for a breath of wind. Years ago cute Dutch looking windmills were used in Montefiesole, Tuscana for the salt production industry. But now, there obviously isn’t enough wind now to generate electricity or blow out a match.

We are tired of the disparity and don’t want to take it anymore!

The residents of Morcone are taking a lesson from the Dakota Pipeline.  On February 14th, they decided to peacefully stop the building of windmills on yet another ridge.  A mountain that for hundreds of years has been grazing land for large herds of white cattle and its rich soil farmed.  Stalwart citizens stood in the road blocking access to the bulldozers and mammoth drills.  Pleadings, negotiations and dialogue have been going on for years.  The mayors have gone to Naples championing the cause but no one seems to care what happens in the Province of Benevento’s mountains.

Saturday, February 11 environmental groups and local residents organized a sit-in on the mountains outside Morcone.  They wanted to draw attention to the abject devastation that occurs to a mountain by the savage and seemingly careless construction.  Complaints had been submitted to Comando Stazione Carabinieri Forestale di Pontelandolfo, Comunità Montana Titerno e Alto Tammaro the Carabinieri Command of Pontelandolfo and the Prosecutor’s Office of Benevento siting irregularities and asking for urgent intervention and suspension of work in progress. These arguments apparently had no impact.

img_5887

Photo by Pupo in Pontelandolfo News

So, on Valentine’s Day morning mountain farmers, ranchers and citizens stood in the way not of progress but of the degradation of the Sannio hills.

Pontelandolfo News  has a great article full of interesting yet depressing data on how the south gets screwed again – this time it seems by the politicians. (How unusual, she said with great rancor.)

American newspapers have not picked up on this political  travesty.
Errrrrggggggg.

Fittacamere Al Castello

You have heard me go on and on and on about the magical little Italian village that Jack and I live in.  Pontelandolfo is a great example of a Southern Italian mountain town.  H’mm your thinking – will Midge put us all up in her house?  What? Come visit and when you do, you can stay in one of the little hotels and the agriturismo that open their doors to guests.  I must admit, I didn’t realize they existed. Very few local businesses do any public relations or have web-sites.

In August, Pontelandolfo is a magnet attracting back Pontelandolfesse from around the world.  When we first noticed the influx of “tourists” I thought they were all staying with relatives.  Boy, was I wrong.  Over the last few years, I’ve discovered that our little village on the mountain has a number of afittacamere – rooms to let or B&B’s.   I’ve decided to introduce you to places that would be happy to have you.  Now, there is no excuse not to come to Pontelandolfo.   WAIT – that doesn’t mean we don’t like guests.  Well….

I visited Fittacamere Al Castello –  a mini hotel just a short cobblestone walk from Piazza Roma.  It is at the base of the medieval tower that is the icon of the village.  The totally restored building heralds back to the 1800s. The original structure was a granary – place that held grain – and the home of one large family. Over the years it was enlarged and more families shared the space.  Earthquakes wreaked havoc on the building.  The current owners, Donato Addona, and his wife fell in love with the building – sans roof, some walls etc.  He said when they bought it he could see the sky.  It was a total wreck.  They began restoration in 2002 and didn’t put the final touches on the property until 2008.  They did a great job.  You can still see and feel the history of the building. I loved the fact that the owner’s son created a piece of art for every room.

Al Castello

Each room has a fairly large bathroom with a shower, television and small refrigerator.  All I could think about was stocking the fridge with local wine and cheese. Then wandering out to the common area with a good book. Some rooms have incredible views of the valley. There are only about 7 rooms and each one has a different configuration of beds.  A couple have matrimonio – king size beds.  Others have twins or a combination of both.  The “breakfast” room is large, warm and welcoming.  A great place to read a book or write that novel.

The address is Corso Vittorio Emanuele III – oops last year they renamed the road in honor of the Rinaldi Brothers, victims of the 1861 Summer of Terror.  (See Pontelandolfo 1861 story.) The affitacamere is located on Via Fratelli Rinaldi #8.  They don’t have a sign, so you have to know where you are going. Just ask anyone.

To make a reservation or get more information call +39.340.58.24.263 or +39.347.04.36.837.   The owners don’t speak English and or have answering machines. So you can’t leave a message.  Grab one of your Italian speaking buddies to make the call for you or email the owner at Donato.addona59@gmail.com.

Need more photos – hit play!  I’ll be telling you about other places to rest your heads in future posts!  Ci vediamo a Pontelandolfo!

Per Ricordare E Non Dimenticare

Those of you that know me, know that my command of the Italian language is mediocre at best.  No, no, no, do not try to suck up to me by telling me I can do more than get a room in a hotel, food in a restaurant and make little kids laugh.

What I can do is weave a story. When Renato Rinaldi, the editor of Pontelandolfo News, asked me to translate the stories behind the historic sites in town I gasped. “Me?”  Was he kidding?  Everyone in town has to help me with my Italian.

He wasn’t kidding.  What he was looking for was an English speaker with a passion for the history of our village and the ability to tell the story of one of the most horrific incidents in the history of Italy’s reunification – the burning and pillage of Pontelandolfo in 1861.

pontelandolfo-1861

Renato has written articles about this period, spoken at events and edited incredible books that shed light on Pontelandolfo’s role during the reunification of Italy.  His most recent compilation is Pontelandolfo 14 agosto 1861 – PER RICORDARE E NON DIMENTICARE 

This past summer, I immersed myself in this story.  Renato, like a brilliant actor, told me bits and pieces that stoked my imagination.  I am thankful for the opportunity to help him share this story with English speakers.  Follow the link – touch the name of the historic site in town and when it opens touch English for the translation.

Itinerario Storico dell’ Eccidio del 1861

Ci vediamo!