https://www.facebook.com/cafedeparis.colli/ September 2025 Cafe` de Paris is a wonderful bakery and cafe in the centre of Colli a Volturno. The name of this large art deco style cafe comes from the comment made by Charles de Gaulle whilst resident in the town during the second world war. Colli a Volturno was positioned on the Gastav Line, and was used as a base for a number of allied leaders. Charles de Gaulle stated that the town reminded him of a 'piccolo Parigi' (a little

28 September 2025 On Saturday 28th September, the intermediate-advanced group travelled with Pierdomenico of https://trippinmolise.it/ to Agnone in Alto Molise, about an hour's drive from our base in Colli a Volturno. Agnone stands on a hill overlooking the valley of the Verrino River. The wide valley can be spotted from various points along the streets of the town. Every terrace or panoramic viewing point showcases a different side of the mountain, with its abundance of cul

Within the National Park of Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise live the only colony of Marsican bears, a subspecies of the Eurasian brown bears, which with only approximately fifty individuals, are considered to be critically endangered. Rewilding Apennines are working to maintain and increase the number of LIFE Bear-Smart Corridors, through the development of “coexistence corridors”. LIFE Bear-Smart Corridors aim to improve conditions for bears in critical dispersal corridors, which

26 September 2025 Castel San Vincenzo is a small town, at 748m above sea level, of about 600 residents at the foothill of the Mainarde mountains. The town stands, perched on a rocky ridgeline, within the National Park of Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise. Castel San Vincenzo was created by the union of two small hamlets, one being Castellone al Volturno and San Vincenzo al Volturno. The town, like many other hilltop towns in the area, was created for the protection of the Benedictine

24th September 25 Sights Scapoli is a small hilltop town at 1,208 metres above sea level, with an incredible historic citadel. It's possible to walk all the way around the citadel via vaulted loggia, which have fabulous view from the arched windows. Fights In Scapoli, in Spring 1944, General Umberto Utili, Commandant planned and directed the conquest of Monte Marrone and the subsequent penetration into of the Gustav Line north east of Cassino, by the Italian First Motorised

Whilst up in Scapoli, the rain stopped and the sun shone warm and bright. The next thing I knew, a rainbow had landed right in front of us. It was the first time I had seen the beginning (or end) of a rainbow. 24 September 2025

We were lucky enough to visit the International Museum of the World Wars ( https://www.migm.it/ ) in Rocchetta Nuova, after our trip to Rocchetta Alta. This is a private collection detailing both the First and Second World Wars. The museum has a section dedicated to the impact of the second world war on the local area. All the towns of the Volturno valley were impacted, as they were on the Gustav Line, where fierce fighting continued for months, due to the high positioning, o

23 September 2025 Tuesday, after lessons, was a visit to an abandoned town. Nestled among the Mainarde mountains, along the territory marking the border between Lazio and Molise, Rocchetta Alta is a place immersed in nature just a stone's throw from the sources of the Volturno River. It is an ancient medieval centre that was completely abandoned during in the 1900's, due initially to numerous landslides, caused by deforestation, and then to depopulation due to lack of employm

Sunday 21 September A stunningly bright day today, warming and uplifting. On the cards for me today is a trip to Naples airport to collect my husband, who has come out to see me and to stay for my final week of intensive courses. My lovely hire car, Lola, which was a white WV Polo, was perfect on the journey, despite some of the roads having even more twists and turns than a series of Traitors. A big thank you Matteo at Ecogarage in Venafro , who was fabulous from the momen

On the last night of of the Improver - Intermediate course, the group and myself were joined by some of the family who are an integral part of the Italia at Home experience in Colli a Volturno. The family run and manage the house where the students stay, as well as acting as minibus driver and guide on the trips and excursions. The experience of the students is enhanced greatly by all the family's hard work and it just wouldn't be the same without them. They are part of a Mol

Cooking up a storm Each group of students spent an afternoon or evening at an agriturismo called Casale Rurale Verde Collese, run by Tiziana and Gianni. The agriturismo is immersed in the countryside and is oh so peaceful. There are sheep, chickens and donkeys, a plethora of cats and kittens, plus two polar bears; okay they aren't really polar bears, but big beautiful Abruzzan Shepherd dogs. Pallote Cacio e Ova Whilst the students were at the Casale, they had the opportunity

Yesterday afternoon, we took a walk around a nearby towns, called Fornelli. It's a hilltop town which is part of the "Borghi piu belli d'Italia" (The most beautiful hill towns of Italy). These are some of the buildings- fortified round tower, defendable entrance to the centre of the town, entrance to one of the fortified towers (now a dwelling) views. Also a statue dedicated to Bit-coin (now you see it, now you don't), a sculptures depicting the important things in life - a h

This afternoon we went to an olive grove, in Alta Venafrana, with about 800 trees. The farmer and his team do things the old way, and...

16 September 2025

Tonight, as part of their course, some of the students went to eat with a local family, in their home, to practise their Italian language...

Yesterday was the first day of morning lessons for the new group of Improvers/Intermediate Italian language learners. Here they are, in...

My new group of students arrived on Sunday, ready to start their week-long Improvers/Intermediate intensive course. First, in order of...

So beautiful! (And just a small bottle of red we found in the fridge!) 14th September 2025   #colliavolturno   #molise   #italy

Knowing that you have done a good job makes it all worth worthwhile. 14 September 2025

Yesterday afternoon we visited a micro-brewery in a local town called Filignano, about 20 minutes drive away. The brewery is called...