23 July 2015
Great Italian Gardens and water!
Dear readers,
why don't you visit gardens and then afterwards go for a swim?
On Garda Lake, the biggest lake in Italy, there is a very romantic island that belongs to the Borghese-Cavazza family. The boat ride is refreshing and you will find on disembarking one of the family to take you around.There are really two little islands where the trees, lucky for them, have their roots in the lake. The Villa, designed by Luigi Rovelli, is neogothical and quite theatrical; the garden is full of local plants and a great collection of roses. Prince Scipione Borghese, in the early 1900 went from Paris to Beijing, brought back all sorts of souvenirs that are displayed inside the Villa. I suggest you a light lunch on the terrace with a beautiful view of the lake and its wild life. They have only recently opened to the public so if you are lucky you might have the island to yourself!
A must is Villa Hanbury on the Ligurian coast. Here the Hanbury brothers built up one of the most famous private plants collection in the world. They did it in a time when plants collecting was quite an adventure as boats discovered esotic parts of the world and on commision brought back plants to this angle of Liguria. You had to be incredibly rich, that makes me wonder...if the incredibly rich of today will invest in plant conservation?Today Villa Hanbury belongs to the University of Genoa but is supported very generously by an association called Friends of Villa Hanbury. Why don't you sign up? It would be a good way of changing your status from common tourist to be part of one of the most important gardens in Italy. Villa Hanbury is on one of the most beautiful spots on the Riviera. Once you get to the bottom why not sit in the garden and admire the sea: sunset of course is the best moment.
Now I tell you about Giardini della Landriana. Well, I think that if you don't see what has happened to the coast line south of Rome you can never quite understand the importance of what Lavinia Taverna and Russell Page did in Ardea. The garden is a paradise, especially compared to what has been built around it! However it's great to see the Landriana in the summer, walk down to the lake and contemplate the trees that have now grown to maturity. Stefanina, Lavinia's daughter, is commited to looking after this precious heritage. I am always impressed by how the gardeners keep; the different sections divided into 'rooms' and I always leave with a new idea about mixing plants. Don't go for a swim locally!
Last minute news this evening Villa Borromeo Litta is having an opening night for the new lighting that they have invested in. A completly new concept as the light will be all in led. Just off the motorway tha goes from Milan to Switzerland, first off and literally three minutes drive to the town centre. It is one of the most famous Nymphaeum in the world. Don't miss it!
There are so many events on this week give a look at our website!
Judith Wade
why don't you visit gardens and then afterwards go for a swim?
On Garda Lake, the biggest lake in Italy, there is a very romantic island that belongs to the Borghese-Cavazza family. The boat ride is refreshing and you will find on disembarking one of the family to take you around.There are really two little islands where the trees, lucky for them, have their roots in the lake. The Villa, designed by Luigi Rovelli, is neogothical and quite theatrical; the garden is full of local plants and a great collection of roses. Prince Scipione Borghese, in the early 1900 went from Paris to Beijing, brought back all sorts of souvenirs that are displayed inside the Villa. I suggest you a light lunch on the terrace with a beautiful view of the lake and its wild life. They have only recently opened to the public so if you are lucky you might have the island to yourself!
A must is Villa Hanbury on the Ligurian coast. Here the Hanbury brothers built up one of the most famous private plants collection in the world. They did it in a time when plants collecting was quite an adventure as boats discovered esotic parts of the world and on commision brought back plants to this angle of Liguria. You had to be incredibly rich, that makes me wonder...if the incredibly rich of today will invest in plant conservation?Today Villa Hanbury belongs to the University of Genoa but is supported very generously by an association called Friends of Villa Hanbury. Why don't you sign up? It would be a good way of changing your status from common tourist to be part of one of the most important gardens in Italy. Villa Hanbury is on one of the most beautiful spots on the Riviera. Once you get to the bottom why not sit in the garden and admire the sea: sunset of course is the best moment.
Now I tell you about Giardini della Landriana. Well, I think that if you don't see what has happened to the coast line south of Rome you can never quite understand the importance of what Lavinia Taverna and Russell Page did in Ardea. The garden is a paradise, especially compared to what has been built around it! However it's great to see the Landriana in the summer, walk down to the lake and contemplate the trees that have now grown to maturity. Stefanina, Lavinia's daughter, is commited to looking after this precious heritage. I am always impressed by how the gardeners keep; the different sections divided into 'rooms' and I always leave with a new idea about mixing plants. Don't go for a swim locally!
Last minute news this evening Villa Borromeo Litta is having an opening night for the new lighting that they have invested in. A completly new concept as the light will be all in led. Just off the motorway tha goes from Milan to Switzerland, first off and literally three minutes drive to the town centre. It is one of the most famous Nymphaeum in the world. Don't miss it!
There are so many events on this week give a look at our website!
Judith Wade
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There is pleasure in the pathless woods, there is rapture on the lonely shore, there is society where none intrudes, by the deep sea and the music in its roar; I love not man the less, but Nature more.- George Byron - |
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