Position
La Maestade is
3 kilometres from the centre of the little
village of Smirra, itself a frazione of
the ancient nearby town of Cagli. It is about 27
kms from both Urbino and Gubbio and about 40
kilometres directly inland from the Adriatic
coastal town of Fano.
The main SS.3 road at
Smirra - along the route of the ancient Roman
Flaminian Way - offers easy access to major art
towns such as Urbino (30 mins), Gubbio (30 mins),
Assisi (50 mins), Perugia (1 hr), Città di
Castello (1 hr) and Arezzo (1 hr 30mins).
Things to do
Pio is happy to
organise a variety of activities during your
stay including horse riding, mountain biking,
tastings of Marche wines and traditional foods
at the ``Alimentare" club in Cagli, and
personalized Italian lessons and conversation
through Atrium
language school in Cagli.
Nearby sights
Although you
might just be tempted to while away your holiday
by the pool, La Maestade provides an ideal base
for visiting scores of fascinating monuments and
towns.
A few kilometres away,
on the flanks of high Monte Catria, is the
magnificent 10th Century Camaldolese Monastery
of Fonte Avellana, founded in 980 by Saint
Romualdo, one of the major figures in monastic
history, and still a thriving religious centre.
The
medieval walled town of Cagli stands
around four kilometres away. It began as a
garrison town on the Via Flaminia, the earliest
Roman road to the northern reaches of the
Empire, built in 220 BC. The town boasts a
number of fine Romanesque churches and
Renaissance palazzi as well as a
magnificent 19th century theatre, the
focal point for the town's thriving cultural
life. Not least of the town's charms is the
lively piazza, the perfect place for an ice
cream, a late-afternoon passeggiata or an
after-supper digestivo during the balmy summer
months when cafe tables spread over the cobbles
and the locals come out to enjoy the coolness of
the summer evenings well into the late hours.
Among the summer
afternoon delights just outside Cagli are the
waterfalls and rock pools along the Bosso and
Burano rivers, perfect places to swim or simply
to cool down.
Alternatively, for
those who like to be beside the seaside, the
resorts of Fano and Pesaro are just over 40
minutes away.
Urbino,
one of Italy's finest Renaissance cities, is
less than 30 minutes drive away from La Maestade.
Built in the 15th Century during the
enlightened rule of Duke Federico da Montefeltro,
it is now a UNESCO world heritage site.
It was here in Urbino
that Raphael was born in 1483. His birthplace is
now a museum, conserving one of his earliest
works, a fresco of the Madonna and Child. Other
works by Raphael and by some of the greatest
figures in Renaissance art can be seen in the
Galleria Nazionale delle Marche, housed in the
city's magnificent Ducal Palace.
The coastal town of Fano
(40 mins) with its splendid Roman archway
dedicated to the Emperor Augustus, is one of the
most attractive towns along this stretch of the
Adriatic. Its charms include plenty of good fish
restaurants and jazz and classical music
festivals during the summer period.
Further north along the
coast is Pesaro (50 mins), the provincial
and cultural capital of the area. Most important
of all its many cultural events is the annual
Rossini Opera Festival, in honour of Gioacchino
Rossini, held at the city's Teatro Rossini. The
house where the composer was born in 1792 is now
an interesting museum.
Among the many natural
attractions of the Marche are the Frasassi
Caves (40 mins), discovered in 1971 by a
group of cavers from Ancona and regarded as some
of the most beautiful in Europe. Part of this
vast labyrinth has been illuminated and can be
visited by guided tour along walkways. The
largest cave (the Grotto del Vento) is large
enough to contain Milan Cathedral. For more
adventurous visitors, 2-3 hour excursions can be
arranged in the company of experienced
speleologists.
