The History
Ringed by the mountains of the Gran Sasso and the Majella, L'Aquila sits 2150 feet up in the broad valley of the Aterno River. The city was founded in the 13th century by Frederick II, who drew together the communities from 99 surrounding small villages.

Originally, L'Aquila was planned as a stronghold to rival 'corrupt' Rome and the power of the Pope. The 99 founding villages were to be represented by 99 churches and 99 piazzas, but after centuries of war and the ravages of earthquakes – the last in 1703 – only a few of these original traces remain. But those that do are stunning and magnificently restored and preserved.

You can read much more about L'Aquila and its turbulent, fascinating history here. 

L'Aquila is an easy 2-hour drive from your Abruzzo villa for two through some of the most spectacular scenery in the region. And once you've arrived, you'll find…

The Market
Every day except Sunday from 0800-1400 in the Piazza Duomo. Here you can buy wonderful local produce; clothes, arts and crafts; bits; pieces; and, yes, porchetta. 

While you're visiting the market, step inside the Cathedral of San Massimo – better known simply as 'The Duomo'. Originally dating from the 13th century, it was substantially rebuilt after the 1703 earthquake.  

The Churches
You're spoiled for choice, but if you only visit two churches on your day in L'Aquila, go first to the 15th century Basilica of San Bernadino near the Market and then go (by car – it's a little too far to walk) to the famous Basilica di Santa Maria di Collemagio.

The Basilica di Collemaggio is a 13th century jewel of great and simple beauty. The main facade is an intricate design of red and white stone, echoed inside by the chequer-board pattern floor in red and white marble, all capped by stunning wood-beamed roof.

On the walls inside, you can still see tantalising traces of the old medieval wall-paintings that once covered the whole interior. Outside, at the rear of the Basilica is a shady and tranquil 15th century cloister. (A favourite location for wedding photos !)

The Basilica di Collemaggio, which remains open desite currently undergoing external restoration, houses the tomb of Pope Celestine V, who died in 1296.

The Shopping
The main – and smartest – shopping street in L'Aquila is the galleried, porticoed Corso Vittorio Emanuele, which leads off from the Piazza Duomo.

There are a couple of good bars here for a coffee or a drink, (with prices more in keeping with big city Italy than you'll find in the bars around your Abruzzo villa for two). The shops are a rewarding mix of local goods and international Italian glitz.

But window shopping doesn't cost anything and the displays are terrific. The big picture is of the eye-catching window of a food shop. (Far too grand just to be called a deli). The little statue on the right was outside a high fashion clothes shop.

Walk on up the Corso Emanuele away from the centre of town, (you'll notice the prices in the shops start dropping), and you'll come to a couple more famous L'Aquila landmarks.

The Sights.
The Fontana Luminosa at the end of Corso Emanuele was installed in 1930. It's very highly regarded. While I was trying to figure why, my eye was caught by the white mountain peak in the top-right corner of the picture. (Click on the pic a better view).

That's the Corno Grande – all 2912m/9550 feet of it. It's the highest peak in the entire Apennine chain and tucked away in a gulley on its north-facing slope is Il Calderone – the southernmost glacier in Europe.

And if you can still keep your eyes off the Fontana Luminosa, away to your right you'll see the massive 16th century Forte Spagnola. It's the home of the National Museum of Abruzzo and inside you'll find the skeleton of a mammoth, unearthed locally about 50 years ago.

There's one more sight to visit in L'Aquila I haven't mentioned yet. The famous Fontana delle 99 Cannelle – or 'Fountain of the 99 Spouts'. Shrouded in medieval mystery and allegedly concealing another of those as-yet unlocked Knights Templar secrets so beloved by 'Da Vinci Code' conspiracy theorists. I'll tell you more about it next time !

(For larger images, click on the pictures in the text) 

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All the good-sized towns within easy reach of Villasfor2 – Lanciano, Chieti, Pescara, Vasto – have two or three decent enough shopping streets, but the problem is that everything closes down between roughly 1200 and 1600 – and that puts a bit of a dent in your day. Not good when you want to make the most of your time on your Abruzzo villa holiday for two. It means you've either got to get started really early – or stay really late to get in some decent shopping time. So if you want to go shopping in Abruzzo at a time that suits you and spend as long as you want browsing to your heart's content – head for Megalo in Chieti Scalo.

What's Megalo ?
Megalo provides shopping in Abruzzo in an American-style mall with over 80 shops. Chieti Scalo is roughly midway between Chieti and Pescara and about 50 minutes away from Villasfor2. 

When's It Open ?
0900-2100 seven days a week. (But best check first on Megalo's own website – just in case).

Give Me A Few Reasons For Going…

…and this…and this…and this…

…or this…or this…or this…

(Click on all pictures in text for larger images) 

…plus…

• You can buy a car. Or a motor scooter. (Well…you never know…)
• There's a 9-screen multiplex cinema
• And a food court with…
• …pizzeria
• …bar
• …gelateria
• …Chinese
• …seafood
• …pasta
• …burgers
• …cafe
• …and an Irish pub called Vertigo. (Shouldn't that be O'Vertigo ?)
• …oh – and a garage with cheap petrol

Can It Possibly Get Any Better ?
Yes ! Megalo is air-conditioned ! 

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In 'Blog of Blogs 1', we told you about the why's and how's of our move to Abruzzo. So we're here. Where's 'here' ? On the fringes of the Majella National Park outside the tiny hamlet of Ascigno, just to the north of Casoli – which is pretty much in the middle of the map on the left and marked with a blue circle. Click on the map for a better view.

We've found an Abruzzo property where we'd like to live and run our 'Villasfor2' holidays for couples business – but we haven't actually bought it yet. Now what ? These blogs will explain. Click on their titles to read them.

• About Villasfor2. Where in Abruzzo we actually are – and the kind of holiday we plan to offer you.
• Three Good Reasons For An Abruzzo Holiday in November. Yes, a slightly bizarre title for a blog that ran in January. But read it. It does make sense.
• Buying Property In Abruzzo. This struck a huge chord. Seems there are an awful lot of us looking for that ideal and elusive Abruzzo property.
• Abruzzo Food Special – Sunday Lunch At 'La Quercia'. Stuff yourself at our best local agriturismo…
• Ski At Passo di Lanciano and La Majelletta. …and then burn off those excess calories on the local slopes. Or just drop in for coffee, cake and the scenery. C'mon, you're on holiday…
• One Less Property For Sale In Abruzzo ! The blog we'd been busting to write. We finally complete the purchase of Villasfor2 HQ !
• A Typical Abruzzo Market – Sunday At Casalbordino. Time for a little retail therapy -  Abruzzo-style !
• Abruzzo Sightseeing – Abruzzo Flora. Spring sees the countryside carpeted with wild flowers. It's the best time of year to go walking and wandering.
• La Morgia – The Abruzzo Landmark That's Also An Artwork. Spring also gave us our first real chance to explore the local area. This was our stunning first stop.

That takes us up to the start of April 2008. At this stage, the planning permits for our own house and the villas for your holidays for couples were going through the application process. The third and final part of the Villasfor2 About Abruzzo Blog of Blogs will bring you right up to date.

(And if you'd like to mail us – there's a link at the very bottom of this page – below the space reserved for comments !)

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It's hugely encouraging that every week more people are reading the Villasfor2 About Abruzzo blog which I started writing about a month after our arrival in Italy in early October 07.

I know from your mails that you regard me and Pauline as either brave, crazy, misguided and/or visionary, but the simple fact is that we wanted somewhere new to live and to run the kind of small, low-key, laid-back villa rental place that we'd never quite been able to find ourselves.

The About Abruzzo blog is a record of how we do this. To read any of the entries below, click on its title. If you're new to the site, this – and a couple more upcoming chapters along the same lines – will bring you up to date. If you already know the story so far, there'll be a brand new blog along in a minute ! 

• So We Got In Car And Drove To Italy.  The first-ever blog. If you want to know why – read on…
• Introducing – Selva di Altino. A little local knowledge – and the 2005 World and European Pizza Champions.
• The Cat Blog. Meet Little Plum, Edwin and Aurora.
• So We Got In The Car And Drove To Italy (2). More why's. And a few how's…
• Meanwhile, In The Back Seat… "But are the cats alright ?" Yes, fine thanks. We're OK too, by the way…
• Olives And WiFi. An 'About Abruzzo' ancient and modern multi-media mix.
• Introducing – Pescocostanzo. Our favourite mountain village.
• Every House in Abruzzo We Didn't Buy. Don't like that one. Or that one. Or that one…
• The House in Abruzzo We Did Buy. Villasfor2 HQ. Our home – and the site for your holidays for couples !
• We've Had A Little Snow. The perfect excuse for some scenic shots in the blog.

That takes us up to the start of 2008. At this stage, we'd put down a deposit on our new property – but we hadn't actually bought it yet. Find out what happened next in the second chunk of the Villasfor2 About Abruzzo Blog of Blogs ! (And if you'd like to mail us – there's a link at the very bottom of this page – below the space reserved for comments !)

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All but the very smallest villages have a regular weekly market – in Casoli, just 4 miles away from your Villas for 2 base, it's every Friday – but if you want the full-on Abruzzo market experience, head off to Casalbordino's regular Sunday morning extravaganza. The town itself is delightful; a few miles inland from the Adriatic coast with some fine old streets and buildings. 

As with all other Italian markets, Casalbordino's is just as much a social occasion – a chance to see your friends and catch up on the week's gossip – as well as the opportunity to do a bit of shopping.

And you can buy pretty much anything:

• clothes and shoes
• pots, pans and bits'n'pieces for the kitchen
• fabrics for clothes and furnishings
• watches and sunglasses
• toys
• strange-looking electrical gadgets for the home and car
• handbags, suitcases and rucksacks
• plants, flowers, fruit trees and shrubs
• 'things'

Browse. Learn the key phrase: 'Sto dando uno sguardo' – 'I'm just looking.' You'll need it, because stallholders can detect a potential sale when you're 50m away.

There isn't the usual practice of haggling over the price there is in some countries – especially not for something costing just a few euros – but for anything else, it's always worth adopting a wistful expression, sighing and saying,  'E' bello…pero e' un po caro…' – 'It's lovely…but it's a bit expensive…' – and seeing what happens ! 

When you've exhausted the retail opportunities outside – time to move inside, because there's a specially-built under-cover section for:

• fresh fruit and vegetables
• fish and meat
• cheese. A lot of cheese…
• salami. A lot of salami…
• bread

 With the obvious exception of tropical fruit on the fruit'n'veg stalls, this is all locally-produced food and you won't find better variety, quality or prices anywhere. 

Then go back outside again for…

• …the Porchetta van

 As you'll quickly realise during your holiday in Abruzzo, the Porchetta van is something of an institution. Along with pizza, porchetta is Italy's favourite fast food. What is porchetta ? A boned, whole, slow-roasted piglet of extraordinary succulence. That's the basis – but each van-owner has his/her own secret recipe to add a little extra something.

Buy 'quattro etti' – 400 grams. That should cost €4-5 and form the basis of an excellent Sunday lunch picnic; or spend a couple of euros for a generous slice or two of porchetta in a panini to eat there and then.

Incidentally, if the van-owner offers you an extra piece of crackling or another little tasty titbit on the house, it's very bad form to refuse !

Get to the market by around 10.00 – or even earlier. By midday, the stalls are closing; the bars are open – and it's time to start thinking about lunch. We'll tell you the best places to go !

In addition to Casalbordino, there are other good weekly markets in Lanciano (Saturday) and Guardiagrele (Sunday). Both are nearer than Casalbordino – but parking can be a problem. 

Here's a pretty definitive list of all Abruzzo's weekly markets – remember Villas for 2 is in Chieti province.

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