The 16th Edition of the Itinerari Vesuviani [Itineraries within the area at Vesuvius foot] will begin next Saturday, April 24th. This intense program of guided visits including cultural meetings and food and wine tasting will become clear through history and charm of the Ville del Miglio d’oro [villas along the golden mile].
The program starts with a conference (9:00 am at Villa Campolieto in Ercolano) to promote the knowledge not only of the Ville Vesuviane [villas at the foot of Vesuvius], and Tuscolane as well as those in the Veneto Region, and about the Lucchesia villas in the Municipality of Capannori. After the guided visit about the restoration performed on Villa delle Ginestre at Torre del Greco, there will be the inauguration of the photographic and documentary exhibition entitled “Ville d’Italia” [Italy’s Villas], already staged in Brussels from October through December 2003, on occasion of the Semester of the Italian Presidency of the European Union (and already reported here by our staff member M. Gabriella Nicolini). The presentation of the important initiative took place during a press conference staged at Naples’ Palazzo Reale, which serves as the main office of the Ente Ville Vesuviane [the Agency for the Vesuvian Villas]. It was cared for by the Director, Architect Paolo Romanello, who highlighted the wealth of the various appointments (these range from Ercolano to the National Park of the Vesuvius, from the rural villas to the historical route that goes as far as the Camaldoli Hill at Torre del Greco, from the botanical garden and the Reggia [Royal palace] at Portici to the Real fabbrica d’Armi [the Royal Ammunitions Factory] at Torre Annunziata and on to the Oplontis excavation site). These appointments will take place every Sunday (from the end of April to the end of May) and will end on June 6th on a motor ship that will sail along the Vesuvius coastal line, reach the Sorrento Peninsula and go to the Island of Capri. Doctor Giuseppina Maria Oliviero, Special Commissioner for the Vesuvian Villas Agency said ”The continuity in the Itinerari Vesuviani initiative is a clear sign of the Agency’s commitment in transmitting knowledge about the artistic and historical legacy of the 17th century Villas”. These residences, saved from degradation, have been restored and it is possible to admire their individual architecture, internal decoration and gardens that open on fascinating views whether one is looking on the volcano’s side or on the side of the Gulf and its islands. “The visits to the villas” confirms Celeste Fidora, architect and President of the Association Amici delle Ville e dei Siti vesuviani [Friends of the Villas and the Vesuvian Sites], “continues to be, after 16 editions, a constant reference point that cannot be disregarded in the cultural overview of the Vesuvian cities and it continues to show the will to move along the path that has been undertaken”.