CUADERNO DE VIAJE, RAVELLO Y VILLA CIMBRONE {TRAVEL NOTEBOOK, RAVELLO AND VILLA CIMBRONE}

- August 2019
- It has been weird for me to end this post about my holidays last August, when we were still able to go out normally, touch ourselves and breath infront of the sea. It´s been a week already, trapped at home like every soul in our country and things aren´t going to change so far. Thank god that when I travel I write a diary every night, otherwise, I wouldn´t be able to remember everything.
- We are still posting about Ravello, let´s say this post is the second part of the previous one. In medieval times, Ravello produced several successful merchants, who built much of what we recognize today as Ravello, including the Villa Rufolo, the palazzos, the Duomo (cathedral), and the churches of Santa Maria a Gradillo and San Giovanni del toro. Their architectural contributions transformed Ravello from a sleepy mountain hamlet into a medieval wonder. By the 13th century, Ravello was widely admired for its gardens, architecture, and breathtaking vistas.
- No one knows why the Rufus family chose to settle here, rather than flagging down another ship, but it´s possible that they just ran out of money. And then we moved on to visit Villa Cimbrone. Sitting high atop a promontory that offers stunning views of the Mediterranean and the dramatic coastliine below, the villa Cimbrone is the crown laurel of Ravello. It´s origins date back to the 11th century, but the villa and the gardens were extensively renovated by a British nobleman, Lord Grimthorpe, in the early 20th century.
- With its expansive gardens and dramatic views, the villa is a popular place for weddings, honeymoons, and receptions. The villa is a private 5-star hotel Hotel Villa Cimbrone but the gardens are open to the public and it ranks, perhaps, as the most memorable sight on the Amalfi coast.
- The thing is that the Terrace of Infinity is the villa´s belvedere (Terrazza dell´Infinito). It´s lined by a series of marble busts that on clear days sparkle against the blue sky above and the azure waters of the Mediterranean below.
- The Villa Cimbrone also served as a romantic rendezvous for Greta Garbo, who quietly eloped there in February of 1938 with intentions of marrying Leopold Stowkowski, the British-American conductor who wrote and produced Walt Disney´s Fantasia.
Hace un siglo, poco después de que fuera renovado por Grimthorpe, la Villa Cimbrone se convirtió en un refugio popular para el famoso Bloomsbury Group Londinense, un círculo de intelectuales de principios del siglo XX que presentaba a Virginia Woolf y Lytton Strachey.
- Celebrities in Ravello and Villa Cimbrone. A century ago, shortly after it was renovated by Grimthorpe, The Villa Cimbrone became a popular retreat for London´s famed Bloomsbury Group, a circle of early 20th century intellectuals that featured Virginia Woolf and Lytton Strachey.
- Andre Gide, one of the giants of 20th century French literature, wrote his first novel in Ravello at the age of 31, and E.M. Forster, the great English novelist best known for A Passage to India, Howard´s End and A Room with a View wrote his first short story here too. Winston Churchill made a post-war visit to Ravello, and during Joh F. Kennedy´s presidency, Jackie Kennedy took a two week vacation in Ravello along with her sister and her two children, John and Caroline. I was thrilled to put my foot on the same stone pathways this so glamorous people did.
- If you walk through the gardens, do not miss the Statua di Ceres (Statue of Ceres), which is located in a small temple immediately adjacent to the belvedere.
Tambien tenéis que ver: La Poggia di Mercurio, el Tempietto di Bacco, la Grotta di Eva, La Statua di David (una copia del famoso de Donatello), la Terrazza de las rosas y la estancia de Te, un jardín rectangular cerca del jardin de rosas.
- Also you have to visit: The Poggia di Mercurio (Crest of Mercury), The Little temple of Bacchus (Tempietto di Baco), Eve´s cave (Grotta di Eva), The statue of David (Statua di David), a copy of Donatello´s famous sculpture of the victorious David. The Rose Garden, Terrazza delle rose, which is situated just a few steps from the villa and the Tea Room or the Stanza del Tè, a rectangular garden next to the rose garden.
- This is the last post around the Amalfi Coast.
María Luisa, qué alegría me da hoy tu entrada, al menos nos haces transportarnos con la imaginación a un lugar idílico y salir de esta realidad por un momento. Me ha encantado tu paseo por este lugar, los jardines se ven preciosos y las vistas impresionantes
ResponderEliminarY vuelvo a decirte que os cuidéis mucho estos días, te mando un abrazo enorme!!!