3075 Lazio - the sights, sounds and scorpions

I don't have much to add just yet - have to refer to my books at home - but I can suggest that you just drive around the region - there are some amazing ruins, both Roman and from later ages - to be seen alongside the roads around Rome. Quite breathtaking in and of itself.

I will deal with the animals and let someone more qualified deal with the sights.
Scorpions are no great problem, I have got just one or two in the house in 4 years, usually before winter when they are looking to hibinate. The sting is supposed to be like that of a bee, but they do not go out of their way to sting you. In fact I have had them running over my hand on a number of occassions to prove that they are harmless and have not been gotten yet.
The mozzies on the other hand are deadly depending again on where you are staying, I really hate them. If they do present you with a problem, the plug-in mozzie-killer will usually do the trick.
Have a good trip
Mark

I have found you a couple of websites - [url]www.italyheaven.co.uk/lazio[/url] looks pretty comprehensive, and there is [url]www.turislazio.it[/url] which is not as good at first glance.
Check out details for Tivoli (fantastic gardens, plus Villa Adriana), Castel Gondolfo and the lake of Albano (has to be a rather nice place, the Pope has his summer house there!), and a bit further away, close to Norma, are the gardens of Ninfa.
Get a decent road map, and just drive about!!
Couldn't find you any scorpions.......

[QUOTE=Markcarter]I Scorpions are no great problem, I have got just one or two in the house in 4 years, usually before winter when they are looking to hibinate. [/QUOTE]

Where we stay - 1.5 hours south of Rome - we always see scorpions :rolleyes: Having said that, when we stay in my nonna's house we very rarely find them - but another house in the village...well you can hear them running around behind the skirting boards!! :eek: I always give my shoes a shake before I put them on! So I suppose it depends on the area you'll be visiting.

I would say be careful of the hornets though. Jeff got stung by one a few years back - and he's 6'3" and healthy - and it put him in bed for 24 hours - really scary :(

Depending on the ages of your children Monte Cassino and the war cemeteries are definately worth a visit. But we did wait until the kids were old enough to understand the enormity of them.

Don't let the many creatures (my dad has even seen bear tracks!) put you off. Italy is such a wonderful country - enjoy! :)

Welcome to the forum! Have a good holiday in Lazio and Roma in July. We are actually in northern Lazio but can highly recommend the following website.
[url]www.elegantetruria.com[/url]

Thanks for all the advice. We'll check them all out.

And hornets are a nasty business alright. I was stung by one when I was a kid and my leg ballooned to about twice normal size.

Hi Derek
Ardea is Ok but don't spend too much time there. For coastal interest try Circeo and the beaches south of there - Terracina has a fantastic Roman site high on the hill which offers something for everyone - small kids can run amok, teenagers can absorb the history and I just spent time admiring someone's infinity pool from ahigh a nice town centre and nice beaches. As for scorpions, we know the area South West of Rome very well and have never seen one - experienced loads of the bee sting kind in Tuscany/Umbria. Mosquitoes though are a different matter. The area South West of Rome used to have malaria in the marshes until Mussolinni sorted it out but there are still loads of mossies in the plains/at the coast. Bring plug in machines, bring spray and be aware that they can start to bite as early as 4 pm even tho dusk hasn't fallen - once it's dark , light huge citronella candles (available from your local hardware store) and just pretend you're a Roman . Hornets we have had at our villino in the hills but once we eradicated the nest have never seen them since - or in Ardea or the plains area

Derek, if you need any more info on the area, please pm me - Lago di Nemi, Albano and the rest of the Colli and where NOT to go -have known the area for 30 years and spend every holiday there - just ask

Hi Fiona

Thanks for all the info... really useful. It probably would be a good idea to have an idea of the places to avoid as well, as two weeks flies by really quickly and a wasted day can be really annoying.

I've also been asked to ask what the local wines are like? One of our party is a wine buff but knows very little about Lazio wines, apart from the fact that they are not as well considered as those from Tuscany and Marche. But is there the odd exception?

D.

avoid anywhere north of Circeo - the Tiber pollution spills out at Ostia and goes North, or for you worse, South depending on the winds. Beach wise there is unending beautiful looking sand and sea but if you read the local papers... there is nice sand in Ardea but look carefully at the water and if you don't like what's floating around...head South Anzio is worth a visit - a nice port if you head there when the fishing boats are unloading their catches, Nettuno has miles of beach (just no facilities). A boat trip to Ponza to admire the yachts of the rich and the famous? In such a short time, make sure to go to Rome first and EARLY to check out what you really like and what you'd like to see again and plan the rest of your visit around that. Head for the Colli Albani (Albano,Castel Gandolfo (Summer residence of the Pope) and Nemi for a lovely day out. Monte Cassino has the 2nd world war history - as do the cemetries in Anzio and all this before you think about chilling and watching the world go by - if you have a specific interest, let me know, there are nature reserves, gardens to visit, ruins to view all within striking distance of Ardea depends on where your interests lie.

ooh sorry forgot about the wine bit. Well I drink enough of the stuff so I should be an expert but generally if you go to a nice enough local restaurant, try the vino della casa in a carafe. The red is not up to Tuscan standards but you might offend if you ask for a bottle of chianti in some places (not in Rome obviously) and if you go for the higher priced bottled local red they're pretty good. The white is fine locally, light and occasionally frizzante - don't forget Frascati is almost on your doorstep and it tastes sooo much better in July, on the terrace, admiring the view than it does watching the TV on a Saturday night in UK

Thanks for all that info. The plans are coming alive now!

Actually, I saw a programme on TV here during the week about an old abandoned village called Ninfa (somewhere on the Pontine plain), which was turned into priavte gardens about a century ago. What wasn't obvious was whether it's a place that can be visited or if it's just a private estate. It's looked vey interesting. Have you heard of it?

Ninfa is visitable, and definitely worth it - however, it is quite tricky! They tend to keep it off the mass tourist itinerary, not only because it could get damaged by too great a traffic, but it is also part of a nature reserve.
[url]http://www.lipulatina.it/ninfa.htm[/url] seems to have the information on (pre booked) visiting hours and how to pre-book - hope you can cope in Italian - otherwise try a google search.
The garden is located close to the town of Norma, which you should find on a map without too much difficulty.

My Italian is very basic but I can make out the gist. Mind you, from the website info it seems it's only open quite sporadically and as luck would have it it appears to be closed the weekends we'll be there... presumably they're on holiday at that time too! Oh well, I'm sure we'll find somewhere else.

I've been here 40 years and choose this area to live after having seen most of the peninsula. Some good reasons can be found on my website . Check the Itinerary page on [url]www.elegantetruria.com[/url] which is added to weekly.
The Romans themselves spend weekends and long, lazy summers here. The lakes are preferable to the beaches and many villas have pools. No scorpions since its cooler and the mosquitoes are rare since there is running water instead of still pools. I am awakened by bird sing and the sound of the water in the public washhouse under my windows..and in winter by the chopping of wood by my neighbor, an 86 yr. old woman who still uses a wood burning stove for heat.
If you need any specific info , happy to help
Mary Jane