| Date | Rating | Comment
[Guest Comments: 5 positive, 0 negative]
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| 07/26/09 |
Positive
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| Dear Bill and Suzy: thank you for making our stay at Fattoria Del Gelso so memorable. We had such a special time mostly due to your help in arranging all of our many activities, and your staff's assistance in seeing those activities through. The house is charming, and even though we did not fill all the bedrooms, it did not seem to big for us (we were 8). Our smaller children loved running around the property and the bigger kids enjoyed the many outdoor sitting areas. The location of the house is superb, and, although we had excursions every day to the surrounding areas, we never felt overwhelmed. The girls agree that one of the highlights was our ceramics class in Deruta and the boys (big ones) said the Paolo Bea winery was a very special experience (my brother in law has even discovered where he can get Paolo Bea wine in Houston). The best part, however, was the birthday dinner that Theresa cooked, with the help of Wendy and Marco. It was the best meal we have had in all of Italy! When we left, my 7 year old son cried. That says it all! |
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Robin Sheldon, Philadelphia, PA |
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| 12/11/08 |
Positive
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I arrived a day early at La Fattoria del Gelso to participate in Experience Umbria’s first food and wine excursion. It was late October, fall was in the air, and I was escaping the crashing and burning of the American economy, with visions of extended years of indentured servitude, known in some quarters as working for a living, when I should be expectantly looking forward to the travel and leisure of retirement. My hosts were still in route from Turin, but they had arranged for a friend to pick me up at the airport in Rome. After dropping our bags and freshening up a bit, it was off to lunch. We ended up at a little café, appropriately called Le Delizie del Borgo, just outside the gate to Bevagna. Seated at table out front, we embarked on a two-hour plus sampling of the food and wine of Umbria. The proprietor was most gracious, taking our desires to sample a number of dishes on the menu, and turning our afternoon into a delightful series of small courses accompanied by a lovely Montefalco Rosso. And so I was introduced to Umbria.
Our excursion began in earnest the following morning. There were tours, Assisi with its history of St. Francis; Perugia and, coincidentally, the international chocolate festival and a chocolate making class at the Perugina Chocolate School; Norcia with St. Benedict and all manner of pork, wild boar, sausages; a truffle hunt near Città di Castello. Interspersed were visits to wineries and fabulous two or three hour lunches in Assisi, Spello, Montefalco, and at Il Bacco Felice in Foligno. A typical day would begin with a tour or a winery, then lunch, followed by one or two more wineries in the late afternoon, then after catching our breaths, off to dinner for a few more hours. I remember being asked if I had brought a good book for the “down time.”
Despite the hustle and bustle of the days, I felt refreshed. Perhaps that was due to the bucolic ambiance of the morning hours. In the early, autumn dawn, the air is just a bit nippy with a slight haze. Nevertheless, you can see a fair distance in any direction to the hillsides bordering the Umbrian valley with a vision of the ubiquitous grapes changing to olive trees capping the hills. The soil has been turned to lie fallow until the spring and occasionally the shot of a distant hunter breaks the stillness. Flowers are still in bloom, but the leaves of the trees have begun to turn and fall. It is energizing to experience this tranquility and peace, until Teresa, the housekeeper, arrives to serve up a welcome Italian coffee. A week seemed too short a time, but inevitably it came to an end, and I had to catch a train to Rome for a rendezvous with my wife.
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Dick Parke, Bethesda, MD |
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| 12/04/08 |
Positive
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Bill and Suzy:
We just returned from a week in your beautiful home. It is such a perfect place for medium to large family gatherings. We packed 50 people into your dining room for Thanksgiving! The bedrooms were comfortable for the 15 who stayed.. so great to have so many bathrooms and private spaces in country home. We know Umbria well, but Cannara's location is so close to some of the prettiest spots in the area -- not to mention the great vineyards for wine tasting. Such great hospitality by your staff too, who were so attentive and helpful but also left us to enjoy in front of the fire too. Next time we will try a summer party when the pool is open. Thanks again! |
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Clark and Raffaella Bentson, Rome, Italy |
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| 07/22/08 |
Positive
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I arrived at the villa worn out and worn down after a family bereavement. It was the perfect getaway- beautifully quiet surroundings and a gorgeous pool, surrounded by fields of sunflowers.
The interior decor is beauutiful and the kitchen up to commercial standards.
I loved not having to drive everywhere-it's a short stroll into Cannara. But when you do get in the car Assissi, Foligno, Perugia are all on the doorstep. Javier will even explain the best spots to park. We were there for the Umbria Jazz Festival, and even if you chose not to go to the big events, Perugia was a great place just to hang out and watch the world go by.
I left a lot more at peace than when I arrived, and would highly recommend the villa to anyone who deserves a break.
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alison black, Glasgow, Scotland |
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| 06/12/08 |
Positive
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| We recently stayed at Fattoria del Gelso (May 2008) and had an absolutely fantastic time. The house itself is fantastic- even bigger than our needs. The location is great- just 10 minutes drive to Assisi, 5 minutes to Bevagna, 10 minutes to Spello... Montefalco just around the corner. Absolutely central. Javier was a great help, too- arranged everything for us, from wine tours to cooking classes. In particular we loved Tabarrini in Montefalco- Giampaolo, the young wine maker, is something else- perhaps the funniest man in Italy. We ate so well in Umbria- we recommend the nice restaurant in Canarra (Javier knows the name), and also the one in the walls of the Roman amphitheater in Bevagna (in the hotel L'Orto degli Angeli). We really couldn't have had more fun in Umbria. We'll just have to start planning our return trip now, I guess. Grazie mille!!! |
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Collin, Washington, DC
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