For our last few nights in Italy, we moved from Lucca to Fauglia, a small town south of Pisa. The property was described as a converted chapel but those two apartments were already occupied so the owners offered us the converted orangerie, La Limonaia. It sounded intriguing. Upon arrival, the driveway led past a huge castle built in 1607 that the owners were lovingly restoring. The entire hilltop property included the castle, chapel, orangerie and another 3 story building attached to the castle in which they lived. (An orangerie was originally a building for wintering citrus trees during the 17th to 19th centuries). In 26 years, the owners have finished restoring four separate self-catering rental units in the chapel and orangerie, their own living quarters, and are well on the way to finishing work on the castle. During World War II, the German SS occupied the castle until liberated by the Americans. The restoration is an impressive life's work and I wish them well.
The former orangerie is now a rental property - a one bedroom loft with living room, kitchen and bath.
The inside of the restored structure still retains many of the original surfaces. The tall windows were designed to maximize the southern exposure for light.
We walked down the driveway in the early evening light to town to have dinner at a local restaurant.
And after dinner, we walked on to a villa at the town's highest point. Fauglia stretches along the spine of a low mountain ridge.
As the sun set, it was time to move inside the villa .......
......to enjoy a live performance by a pianist and opera singer in an intimate setting. I am not a big opera fan but, experiencing it live and up close performed by these two musicians was powerful - I'd definitely like to see/hear more. I enjoyed our stay in Fauglia - it was a quiet respite from the vibrant city life of Lucca - and a good starting point for a drive in the Tuscan countryside as tomorrow's blog post will describe.
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