Fiuggi

Approximately 60 kilometers south of Rome in the province of Frosinone, Fiuggi is a jewel set 747 meters a.s.l. in the Ernici mountains. It is divided into two distinct parts: the tranquil, mediaeval old town on the side of the hill where most of the population lives, which was built around the year 1000 to withstand the barbarian invasions, and the busier Fiuggi Fonte, lower down at 620 meters, which grew around the thermal springs at the beginning of this century. Fiuggi has been renowned as a spa since the 13th century, when it was ruled by the Colonna family, and its radioactive waters, low in mineral content and ideal for gout and renal problems, have cured such famous characters as Boniface VIII, Michelangelo (who had stones in his kidneys as well as a stiff neck from painting the Sistine Chapel), Marcantonio Colonna, Pius X, Giolitti and Benedetto Croce. The first spa establishment to be built at the beginning of the 20th century was the Fonte di Bonifacio VIII, followed by the Fonte Anticolana, which takes its name from the town's original name, Anticoli di Campagna, used until 1911. 

Virgins and lechers

Fiuggi, with its old, narrow lanes and its atmosphere of bygone days, boasts the church of San Biagio, the city's patron saint, surrounded by gardens and tree-lined avenues. The church was built before the year 1000 and seems to have belonged to the Benedictine monks of Subiaco who used it as a resting place where they could change horses during journeys to Cassino. It houses a 12th century fresco of the Virgin and Child by the Giotto school and paintings by Cesari and Giovan Battista Speranza. The bronze sculpture outside the church commemorating the patron saint is by Arturo Gismondi. In Piazzetta Santo Stefano stands the ancient Palazzo De Medici, once the old barracks of Anticoli where brigands were imprisoned. When the palace interior was being restored, one of the very deep wells discovered there was the "Well of the Virgins" where, according to legend, village lasses were dropped when they refused to submit to the "Jus primae noctis" imposed by the feudal ruler of the time, one lecherous Don Ascanio. Around the mediaeval center, parts of the old defensive wall can still be seen. Unlike most places in Italy, August is a good time to visit Fiuggi, because the baths are busiest in July and September, and there is a wide variety of hotels, restaurants, sports and recreational facilities. There are two pleasant walks from Fiuggi, one to Lago Canterno, three miles to the south, and the other to the Capuchin monastery, two miles to the north-west. A half hour's drive will bring you to the ski slopes of Campocatino and Campo Staffi, which are popular for walks in the summer. Nature lovers will relish a trip to "La Selva" natural park of Paliano, part of the vast estate of the Principe Ruffo di Calabria, inhabited by over 200 species of birds from all over the world, several of which are a unique attraction in Italy because they are extremely rare or becoming extinct.