Thermae. Fiuggi.

A few kilometres from Rome, one of thermal centres most reknowned for effectiveness of the hydropic cures since  time immemorial and which reputation lasted during the centuries. The medieval pope Bonifacio VIII  greatly appreciated the  healthy effects of the waters and  Michelangelo Buonarroti attests to be completely recoverd from a bad kidney stone thanks to the healing power of the springs, obviously the Fiuggi sources. Definetly not good if looking for the relax in the sweating grottos, bathing in hot effervescent bathtubs or getting covered with muds, ideal, instead to get cuddled in that sometimes poshy environment of the thermae, places that convey a decadent luxury also in contermporary ambients.

©2010.2021

Italic thermae, Etruria

Etruria is probably the Italic region with the highest number of Italian thermal baths, it was spread partially on Umbria, Tuscany, and Northern Latium, covering one of the areas with the highest number of warm thermal spring. Among the various centres, some towns and centres live mainly thanks to the healthy waters, one being Chianciano Terme, close to an ancient burg, a metropolis of wellbeing in the middle of Tuscany hills, that was the natural set for the Fellini Oscar winning movie  8 ½ . For the film buffs, the surreal square of Borgo Vignoni, in the province of Siena, with the springs within the village and a swimming pool instead of the central square is a must see, it was the natural set for  Andrej Tarkovsky's Nostalgia and for Carlo Verdone's Al lupo al lupo. These thermal warm waters were one of the meeting points for the Etruscans and, later, hosted and inspired Lorenzo il Magnifico, Saint Caterina da Siena, pope Pio Piccolomini,  and more contemporary artists enchanted by the presence of a big thermal bath in the middle of a burg and not, as usual, in the outskirts of a city, and by the suggestive fog much more evident during winter nights with a clear sky. Italic populations knew and appreciated very well the therapeutic virtues of the healthy waters that gained the respect and protection for generations till now, so that they arrived unaltered or still untouched to present. In particular in Etruscan thermae, ancient gestures melt with luxury contemporary rituals, reserving a space also to the 'popular' use, fully respecting nature. A good example is the famous Saturnia complex with the natural small falls freely accessible and the SPA that offers paths studied for a selected public, based on the well studied salvage of the tradtions for the wellness market, with thermal products elaborated on ancient recipes, massages and cures for the body and the self that mix the most cutting-edge wellbeing techniques with gestures deeply rooted in the Italic and pre-Roman culture. The scarce information on the Etruscan culture, show us quite a liberal and libertine society, attentive to beaty, the frivolity of apparences and, obvuously, to wellbeing of the body with oils, creams and, most probably, clays and muds. A revival of traditions in the contemporary society, especially in the industry that make of the daily pleasures a matter of luxurious attention to the self. 

©2010.2021

Italic Thermae. Roman Tuscia, Stigliano thermal baths

Not far from the capital, in the Roman Tuscia, lays an angle of paradise for who loves warm thermal baths, a thermal complex with probable Etruscan origins, named after the Styx, vestibule, hallway to hell. An eighteenth century structure used for the cures and for the SPA frames two small swimming pools surrounded by Etruscan hills and fed with sulfur-iodine hyperthermal (95°F35°C->133°F56°C). The thermae, with the natural steam grotto 'grotta sudatoria', a cave sauna, were considered the necessary step for Roman soldiers coming from Egypt to purify from potential illnesses and 'disinfect' before entering the city. Evidences of tubs in polychrome marbles with statues and little columns might suggest the transformation from a typical Etruscan bath to a Roman thermal bath station, before being handed over noble families that built what is the actual thermal complex nowadays. The springs aren't very generous, but enough to feed a small swimming pool with tepid water (79F26°C->86°F30°C) and a big sink with warm water where it is possible to relax listening to the rustle of wind and trees, the tweeting of birds and the shrill of the cicadas. Perfect for the first spring sun and for who loves thermal cures in an exclusive environment.

©2010.2021

Massage

A massage can make us feel good, sometimes it's really the quintessence of wellbeing par excellence, it's difficult to imagine all the types of massage. Who receives a massage is, generally speaking, grateful to who is doing it and the really good masseurs are the ones that do not ask you which technique, but are able to adapt the movements to the actual needs of the bodies, so much linked to the mind to forget about this connection too often. 

Just like breathing, an automatism we forget the importance of, we forget to cuddle the body, we thing that exercising or a massage are a luxury that we cannot afford either for lack of money or time, and if we would just think of the time we waste to find the umpteenth excuse not to cuddle it, we would realise how important it is to remember that learning ho to be in harmony with ourselves can begin also with a massage, possibly with the sound of the tweets of the birds.

In the province, wellbeing more than a state of mind is a lyfestyle, starting from eating healthy foods, trying to reduce stress, and going for a walk whenever possible. And it's especially in the provincia that you can finda the centres and the associations more a l'avant-garde for what concerns relaxing techniques and massages. Places fully immersed in nature, or at the very heart of burgs and towns that deserve a trip, or in thermal centres. To discover, also as an idea for wellness weekends.
© 2010.2021

Harvesting of olives, ancient rituals, contemporary wellness

A deep rooted tradition renewed yearly, one of those habits that for some hour or some day can transport every-day problems elsewhere bringing back that harmony of body and soul so vital for the balance and to face the coming week with strenght and wit.

In some areas in Italy, more than a tradition, it's about a rustic rite, with songs and dances, a rite recreated during the centuries that can be traced back to ancient peoples living in the provinces of Italian oil.

Oil is one of the cornerstones of Mediterranean cuisine and in the course of time the hydrating  and nourishing qualities of this precious element of the Earth were discovered also for the cosmetic sector.

But oil is not only a great element, a miracle of nature with many beneficial qualities, and we'll write about it in the next posts, is also the main ingredient for something that is finding its way as a trend of ecosustainable tourism: weekends dedicated to the harvesting of olives, a moment to regain the mind-and-body balance and the relationship with our deeper roots.

During oil weekends the day begins with a short energizing massage to immerse the body in PDO extra-virgin-olive-oil based oils and greams to eliminate the muscles tensions, and warm the body with exercises of yoga, pilates, stretching and a brief meditation that helps to purify the chakras, especially the ones more deeply connected to the roots, namely the firs, the second and the third. Light breakfast with natural bio high-proteine food, season's fruit harvested the very same morning, juices, home made organic jams and marmelades, energising and purifying teas to eliminate the toxins stockpiled during the week. Deep breathing in the olive tree grove to connect to the elements of nature.

And let's start the harvesting paying attention to each and every element, considering them integral parts of a deep meditation. The relationship with the group is really important, everything begins while spreading the sheets. While proceeding you get completely immersed in the olive tree grove harmony and repeating ancient gestures we forget bad moods, stress, nervosism.  

Lunch time is a moment to enjoy conviviality that generally takes the shape of two BBQs, one meat-based with local products and bruschetta, and another one with seitan, vegetables, bruschetta  and 0miles dairies, everything sprinkled with local wine, herbal teas, mineral and thermal drinking waters.

A brief meditation before the end of the day, bringing back all the tools and getting ready for the tea-time, 'merenda' in Italian, with just out of the oven PDO-extra-virgin-olive-oil-based cakes, fruit, jams, herbal teas, bruschette with oils spiced with products of the Earth hand crafted in the full respect of nature.

Regenerating, aromatherapy shower, yoga, massage with warm oils and thermal creams that join the Ayurvedic science with the pre-roman people's traditions. The dinner is vegetarian and mainly with local products, respecting the environment and the traditions.

The evening, in the 'strade dell'olio', it's time for games, with dance and music jam sessions, D&D, readings and jousts.


©2010.2020

Italic Thermae. Sabina. Terme di Cretone.

Among the thermae in the Sabine territory, a true jewel of absolute purity hides within the hills, a refreshment and curative site neighboring the Natural Park riserva del Barco. Crystal clear sulphureous thermo mineral waters that offer Romans, and above all Sabines and foreign tourists with a passion for discovering Italy in all its nuances, a moment of paradisiac wonder. 
Water is freezing   (22-23° Celsius) with natural and constant draining of a stream, a brook. Perfect to tone up and get some refreshment during hot Italian summers. 

The contrast between the freshness of the large and deep swimming pools with artificial water falls, or the large kids swimming pool, and the warmth of the Sabine's stones in the poolside tournaments heated by the sun of the dog days  definetely helps blood circulation and smooths the skin. 

The closest busy street is kilometers away, beyond the parks borders, the stream and the olive tree groves of the first, in chronological terms, Italian PDO extra virgin oil.
The thermal centre combines to the centre for the cures a beauty farm, massage rooms and a cosmetics brand of products made of muds and sulfur waters.

That is  Terme di Cretone , where swimming in a cloud of thermal waters mirroring the blue of the sky, the green of the park and overlooking the Monti Lucretili.  

Not hard to believe that from the close ancient cities of Corniculum, Nomentum, Eretum, Sabine people used to go in search of some refreshment after a long working day or to wash away the summer heat with the kids, sometimes future emperors and kings of Ancient Rome, to the thermae of Cretone, probably a trendy and healing place for the high society of the time.
The healing and cosmetics characteristics of the thermo mineral sulfur waters of Cretone were well known in ancient times, when Sabines bathed in the springs and used the drinkable waters to fight winter diseases as a basis for suffumigation and ointmments. A tradition that has been refashioned over the centuries till reaching a synthesis with the modern cosmetics technologies: a brand of thermal products absolutely elengant to show in the most exclusive summer locations and at the gym to tone up and moisturize the skin. recreating the wonder of natural summer hydro-massage in the bathtub during winter time.

Terme di Cretone are ideal for those who love nature. Composed of two large and deep swimming pools with springboards, aquagym area and a kids swimming pool, grounds for team sports, gym, Spa, medical and cosmetics centre; a small 'piazza' serves as food court, ice-cream and crepes kiosks and 'bazaar' with clothings and delicious oil, wine and food products, and a small bookshop.
 
©2010.2022
Special thanks to the WR community

Italic thermae, Alto Lazio, Cotilia

Thermal waters largely differ one from the other, having their own specificities,  peculiarities and charachteristics.The most well known are probably the hot or at least tepid waters, where bathing for a relaxing bath or a reinvigorating shower depurative waters for the body and the soul, to drink and to steep in for a wellness cuddle. In the ancient territories of the Sabines, the Osci, and Marsi flow cold, icy, thermal waters, spring lakes producing a mineral water ideal to depurate and keep the balanced intake of mineral salts in the everyday diet. Delicious as a drink, the Cotilia waters were reknowned also in the ancient times for its healthy qualities, perfects in diets and as a main ingredient for creams and ointments. Joining the healthy pelasure of a walk in the bushes, it's possible to appreciate the creams and the packs reinvigorating and depuratives obtained with the muds purifyed in special lake tubs.

©2010.2021

Italic Thermae. Sabina. Acque albule.

Ancient Romans, wherever they went, built roads, works to ease communication, aqueducts and thermae. This is well known to everybody, what is somehow more misterious and undiscovered are the traditions of the Italic peoples living in the peninsula well before the Urbe was condita. Starting from the beginning, myth, history and legend track back to the kidnapping of Sabine Women the very first units of Roman families.
Sabine women were the first mothers. Well, no matter the century or the millenium, mothers in Italy are Mothers. Now, how did the mothers of Romans used to live? And how about the secret of their beauty? 

The few documents, archeological finds, and the not enormous number of historical researches on the subject draw a pale picture of Sabine's everyday life and the enormous assonances with the most advanced urbanistic theories of the Third Millenium are astonishing.

Most probably they used to live in small well-off residential suburbs, in close contact with nature, not overcrowding cities and the urban areas ramified on the territory. They produced olive oil, wine, food and everything could be useful to everyday life. During hot summer months, or during Vacunalia, the rituals dedicated to the goddess of fertility and of the Earth, they went for some refreshment and purification to the thermae.
Presumably, considering that the temperature of Sabine thermal waters is fresh, during summertime thermae were also a meeting point for the families located in the various Sabine cities, even though there was almost a thermal spring close to each urban area.

Perhaps Romans learned in their childhood the benefits of thermal waters and attempted to recreate that feeling of familiarity wherever they went. The healthy habit of Italic peoples, of Romans, of popes and more in general of Italians evolved over the centuries and  ancient gestures are now repeated and updated with the latest relaxing and wellness techniques.

Let's start this tour of the Sabine thermae from the most famous, within the Sabina Tiburtina area, the Acque Albule, literally 'whitish waters', sulphureous hypo-thermal with constant temperature between 23° and 26° Celsius and important curative features. The centre is  composed of a Spa, four swimming pools with springboards for the bravests, gym, beauty farm, medical centre, and a modern four stars hotel with several packages and a variety of offers, perfects also for contemporary Romans and for those who love joining wellbeing with a cultural tour, for instance to the adjacent Villa Adriana or to the other UNESCO's monuments in Tivoli area.

During summertime, and in prefestive days, party animals and nighthowls will find their fun, too, especially in the area of the Via Maremmana and Tiburtina or in the small pools surrounding the thermal centre.

 ©2010.2022
Special thanks to the WR community

0Km Cuddles

Cuddles in Italian Provincia are more than just a treat, cuddles are a lifestyle, a deeply rooted tradition and an act of democracy, a show-off recreated in fashionable rituals during the milleniums, in other words, cuddles are intrinsic to Italic and Italian culture. 

In the Provincia gorgeouos extra luxurious centres dedicated to wellness coexist with wonderful places preserved as invaluable natural treasures open to a more general public.

Thermae in the province of Rome are a perfect example: laid in the green hills surrounding the Ethernal city, glorified by ancient Italics, Romans, popes, kings and emperors, higher and lower class men, women and kids, praised in ancient Latin texts and in modern documents of the Ministry of Health keep unchanged their allure renewing year after year relaxing and curative Spas techniques. 

Preserving thermal areas is a long-lasting tradition renewed in the meeting of innovative technologies that can supply a source of democratic wellbeing and, why not? act as an engine to overcome economic crisis. A bit more relaxed, oiled and perfumed with aromas, essences, waters and muds from the Earth.

Thermae and Spas are now rediscovering ancient relaxing techniques, oils and perfumes, focusing on millenial environmental and social values for a 0kms, ethical wellness with a plus, the culture of the origins (re)innovated, merging with the large cruelty free cosmetic industry.

Gestures and rituals, cuddles and moments of joy, small secrets that our ancestors knew very well and that kept alive with that feeling of thanksgiving towards Nature preserved unspoiled the healing strenght and touristic fascination of these invaluable natural treasures.

Oils extracted from hundreds-years-old olive trees and from plants well known in ancient times melt with clays and plants picked all over the world, in a global and not globalizing dialogue of contemporary worlds.

One of the rediscovered traditions is the 0Km wellness. Thermal centres and Spas are carrying out an important research work to find and renew millenial relaxing techniques, potions, creams and ointments that emanate their wonderful unicity especially in the places of production.

©2010.2021
Special thanks to the WR community